Can someone help explain the discrepancy between the purported story of why IPAs were invented and the current attitude that hops are better fresh? After some quick research, it seems like it was believed that beers with a higher alcohol and hops content lasted longer—and indeed were produced for the purpose of shipping beers to India that would not spoil. These IPAs were said to last a long time in a barrel and even get better with age. (See Wikipedia, plus a handful of top results when googling "ipa beer history.") Yet I see nowadays that people rarely want to drink an IPA older than 60 days, which seems to contradict the above. Thoughts?
It's because modern IPAs are brewed to showcase the hops, whereas "original" IPAs were brewed merely to survive. Hop flavor fades over time and "original" IPAs weren't designed to be hoppy as we currently understand the term. That said, the whole "drink IPA's fresh" movement can get a bit extreme
Willbm3 has got it on the head. They put the copious hops in as a preservative. They wouldn't have drank them right away, and, if they did, they would most likely have found them insufferably bitter. They wanted the hops to fade to the point that it would eventually taste like the beer they were used to drinking.
It is also worth noting that hoppy has various connotations: · Hoppy can mean bitter. The original English IPAs were heavily hopped with bittering hops (hops added at the beginning of the boil) · Hoppy can mean hop flavor (flavor hops are added near the end of the boil e.g., with 15 minutes remaining in the boil) · Hoppy can mean hop aroma (aroma hops are added at the end of the boil and/or via dry hopping after fermentation is complete) Modern day American style IPAs showcase hop flavor/aroma in addition to hop bitterness. The hop aroma/flavor fades after a relatively short period of time (e.g., 60 days). Cheers!
Do more than quick research. The answer is out there, and it has very little to do with the widely upheld opinions hat you will find here. It becomes an argument for some reason, with many here that refuse to let go of legend and misinterpretation.
Thanks to everyone except the guy who told me to do more research. I hit a dead end where I kept seeing the same information over and over, so I figured I'd directly ask the question that was on my mind. If you have any good resources to share, historic or scientific, please do! willbm3's answer is what I assumed but couldn't verify. Good to know that it's consensus! Thanks again.
