Necessity is the mother of invention, and it’s a good thing 18th century English colonists considered beer a necessity. Brewed in England and shipped on a six-month voyage to India, beer tended to spoil before reaching its destination. But adding more hops and raising the alcohol content (we love those things) helped transform the beer along the way into something lighter and more refreshing than what boarded the ship. Today, IPAs are a gateway for getting home brewers into full-time craft brewing and turning beer drinkers into craft brew enthusiasts. From West Coast to Hazy and beyond, here are some of our favorites.
Beers:
Alaskan Brewing Junea Juice IPA
alaskanbeer.com/our-beers/juneau-juice/
This unfiltered IPA is a glowing medium gold, with a hazy appearance reminiscent of a blue–sky day in Juneau, Alaska. Ripe pineapple, fresh tangerine and pine resin abound in the aroma, with a host of other tropical and stone fruit flavors.
Big Country Organic Brewing West Coast and Hazy IPAs
enjoybigcountry.com/pages/beer
Dank pine and sun-ripened grapefruit are the standouts in their West Coast IPA – a bright, bitter, beautiful beer with a billowing head and refreshing bite. In their Hazy IPA, aromas of grand spruce trees and fresh squeezed orange juice complement a citrus-forward palate with notes of resinous pine providing outstanding balance.
Brooklyn Brewery Pulp Art Hazy IPA
brooklynbrewery.com/brooklyn-beers/year-round/pulp-art-hazy-ipa/
This modern masterpiece is a delicious blur between beer and art, with billboard-sized notes of bright tropical fruit and a refreshingly soft finish. This brew brings juicy refreshment for everyone, from haze aficionados to those just discovering the lush world of tropical hops.
Cigar City Brewing Jai Alai IPA
cigarcitybrewing.com/beer/jai-alai/
Bold hop flavor and aroma is front and center in this flavorful American IPA. A bouquet of tangerine and candied orange peel tempts the nose while flavors of clementine, Valencia orange, and subtle caramel provide counterpoint to a soft bitterness and rich malt character.
Community Beer Mosaic IPA
communitybeer.com/beers/mosaic-ipa/
This hop-ful IPA is one that both session drinkers and beer nerds alike will love. An extremely well-balanced brew that showcases its unique hop aroma and flavor, it has a noticeable malt backbone to help soften the bitterness, while keeping the body fairly light.
Deep Ellum Brewing Deep Ellum IPA
deepellumbrewing.com/beer/deep-ellum-ipa/
This potent “Texas” IPA boasts some over-the-top tropical fruit, citrus, pine and floral aromas and flavors. It’s loaded with Deep Ellum’s favorite American hops for a bitter punch and the potency required to earn the hometown name.
Deschutes Brewery Fresh Squeezed IPA
deschutesbrewery.com/collections/all-beer/products/fresh-squeezed-ipa
This mouthwatering IPA is the perfect beer for showing up, hanging out and kicking back. A refreshing blend of juicy and tropical hops give it that bright flavor, ideal for keeping the day young and the good times rolling.
Dogfish Head Craft Brewery 60 Minute IPA
dogfish.com/brewery/beer/60-minute-ipa
Inspired by the continual hopping process they invented with 90 Minute IPA, 60 Minute builds on that one-of-a-kind process and flavor. With a pungently, citrusy, grassy hop flavor that’s not crushingly bitter, this brew is a surprisingly sessionable IPA for the craft enthusiast.
Elysian Brewing Space Dust IPA
elysianbrewing.com/beer/space-dust-ipa
When leftover Galaxy hop dust was spontaneously thrown into the brew, Space Dust was born. This IPA balances bitterness with a sweetness of hop flavors; grapefruit, mango, and orange aromas; a medium body and a dry finish.
Founders Brewing All Day IPA
foundersbrewing.com/our-beer/all-day-ipa/
This is a beer for anyone looking to make the ordinary extraordinary and the good times great. Where easy drinking meets high quality, this one is naturally brewed with a complex array of malts, grains and hops for a balanced citrusy profile and a crisp clean finish.
