Sours might be grabbing all of the headlines in the world of craft beer these days, but the IPA is still the heart and soul of American craft beer. Brewers love to make them and the rest of us love to drink them, which is why the majority of breweries will knock out several different riffs on the style every year. We had the chance to try out a six pack of IPAs recently, most of which are seasonal releases that are just now hitting the shelves. We also threw a couple of double IPAs in there because, let’s face it, double IPAs rock.
Tropicannon Citrus IPA
Heavy Seas
Here’s a new twist on Heavy Seas’ year-round Loose Cannon IPA. Take your standard Loose Cannon, switch the hop profile to play up the citrus and brew it with dried grapefruit, orange and lemon peel, then add mango and blood orange after the fermentation. So yeah, it’s fruity. It smells like straight up mango juice, the super saccharine kind that kids love. That juice is front and center on the sip too, but there’s an odd, slightly bitter note hanging around in the background taking the sweetness down a few pegs. Overall, it’s hellaciously fruity without being saccharine. In my opinion it’s not in the same league as Grapefruit Sculpin, but if you like that super fruit style, give her a go. It should hit the shelves this month.
Rating: 76
Crikey IPA
Reuben’s Brews
This is actually a year-round beer for the Seattle brewery, and it has received much love in the Pacific Northwest with plenty of regional competition hardware. We had the opportunity to try it for the first time recently, and they’re going to start canning it in July, so we figured we’d let you know about it. Crikey pours a dark orange, with an aroma that begins with fresh evergreen before moving to more citrus notes. There’s some great maltiness here, with a nice round body that gives away to a crisp finish. There’s nothing too fruity or dank, nothing over the top at all. It actually feels like a solid session IPA, even though it comes in at a respectable 6.8% ABV.
Rating: 80
Shanghai’d IPA
Old Town Brewery
This is actually one of Old Town’s flagship beers, but it pulled the gold medal from GABF in 2015, so we thought it was worth some love. It’s an English style IPA, so don’t expect the fruity hop profile of the American IPAs that you’re probably used to. It’s pours almost red, like the color of wet Georgia clay and has a zesty, nearly spicy nose. It’s all caramel and malt upfront, then hits you with an old school hop bitterness and just the slightest hint of grapefruit. It’s as malty as some of the red IPAs I’ve had recently, but keeps the malt in check with that classic bitter hop profile. If you like the style, you need to track this beer down.
Rating: 84
Cosmik Debris
Creature Comforts
Okay, it’s probably not fair to throw a double IPA into the ring with a bunch of standard IPAs, but I don’t care. The Double is the new Single. And Cosmik Debris is incredible, plus, it’s only 8% ABV, so a lot of breweries would hesitate to put this beer in the double category. Cosmik smells like fresh air and Christmas trees. Scratch that, it smells like a Peppermint Patty, so you expect something crisp and refreshing after the nose, like biting into a bar of Irish Spring soap, but it’s incredibly malty, with something almost savory in the sip. There’s a full, round mouthfeel that delivers a little sweet fruit and just a hint of pine, before transitioning into a zesty, dry finish. Overall, it’s kind of jammy. And kind of awesome.
Rating: 89
Modus Mandarina
Ska Brewing
Another one of those fruit-centric IPAs, Modus Mandarina is Ska’s flagship Modus Hoperandi IPA that’s been dry hopped with Mandarina Bavaria hops and brewed with orange peels. It has a pleasant, slightly sweet nose where the orange comes through, and you get that orange sweetness up front in the sip too. You also get the bitterness of the orange peel. A lot of it. It’s like rubbing the oil from an orange peel on the rim of your whiskey glass. It’s kind of a shock to your tongue, but in a totally pleasant way. It comes in at 6.8%, has a robust IBU ranking (88) and is now available year round in cans for those IPA lovers who lean toward the bitter side of the style.
Rating: 79
The Grizz
Tallgrass Brewing
This is a new double IPA from Tallgrass, released in January and March of this year. You should be able to find some still on the shelves, and you should definitely look for it. The Grizz has an almost salty layer to an otherwise tropical nose that delivers robust elements of pineapple and mango. The front of the sip is all caramel along with some of the fruit from the nose. It’s an incredibly full, delicious mouthfeel. There’s a killer hop bite on the end of it all, and a peppery note that’s similar to what you find in rye whiskey. Oh, and it’s boozy, too. Overall, it’s meaty, a beer you can sink your teeth into and relish. You don’t drink this one out of a can. You find a snifter and a nice piece of leather furniture. Maybe a cat to stroke and a pipe to smoke. It’s that kind of beer.
Rating: 87