Are New England IPAs overrated?

Anyone want to send some down to us lonely and bereft Southerners outside of NE distro, you know, for hype checking purposes? Promise we'll be unbiased in our judgements it's the only way to settle the argument far as I'm concerned. Julius and the milkshakes etc. SOUND really good and hype worthy when I see descriptions of it, I'll say that much.

 

I think a lot of posters here are setting up a false equivalence of "overrated" or "overhyped" = "not good". Of course things can be both overrated and great simultaneously.

I think that since NEIPAs are the hottest thing in BA-land right now, the only possibility is that they're overhyped (for now). And that's saying something other than whether they're wonderful or not. It's saying that our attention is over-represented in thinking and talking about them, and chasing them.

Different example, since I've had extremely little exposure to NEIPAs: KBS is one of the greatest beers on the planet, in my opinion. It's also overrated and overhyped due to the extreme obsession of so many BAs. Meanwhile, Big Bad Baptist sits on shelves while people chase KBS. (And I'd also argue that BA Imperial Stouts as a style are overrated, even though it's a favorite style of mine.)

 

These beers are great but a lot of Brewery's are making them too bitter.

 

In my view of the beer world, a true enthusiast is open to trying any style as well as any brand. With that said, I wouldn't say New England beers are overrated, its poorly-informed individuals who overhype some of them. I've lived in both the Midwest and New England, and I've found more individuals from N.E. that are too stubborn to try beers found outside of their region. Its okay to have a preference, but don't knock other beers just because they're not your type let alone if you've never tried them.

The other night a Midwesterner got trashed on a Tree House Trading forum because he offered Bells Hopslam in return for Julius/King Julius. People called the beer "malt-bomb" "trash" and absolutely tore this guy apart just for daring to offer something not on "TH's level" etc etc. I suppose this is what happens when you only drink TH of course. This other time I was standing in line at TH, and the guy behind me who claims to write for beer magazines and websites like BA, trashed Trillium in favor of Tree House. It blows my mind how he's considered a credible source.

I am always open to trying different beers, from all over the US (even though I'm not big on West Coast style, I still give them a shot). I'm actually getting my first Texas brews next week! Overall, consider the source and not the beer. Look at their reviews or Untappd checkins, and if the overwhelming majority of them praise NE IPAs and tend to knock other styles, well you know the conclusion. Cheers to all beers!

 

I'm ALSO not a brewing expert so blind contradicting the blind here, but I'm not so sure about that. Trillium brews Summer Street with Simcoe and Columbus, Hill Farmstead does Society and Solitude #1 Cascade exclusively... there's many more but those are a couple I can remember trying that fit the NE IPA mold without using the typical hops associated with the style. Obviously they're not exactly the same flavor profile you would get with Citra, Mosaic, etc, but they're overall they're a lot closer than you might think. The NE IPA style is much more about brewing technique than just throwing a bunch of Citra at a beer.

 

If they're from New England, then yeah.

 

I like what TH and Trillium beers have to offer, more often than not. I like them better than more traditional IPAs, although I also love Zombie Dust, Pliny, Jai Alai, etc. Personally, I really like the hop profiles of Mosaic, Chinook and Galaxy a ton, and they tend to be strongly present in the NE beers I like (particularly Green, Congress St., Sap and Doppelganger).

That said, nobody's saying that you have to like 'em, just that a lot of people do.

 

The term "New England IPA" is overrated.

 

Agree 100%.

I find the "NEIPA juice bomb" style very different than these three. I love Heady for its uniqueness but never tire of Lunch. Other high ABV, I find these easy to drink over and over. Juice bombs are tasty but leave me wanting for something--and its not another one.

 

See, that's the thing about this new crop of IPAs: when there's enough malt sweetness and hop fruitiness, I love 'em. But a lot of them are super dry (*cough* Other Half *cough*) and that's a turnoff for me.

My take is, when they're done well (Trillium, Veil, Hoof Hearted) they're some of the best IPAs I've ever tasted. When they're done not-so-well (some Other Half, some Burial and even some Tree House duds come to mind) they can be rather lackluster.

 

People like what they like. You'll always find fan boys (and girls) who will swear they love something because it's the in thing to go for. But I think generally you find a whole lot of people who enjoy a particular beer theres good reason for it.

 

Good thing I live in Colorado and can get as much BBB as I want. MUAHAHAHAHA.

 

Definitely true, although it bears mentioning that some of the NEipa's that everyone says "fall off" in flavor after a month actually hold up pretty well.

I had a 3 month old Julius from Treehouse and I thought it was still pretty damn good. Had fresher cans from them too, and the fresher ones certainly take the intensity and flavor up a notch, just making the experience more enjoyable.

I don't think the style is overhyped though. Been fortunate to enjoy most of the big name ones from NE, and now lots of bay area breweries are actually coming out with some killer NE style ipa's of their own! (Cellarmaker, Alvarado St, Fieldwork).

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, as they say.

 

Heady isn't distro at canning, I believe John Klimmish said the beer hits peak at about 8 weeks or so after canning. I think Citra hops fall off pretty quickly, beers heavily dry hopped with Citra fall off too. I think canning helps over bottles, but most of those big Dipas and multi hop beers and I think they hold up well, thinking 12 weeks might be pushing the limits though. There's a difference between optomial and still good to drink. I just went thru a few Abrasives canned on 10/27 for Xmas, they lost a good bit of the nose and a lot of the pure fruitiness this beer cranks out. Still good to drink but far from fantastic, 2 months old was a bit too long.

 

Its just preference. There is a beer for everybody. I love juicy NE style IPAs. I personally can't stand most lagers, kolsch, and Belgian style beers but I don't fault anyone for liking them. That is their thing, and I am sure they taste amazing to that individual.

I love stouts, but prefer chocolate, milk or coconut over coffee. That is just me. I have friends who prefer coffee stouts. Again, I don't fault them for liking it more.

I also remember when I first started drinking craft beer. I preferred pale ales, or less hoppy beers to the piney IPAs that were starting to get popular. Now, love all kinds of IPAs and don't drink APAs that often.

My point is there are so many beers/styles/breweries that are available for each person that there is no need to revolt against a particular style like some folks do. I won't be making a thread anytime soon about which styles I don't like.

Cheers

 

Overrated I say no, are they ridiculously hyped YES. The problem with them IMO is people now expect every IPA to be NE style Hazy juice bomb and can not appreciate ones you can see through or some what see through.

 

No. Thread over.

 

I totally agree that they are over-hyped. However, right now they are one of the styles I prefer. With a few exceptions, before discovering the style I appreciated a good IPA, but would not rush out to try it. I really did not care for a lot of the English style IPAs or white IPAs. After having beers from Trillium and Tree House, I find myself driving up waiting to see what I can try next.

 

I'd say any beer that is hyped tends to get higher ratings, that's not saying its overrated just saying the ratings get bumped up a bit due to hype. I find it very hard to rate some hyped up beers. I can't decide if I am rating it too low because I was expecting so much or if I'm giving it too much credit based on the hype. I had MBC Lunch the other night and was underwhelmed. It was a very solid beer but rating it was very difficult since I was expecting so much from it. Had the same experience with Heady Topper.

Though I must admit the first time I drank Julius I did hear angels singing

 

I just had a Treehouse Haze on Friday with an August canned date and it was still fantastic. I have access to many great NE IPAs and don't agree with everyone's assessment that they must be drank within XXX weeks or they go bad.