IPA craze: When will it be over?!

Asking when craft dudes will stop liking IPAs is like asking when women will stop liking chocolate. It's not a craze. It's here to stay. (Sorry if I offended any women who hate chocolate).

 

No harm, no foul. Apology accepted. You can buy me a beer if we ever meet to make up for your thoughtless insolence.

 

This.

I can see it from both sides. Last month I was at Stone Brewery in Point Loma. They had 40 taps and over half of them were IPA's. I like an IPA just as much as the next guy (probably not as much as some people around here), but it's not my favorite style. On that particular day (like most days) I wanted something dark and stout, but there wasn't much to choose from in that style. I had a couple decent beers then went over to Pizza Port in OB and found what I really wanted. So really it's not a big deal, I just had to drive another 10 minutes to get what I really wanted.

10 months out of the year I'm in the Philippines. The lack of beer selection there is astonishing. If a bar had just one beer other than San Miguel and it was a halfway fresh IPA I'd be back there everyday... There is no room to be picky at all there.

 

Does it matter? Who cares? Oh, that's right... You do. ;-P

 

+1

40 taps and 1/2 were IPAs. At Stone, were you really surprised? Greg is hip to the game. He's also in this for a profit. He has on what turns over the fastest.

 

It's easier to alter a house's decor than to alter its base structure.

To explain that analogy, hops are probably the easiest thing to experiment with, without changing the recipe's procedure. Changing the grain bill or the yeast alters pretty much every step of the way from mash temp to time in the fermenter, but fiddling with the hops used is probably a much simpler process. That could be a factor in the proliferation of IPA's, but I could be wrong.

 

Surprised? Not really. Disappointed? Slightly. Did I enjoy what I had? Yes. Overall it was fine, I was a happy customer. Pizza Port had a superior selection though. Many styles represented fairly equally.

 

It will be over when weed is legal in all 50 states.

 

Can't stop. Won't stop.
But I'm more of a barleywine/stout guy.. but Hop Venom (Boneyard) has got me back on the DIPA bandwagon. Honestly, the style I don't drink much of is a single IPA.. I usually go for the double. A solid pale ale though is hard to find, but damn delicious when someone nails it (I'm looking at you FFF and Half Acre).

 

Nah. That's when we'll see the proliferation of weed IPAs.

 

You also didn't read anything I actually wrote. My original post stated (and the following post stated British again) that there was lack of mild and bitter, which is best on cask. All you did was list all the bars that serve cask. I'm on NERAX's twitter feed, I know what beers are on cask, and where. Not many from the UK. You have twice/year in Boston to find that, it's at NERAX, ever been? And all those places that have cask, how many do you think have bartenders and managers that know how to properly handle cask beer? I'll let you know because I've been to multiple, the list is VERY short. That's why NERAX is pure gold. Properly handled cask, directly from the UK.

Just because any style is available, does not mean it is being done right. You're confusing quality with quantity.

And this is the main issue with IPA lovers claiming, "just drink something else." Or, "there's never been a better time in the US for craft." How many making those statements know what other styles can taste like from the source? Have you traveled to Germany? Have you been to NERAX?

An IPA lover in the US telling someone who adores a Helles that there's "more variety", is like a butcher at a steakhouse telling a vegetarian there's a multitude of options because the menu happens to have a veggie burger on it.

 

I would love if brewers quit finding it necessary to hop the hell out of everything as well. That being said, I still love/enjoy a good IPA. Along with Saisons, and Pales, they are my go to somewhat "session" beers. The craze bothers me because all of the retailers stocking so many IPAs, and not some of the other styles. I do not however see it ending anytime soon.

 

I love IPA's The End

 

Amen. Too many local breweries advertising their brewers' "love of hops," when in fact their brews are unbalanced and totally reliant on America's addiction. I like me some good IPAs, but they're a fad. I believe some great brews are being created and revolutionizing the industry due to it, but eventually the industry will balance itself out.

 

FAD!!!!! How dare you!!!!

 

I can't wait for fall and winter. Stout time! Yay!

 

I really think the new craze is sours. IPAs have always been a go to for a lot and stouts are always a favorite but I've found that most people are going for sours these days.

 

I haven't read through the other comments, so I hope that I'm not repeating something that's already been said ad nauseum... but here's my thoughts. I've noticed that when it comes to flavor that something that is desirable is something that hits the entire palate in a balanced manner - and if an IPA is done right, it does just this - a good IPA will have a wonderful balance that addresses the entire palate. A good example is Stone's "Enjoy By" which had elements of bitter, herbal, floral, and sweet - flavors that excited the entire palate, but in a balanced fashion. Many other beer styles seem to accentuate one or more of these nuances, but an IPA seems to cover the entire gambit quite well, and a really good IPA will cover all of them in a balanced fashion, and may therefore be more interesting and satisfying than many other beer styles. In fact, there's even been a recent thread about all of the variations of IPA's that are available. They are so popular that you can even find "all day" versions of this style from many of the heavy hitting craft brewers out there. So with all of this said, I fully expect IPA's to be at or near the top of the heap for a very long time - and if you ask me, that's a very good thing. So while it may seem to be an annoying fad, I think that it is in fact a very compelling and desirable style because it's what our palates really want - and that will likely be around for a very long time. I hope

 

Holy cow! You went to The Nook in my home town! I drive by there every day on my way to work.