Are New England IPAs overrated?

Send me a bunch of 'em and I'll get back to you.

 

I have been enjoying "better" beer since before it was called "craft." I have seen fads come and go, and seen beers that were considered world class that are now considered ordinary by many.

I have never been a trend chaser, but in the past I would get caught up in the hype over certain beers and go out of my way sometimes to obtain them. On most of these occasions my reaction was anywhere from underwhelmed to moderately satisfied.

For the last six years or so I have totally given up on following hype. I appreciate variety and will try something new, but I don't chase it. I have also become more reflective on my own personal likes and realize now that I tend to prefer traditional styles that have qualities that are seldom hyped.

I have not had a NE IPA yet. They are still hard to come by in Ohio without chasing them. I'm going to homebrew one soon, mainly to use up some hops that I have been sitting on. I'll buy one as soon as I see one as well. Maybe I'll like the style, maybe not.

So I'm not going to say that NE IPAS are overrated or not. They are definitely hyped, so that means a lot of better beer lovers like them. Experience tells me that some will stick around in the long run, but a few years from now the hype will be focused on something else.

If you enjoy chasing beers, do so. If you enjoy being in on whatever the latest fad is, that's fine. If you only want to have a few old classics, that's fine too. We're dealing with a hobby here where there is no right or wrong approach since taste is subjective. Thanks only thing I do not have much patience for are individuals who think their likes and opinions are right and others are wrong.

 

Is it safe to say that your answer to the question is “Yes”?

Cheers!

 

Last spring I homebrewed my version of a Trillium Galaxy Fort Point beer based on Dave Green's recipe in the September 2015 issue of BYO. I was very pleased with how that beer turned out. Maybe you would enjoy this beer too?

Cheers!

@telejunkie

P.S. Save up some money. The hop costs for these sort of beers is not insignificant.

 

I have worked up a recipe mainly based on the Averagely Perfect recipe on the homebrewing forum. The main difference will be the hop bill, Centennial, Citra, and Galaxy in descending order with Centennial comprising about 2/3 of the hop bill. Hopefully the hop profile is appropriate since Centennial is not a preferred hop for the style, but I have a lot of Centennial that needs to go.

I'm planning on using reused S-04 yeast. Any thoughts on whether that will be appropriate?

 

Based upon my readings I agree with you here; Centennial does not seem to be a popular choice for the so called 'NE' style IPA. I am uncertain whether featuring Centennial will be an 'issue' or not.

I used a fresh packet of S-04 for my beer and that yeast worked fine for me. Reusing this yeast strain should work for you.

OK, now is time for me the 'theorize' about what it takes to create a beer of the so called 'NE' IPA style. My theory is that three things are needed:

• A protein rich wort. I used 1.5 lbs. of wheat malt in my beer to 'enrich' the protein content but there are other sources of grains to achieve a protein rich wort.
• Lots (and I do mean lots) of hops for late hopping and dry hopping. I solely have experience with Galaxy hops but I have read where Citra and Mosaic 'work' here as well. Maybe Centennial would 'work' too?
• Specific English yeast strains. The two strains that I would suggest are Boddingtons (e.g., WY1318) and Whitbread (WY1098, WLP007, S-04). I have seen the Conan yeast strain mentioned but every can of Heady Topper that I have had was a bit hazy (i.e., not murky/turbid/opaque) so I personally would not suggest the Conan strain for a so called 'NE'IPA

Take my three bullets above with a grain of salt since I have no 'science' to corroborate it.

Best of luck with your homebrewed beer.

Cheers!

 

They are certainly becoming a bit too common and are therefore getting less and less interesting. Many of them taste exactly the same now.

 

Part of it is the availability....scarcity will always drive hype and perception. A beer will probably be rated better if the consumer feels like they have accomplished something before the beer is even opened.

That said, i think the style is different and very good. I enjoy it.

 

Most definitely not. I remember when people thought that West Coast IPAs were a fad and they never went away. The IPAs coming out of the NE are some of the best I've ever had.

 

I think I might understand that chalky feel, though I don't get it as much with the Aslin (mainly) and Tired Hands (thanks, @CanConPhilly) - though I tend to get it with many an oatmeal stout.

Anyhow, I think I've called what I have gotten as "chewing on a rubber band" - where the thicker feel of the opening of the beer meets the bitterness of the hops bubbling through it. I don't get it with all NE IPAs, though.

I enjoy the sneaky level of bitterness in these beers that also highlight the juicy aspects. The combination overall feels less bitter, but the bitter hop notes are still recognizable. I still mostly prefer West Coast IPAs, but there's place in my/the world for both.

And I agree with many - just calling it a NE IPA doesn't mean it's a good beer.

 

This. The rapid fall-off of NE IPAs has been discussed quite a bit in the Tired Hands thread. Drinking a 2 week old Milkshake IPA is a completely different experience than drinking a 2 month old one. Appearance, Taste, Smell...everything changes (for the worse, usually).

 

Have you tried this with a non-Milkshake beer? I once stored a Tired Hands hoppy IPA (my apologies for not remembering the brand name now) in my refrigerator for 2 months and it was still tasty to my palate. I would not state that there was no hop fade but the beer had the three qualities of:

• turbid/murky/opaque
• a nice soft velvety mouthfeel
• a quality that people like to describe as "juicy"

I am by no means encouraging folks to purposefully age their Tired Hands beers but based upon this one data point I am not going to state that consuming within 1 month is an absolute must for non-Milkshake Tired Hands hoppy beers.

Cheers!

 

Ah, no.

They hit on a combo that's easy on the palate, you get great hop flavor without the stunning bitterness that makes some IPAs a one and done. Nicely balanced IMO is their secret.

 

Welcome to the new world of the "crhazies"!!

Cheers!

 

Depends on if I've been drinking or not .

Since I'm sober now I suppose I'll just say that I'm sure others are truly getting something out of these that I am not, and vive le diference. My only concern is with the general dynamic of hype, and how for a period of time the subject in question tends to steal the oxygen from the room; that's independent of this particular substyle, though.

 

I think it's a combination of the excessive proteins, dryness and suspended yeast in this case. With the oatmeal stouts I can see what you're getting if it's too dry and maybe overdoes it on the roast malts (iow, not a very good one ).

 

What!?! It is 11:40 in the morning and you are sober!?!

Michael, you may have posted on this in the past but let me ask anyway: have you had the 'popular' beers from Trillium or Tree House? The 'closest' I have come to drinking a Trillium beer is my homebrewed version. I have had innumerable Tired Hands beers at the brewpubs (and a few cans) but it does not appear to me that on BA Tired Hands gets the same reverence as the Massachusetts guys get.

Do you have any predictions on what the new hyped beer style will be? Do you think it will be Pilsners (make sure you read NBS tomorrow).

Cheers!

 

I don't think the main contributors of the style are over hyped. I am always curious about styles I haven't had. I like to try them myself outside of the hype and form my own opinion.

I was able to pick up some Tree House to see what the hype was about. When I opened my first can of Julius I knew it was something special.

The taste was impressive and the hop flavor and balanced bitterness was mind blowing.

I haven't had any other breweries that produce them to compare but I can say Tree House has a fan in me....

We plan to brew one here when spring hits and will be trying an experiment and try brewing one that hits on all the characteristics without being hazy.

I wouldn't say they are over hyped...They are hyped for sure....In my opinion atleast the brand I have had it is with good reason.