Is IPA still king?

I do not see any emoticons in your post so I am going to assume that the thoughts expressed are serious.

“i.p.a"s have no flavor" IPAs typically have a HUGE amount of flavors from the hops used to provide aroma/flavor.

“all taste the same” IPAs have a very wide variety of taste from the different hop varieties used in the brewing of the different IPAs.

“that bitterness you get is just horrible” IPAs do have substantial bitterness and apparently that does not suit your palate.

“doesnt have a particular flavor" Depending on the variety of hops used there will be varying flavors (and a complex combination of flavors): citrus, tropical fruits, piney, floral, herbal, and on and on and on ….

Cheers!

 

yea im just not a hop fan i guess.....for example...citra hops i can stand...nice flavor but then theres the bitterness in the back end which just makes me feel like i have cottonmouth.....it just seem most i.p.a taste the exact same as the ones i tried before

 

A complex malt can evidence more tha

Complexity is a term that applies to the one ingredient and to the beer as whole. In a belgian strong dark ale for instance you have a complextiy of the whole beer. yeast adding this dimension, fruit adding that, malts adding their say so. But each ingredient can also be complex depending on the style of the beer. For instance in the porter I had today there was complex malt character That evidenced more than one flavor.

In the case of an IPA the complexity is in the hops which will show you fruit. sometimes more than one, it will have backnotes and you might hear " tropical backnotes." it could sport the zest of the fruit and also a spice, and floral, sweet and tart aspects . . . all at the same time. So complexity is literal in translation but according to he qualities of the ingredient. For example, malt can be complex but cocoa nibs cannot.

 

I see and hear more talk about IPA's and DIPA's than any other craft beer, personally.

But for me, I'm much more into Gueuzes and Saisons these days. I can't get enough

 

I was going to make a very similar thread. In my experience, new beer drinkers love IPAs and IPAs make up a large percentage of their beer consumption, but after a while, they generally shift to more drinkable beers like lagers and lower ABV ales.

 

^ this

my 10 highest rated beers (and favorite):

4.91 Bourbon County Brand Barleywine Ale English Barleywine
4.8 Bourbon County Brand Stout American Double / Imperial Stout
4.79 Founders KBS (Kentucky Breakfast Stout) American Double / Imperial Stout
4.79 Imperial Eclipse Stout - Elijah Craig (12 Year) American Double / Imperial Stout
4.78 Père Jacques Dubbel
4.75 Chimay Grande Réserve (Blue) Belgian Strong Dark Ale
4.75 Ommegang Adoration Ale Belgian Strong Dark Ale
4.75 Parabola Russian Imperial Stout
4.74 Maudite Belgian Strong Dark Ale
4.74 Trois Pistoles Belgian Strong Dark Ale

the highest I rated an American IPA:

4.45 Union Jack

that comes in 40th place

 

Fixed that for you

 

IPAs are clearly the most popular style among people really heavily into craft beer.

I'm not personally a fan. I enjoy some of the DIPAs I try such as Celebration, Sucks, Pliny. But I don't find them as drinkable as Belgian styles and stouts. They glass empties a lot slower with other styles, and if it's not a top tier DIPA such as the ones I earlier mentioned it feels like a chore to finish the glass. Even if the taste is more 'complex', they just don't give me what I'm looking for when I reach for a beer.

 

In my eyes IPAs have never and never will be king. Stouts are king in my book. Like many people have said, IPAs are the go to beer or the "regular beer" that everyone starts drinking when they transition from macros too craft. But in my eyes the king of beers (not budweiser) belongs to a beer or style that can be dynamic and varied with so many different flavors and still be liked by the majority. And to me that is a stout. It can be fruity, coffee, chocolate, oatmeal, roasty, vanilla, bourbon barrel aged, coconut and so much more. Don't get me wrong i love a good IPA, i just don't think they are as universal as stouts. But thats just my opinion.

 

"King" is a meaningless term. This thread has devolved into something with no more substance than "What's your favorite band?"

I don't see their popularity waning anything soon.

 

Me and my cousin are literally the only two people in my town that we know of to like IPAs or even bitterness in beers altogether. Not saying it's our favorite, but we don't mind enjoying a few every so often, so I'd say they've probably never been in style here, and probably won't ever be, considering we have a major Coors/Miller distributor in the middle of my town called Keg One, and that's as far as beer goes for the 99% around here in a central Texas county..

 

IPA's to the beer world are like hamburgers to the food world. Everybody makes them and in multiple fashions because 1) a lot of people like them 2) they are not necessarily hard to make, and 3) they know they will sell them. That's the reason they are "king". I don't think this trend will change much due to these factors.

Case closed***

 

There's no accounting for taste. People and palates differ greatly from one to another. I would never look down on someone because they like a different style than myself. Oh you like IPA's aren't you cute. Or yeah, you would enjoy lambics. That's is just bad beer snobbery. Different strokes for different folks.

 

Have you checked a number of Austin and central Texas breweries? Every one of them makes an IPA, along with several other styles. I love stouts and porters, but let's face it, this is Texas. It's too warm here for most of the year for me to go for a stout. Thank goodness there are so many other styles available. I do love good IPA's, but I also love wit/wheat/hefeweizen, saisons, blonde ales, lagers, trippels, ambers, etc ...

 

i still get excited when ballyhooed ipa's that were previously unavailable in my area hit the shelf. despite their plenitude, it is amazing how remarkably different any two can be and that is a testament to its greatness as a style. i don't know if it is the king, but in the beer kingdom it is the utmost glorious showcase for the wonderful hop in all of its varieties and possible combinations and ratios. makes me feel like royalty.

 

I think Imperial Stout and IPA seem to be the two most popular styles among craft beer drinkers. But I still enjoy a good Red Ale, Brown Ale, Hefeweizen, Belgian Ale and many other styles... I really try not to limit myself to just one or two styles. I like a little variety.

 

In terms of a new king among craft beers I think IPA (and DIPA, hoppy pale ale) are still king. However I have seen an increase in the popularity of wheats and wit biers. They are definitely on the rise and on their way into the mainstream. But IPA is still king in the craft beer world.

 

Hopefully everyone would agree ; Everyday your gonna drink at least one. Lets face it hops over malt or wheat you can,t get more flavor. BOOM!

 

Based on what little craft beer experience I have it seems that most places I go are IPA heavy an the IPA's are always out front and center.

 

Imperial stouts are big in my area right now, especially Sierra Nevada Narwhal!