Cloudy/Not Cloudy IPA Fence

Haha I never met anyone who gets mad if a beer isn't cloudy enough, maybe I will. But there certainly is more demand than supply for some breweries, which is what I assume you point out with the comment about lines. I wish they would make enough supply so there aren't lines, and maybe they will. And some of these beers really do fall off that quickly, which is one of the things I dislike about this style (that I like everything else about). If I'm gonna pay that much for double/triple hopped aroma I want that aroma for more than a couple weeks. I don't know if this behavior is obsessive or not, I lean toward not.

But there is no doubt the idiots cluelessly dissing folks who like the style are acting snobbishly, as you point out.

 

I've seen a lot of posts on other threads talking about how west coast IPAs are dead and NE IPAs are so much better. Personally, I like both, but as Jacky Boy said sometime earlier in this thread...I like everything from cask to medium-high carbed beers. There is a point at which the high carbonation starts to detract from my taste buds ability to really taste the beer, but I don't have an issue with the low carb side (although admittedly the nose suffers on IPA-style beers).
Am I allowed to refer to @JackHorzempa as Jacky Boy?

 

Am I the only one who has reverted back to preferring West Coast IPAs? I do still love a well-made NE IPA, but most of the time when I'm craving an IPA, it's because I'm craving hops--not juice, and I want to embrace those hops in all their dank, sticky, resinous, bitter, green piney glory. I've gotten so that I'd almost rather have a cocktail if I'm craving a fruity drink.

 

No. You are not the only one. The bitter in-your-face hoppy American pale ale family is awesome. The NE IPA is a cool addition to our beer world, and I love that it exists. But even the thought that the West Coast IPA is out of date is out of bounds.

As to the OP's original question, I can't help you by pointing out specific beers, but I will say I'm with you: I like my carbonation. Some people say an overload of carbonation hurts their tongue, and I can see that. It never happens to me. For the first 44 years of my life I drank soda like water, so I'm conditioned to high carbonation. Belgian abbey ales in particular get me all excited with all that carbonation.

BTW, is what I'm seeing here lately on BA.com mean that we are now supposed to love cloudies but hate floaties? Isn't that like loving abortion but hating the death penalty? Or is that hating abortion and loving ... uhhhh ... well ...

... hell, never mind ...

*returns to drinking his beer quietly*

 

Haha that's funny, in a way, since WC IPA largely is about boiling away most of the hop flavors.

Not putting you down, not at all, in fact I love me a Hopsickle or Hop Craic but ya gotta admit it is funny in today's IPA climate to hear WC IPA's preferred because they're more hoppy.than beers such as a DDH NEIPA that have every hop flavor modern brew technology can pull.

 

Occasionally one of my favorite NEIPAs will be a little too clear for my liking (Julius has had that problem a few times since the expansion/move to Charlton) — no doubt due to the myriad variables involved w/dry hopping and timing and temperature and ingredient source/vintage. When that happens — I just pop a 1/8 tsp of bread flour into the beer, stir, and that cloudy/opaque gorgeousness re-appears.

 

So that's a consistency issue more than a cloudiness issue.

But I have never met anyone adds flour to his beer, I am assuming/really hoping that is humor.

 

I live in Trillium/Treehouse/Proclamation country, and I can agree with this. The obsessiveness is crazy..there are people (quite a few) who only drink hazy IPAs, they'll buy them by the case..and then trade them for (you guessed it) more hazy IPAs that probably taste very similar. Then they complain the beer "needs more time" and "will be optimal in a few weeks". Terrific.

I think these breweries are great, but I'd rather be a more well rounded beer drinker. Keeps things interesting. Plus I'm not consistently spending $20 (or more) for 4 packs.

 

WUT

 

There are certainly a LOT of people out there, mostly craft beer newbs, who think "hazy" means "quality".

It is possible to like one thing without giving up liking another.

 

Yea - King Arthur is my go to — keep the ingredients local to VT. I see it as analogous to the use of Irish moss or isinglass or geletin to achieve a crystal clear beer...but in the case looking to achieve opaqueness. I haven’t tried it w a WC IPA but thinking of experimenting w a cloudy Pliny to see if it will improve the experience. Cheers.

 

This so-called "fence" gets wider once you realize that well made beer is well made beer. But us traditionalists had to get over the shock of haze/turbidness. Still don't want sea monkey chunks, however. Which I have seen *some* enjoy at the bar.

 

I wouldn't say I've gravitated back towards the west coast style per se, but as the novelty of hazy IPAs has worn off, it's become more a question of quality than style. There are differences between NE/West Coast of course, but in both cases, they're styles that live or die based on their ability to showcase bright, articulate hop flavors that "pop", so to speak. I personally find that those qualities are hard qualities to obtain in either style, despite the commonly repeated wisdom that anyone can brew a decent IPA by throwing a large enough quantity of hops at it.

Really, I think the supposed superiority of the hazy NE style is more a reflection of the skill of the brewers that pioneered it than any intrinsic superiority of the style itself. Now that everyone is trying to brew it, it's pretty obvious that mediocre breweries are just as good at producing flabby, bland NE IPAs as they were at producing syrupy, overly bitter west coast IPAs.

I do think that getting beer drinkers and brewers over the idea that beer should be filtered just for the sake of appearance is a positive development, and not just for IPAs. I'm seeing breweries producing unfiltered, slightly hazy lagers now, and they are beautiful and they are delicious.

 

Agree. The level of complexity and precision required w understanding the effects of and managing water/mineral content, mash ph, yeast, timing/method of hop additions etc etc etc is what separates the Hill Farmsteads and Russian Rivers from the mediocre breweries making those shitty/muddy copycat beers. It requires trained brewers w/ experience to get the high quality stuff. I recently listened to a podcast interview w/Shaun Hill and he talked about how he had recently (May of 17) brewed his 1000th batch and it has taken him until now to truly understand the major dials and variables in the process for him to get his desired brew characteristics repeatably out of his brewhouse. Of course that’s not to say start ups w/new brewers can’t hit home runs — and that’s what makes those places all the more impressive.

 

I think we can all agree though that Milkshake IPA's are the devil!

ok mostly kidding...I just don't enjoy them personally

 

In other words, "just because it is hazy, doesn't mean that it's good".

Bit of a slow learner, ehh?

All kidding aside, anyone who is constantly looking to improve their product is greatly appreciated in my book, as there are not many of them to the dozen.

 

I am not quite sure how someone can even begin to judge whether or not they like a NE IPA if they have never had Tree House, Trillium, Other Half, Tired Hands etc... Each of these breweries also make delicious (and extremely highly rated) stouts, porters, saisons, bitters, blondes, lagers, etc... I feel that much of the hate is derived from the idea of having to wait in a line, the idea of scarcity, or possibly simple geography limiting someone from obtaining these sought after beers.

One thing is for sure, Tree House Sap and Other Half All Green Everything are outstanding West Coast style IPAs. I would put them up against any non NE IPA listed in this thread. The constant experimenting with hop profiles and different sugars is good for the future of the IPA, cloudy or not.

 

Not sure I like this lovey-dovey kumbaya attitude of yours. If you aren't going to troll people who disagree with you, what's the point of being on the internet anyway.

 

Obviously a perfectly weighted response would have been, "Hazy beers are stupid and only tossers drink them.", but I went with the less ire inciting one. Sorry about that. Won't happen again.

 

I like them just fine, but they are usualy a one and done for me, I find the lack of bitterness leads to a slightly cloying sweetness that I must be particularly sensitive to. I also cannot stand sweet sodas, candy, sugar, (Probably why I've never had a cavity either) So my go to is the WCstyle for the most part.