Independence Brewing Stash IPA
independencebrewing.com/beers/stash-ipa/
This brew’s an enlightening hop trip you’ll wish would never end. A simple malt bill is the canvas upon which a kaleidoscopic array of six hop profiles groove: citrusy and floral, earthy and dank, piney and resinous.
Lagunitas Brewing A Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ IPA
lagunitas.com/beer/a-little-sumpin-sumpin/
A strong hop finish on a silky body, this is a hoppy pale wheat ale that is great for IPA fans, but so smooth that hefeweizen fans dig it, too. It’s got tons of tropical fruitiness with none of the fruit, plus hints of bubblegum, light cedar and pine.
Martin House Brewing Friday IPA
This flavor bomb of an IPA is brewed with a hefty amount of Mosaic, Chinook, Amarillo, and Simcoe hops. Dank, hoppy and juicy, it’s sure to please fans of Northeast style IPAs with its hoppy aromatics and tropical flavors.
Odell Brewing IPA
As bold and flavorful as traditional IPA has been since it first sailed from England to India, Odell felt they could crank it up a notch. Thanks to varieties of highly aromatic American hops, this brew has a distinctive bitterness profile and an incredible hop character.
Oskar Blues Brewery Double IPA
oskarblues.com/beer/dales-double-ipa/
If you’re looking for an IPA with some kick, then you’ve got to go with a Double IPA like this one. Aromas of pine, citrus, peach and melon blend into flavors of fruit and graham cracker in each sip, with medium-bodied sweetness and balancing bitterness.
Real Ale Brewing Axis IPA
realalebrewing.com/beers/axis/
This exotic IPA is a response to the abundance of West Coast IPAs on offer. With a hop-forward animal magnetism, this brew boasts tropical fruit, citrus, and a pale golden body, and the Eureka, Simcoe, and Mosaic hops give it such a smooth and powerful flavor.
Saint Arnold Brewing Elissa IPA
saintarnold.com/year-round-beers/
A traditional IPA, this brew is very hoppy with a properly balanced malty body. Hops in the kettle and being dry-hopped in the fermenter add a pleasant floral aroma, and reverse osmosis water takes the harsh notes out of the bitterness.
Sierra Nevada Brewing Torpedo Extra IPA
sierranevada.com/brews/torpedo
They’ve cranked the aroma and flavor to full blast thanks to their custom dry-hopping device, the Hop Torpedo. This original “Extra” IPA delivers explosive hops taste with powerful notes of citrus, tropical fruit and pine.
Stone Brewing IPA
stonebrewing.com/beer/year-round-releases/stone-ipa
Bold, fresh and flavorful, this IPA quickly became the flagship brew of a young Stone Brewery back in 1997. Now it’s one of the best-selling IPAs in the country. This golden beauty explodes with tropical, citrusy, piney hop flavors and aromas, all perfectly balanced by a subtle malt character.
Tupps Brewery IPA
This one is classic in all the right ways – an IPA you’ll keep coming back to. It’s a crisp, clean and bright brew with notes of pine, melon and grapefruit that’s punctuated with firm bitterness thanks to a punchy amount of Citra and Cascade.
True Vine Brewing Daddy’s Juice Box IPA
This is a big, bold, juicy, 8.5% ABV treat for adults. With a full nose of citrus and tropical aromas and a super smooth finish, this hop beast is sure to please. Plus, it’s easy drinking for a double IPA, just like those juice boxes of our youth.
Victory Beer Hop Devil IPA
victorybeer.com/beers/hopdevil/
A tasty deal with the devil, this bold brew satisfies the hoppy cravings of the most insatiable IPA lover. Pine and citrus fill the nose from the American hops, balanced with ample malt sweetness and caramel.
Wild Acre Brewing Juice Slinger IPA
wildacrebrewing.com/juice-slinger-ipa
Packed with juicy grapefruit and plenty of character, this IPA is smooth and approachable while still offering a straight-shootin’ citrus kick. This brew has plenty of traditional hop flavor with a charismatic and unique grapefruit twist.
