Beer Guy: May June 2018

Everything you wanted to know about the evolution of IPA (India Pale Ale) 

The older I get, the more I find life is not black and white. Even the Pope said, “Who am I to judge?” But I’m sure of one thing: bitter beer is better beer.

Or am I? I expressed my bitter belief in my first beer column for The Tomato almost a decade ago. I’m still a true believer in the bitter trinity: beer, chocolate and coffee. But there’s a world of amazing beer out there. From sparkling saisons to mouth-puckering sours to sweet milk stouts to dank wild ales, there’s an incredible, growing diversity in beer today.

Just within the world of IPA (India Pale Ale), craft beer’s most popular and iconic style, there has been a remarkable evolution. The IPA template was set in the 18th century by London brewers like George Hodgson bumping up their pale ales with added hops and alcohol for the long sea voyage to British India. Scotsman Peter Ballantine brought English IPA to America, with Ballantine IPA carrying the IPA flag through the 20th century. The IPA reboot began with American craft brewers like Fritz Maytag at Anchor Brewing who took IPA up several notches with the aggressive new American Cascade hop. American IPAs were brassy, big and bitter, redolent of pine and grapefruit and not for the faint of heart. By the 21st century craft beer was synonymous with American IPA.

Now we have IPA’s third wave. First came Imperial or Double IPA, with jacked up hops, alcohol and bitterness. In reaction, came the Session IPA or ISA that keeps the big hoppy taste but lowers the alcohol. Brewers explored the Pacific Northwest 4C hops (Cascade, Centennial, Chinook and Columbus) and moved onto new hop varieties like Citra or Mosaic that gave “juicy” flavours to IPAs. Others sourced just-harvested hops to make fresh hop or wet hop IPAs. Some changed up the yeast. Belgian yeast makes a fruity, spicy Belgian IPA. Wild yeast like Brettanomyces makes a sour, funky Brett IPA. Adding actual fruit like grapefruit creates a fruited IPA. Combine IPA with another style to create a hybrid, like the White IPA – part witbier, part IPA. Or a Black IPA or Cascadian Dark Ale – part porter/stout, part IPA. Or tweak the whole process – yeast, hops, malt and methodology—and create a hazy, juicy marvel called the New England (or Northeast) IPA. NEIPAs are the buzziest beers around, enjoyed by both IPA obsessives and people who don’t like IPAs.

For a new brewery, the tumult in craft beer is daunting but also an opportunity. Canmore Brewing’s founder, Brian Dunn, spent 18 months in his garage working on recipes, trying new things, getting it right, before his brewery launched in 2017. For Canmore Brewing’s first IPA, they added 20 per cent Alberta malted rye to the brew, creating Railway Ave Rye IPA. Dunn told me the idea was to make a beer that was different than the many IPAs hitting the market in Alberta, but still an approachable, delicious beer. Dunn’s gamble paid off, with Railway Ave Rye IPA winning a bronze medal for Best IPA at the first Alberta Beer Awards. Dunn is right. After a long time as an IPA desert, there are now many solid Alberta IPAs. I made a count of 32 full time Alberta IPAs recently. Which one is Alberta’s best IPA? Who am I to judge?

IPAlberta six pack

Alberta has come a long way from the days when Wild Rose IPA was the only decent Alberta IPA. Check out these third wave Alberta IPAs at brewery tap rooms or better beer stores in Edmonton.

Click images to zoom

Hell’s Basement Brewery: The Yard Strawberry Milkshake IPA, Medicine Hat Can a sweet, frothy, fruity beer still be called an IPA? I’m not sure – give me another and I’ll get back to you. Milkshake IPAs are made by adding lactose (milk sugar) and fruit to the mix. Hell’s Basement gets the balance just right: creamy, sweet and tart with a base of understated dry hoppiness.

Canmore Brewing: Railway Ave Rye IPA, Canmore Canmore Brewing’s Brian Dunn went with a rye IPA as one of his first offerings to stand out from the crowd of new IPAs, but also because he felt rye takes a great IPA to the next level. Rye adds a crisp, peppery edge that is nicely balanced with the rounded caramel sweetness and nuttiness from the malt.

Zero Issue Brewing: Dystopia White IPA, Calgary Calgary brothers Kirk and Mark MacDonald grew up comics/sci-fi/gaming nerds. As adults they merged their childhood passions with their adult passion: brewing beer. Dystopia nicely blends the fruity, yeasty taste of a witbier with the piney hop bitterness of an IPA.

Dandy Ales: In the Bleak Midwinter Black IPA, Calgary Given the winter that wouldn’t end, a winter seasonal seems appropriate for spring. Dandy’s black IPA melds the wintry attributes of a stout – black colour, roasted malt, caramel and coffee flavour – with the spring-like juice and fruit of a new style IPA. Hopped with Citra and Mosaic for aroma.

Blindman Brewing: New England-Style Pale Ale, Lacombe Always on the leading edge of beer innovation, it’s no surprise Blindman is on top of the beer style du jour, NEIPA. Also no surprise: it’s really good, winning the gold medal at the Alberta Beer Awards for Trendy Beer of the Year. Opaque, hazy in the glass, with a prominent fruity aroma, the taste is all about the juicy fruit.

Alley Kat Brewing: Argyll Dragon Double IPA, Edmonton Alley Kat was brewing Imperial IPAs before they were cool. And with the Dragon series they brought the idea of a single-hopped IPA to Alberta. Here they have brought back a classic from the series, the Argyll Dragon – hopped with Citra, Centennial and Cascade for a bold citrus punch.