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Posted by dawnbixtler on 2006-02-16 19:15:59 +0000

Recent IPA's I've enjoyed:
-Paper City IPA, on tap at Redbones: Very dry, wheat flavor, a true bitter finish.
-Bear IPA, on tap at Redbones: Sweeter than most with notes of cherries.
-Boulder Beer Company's 'Hazed and Infused', bottle purchase after recommendation from Matt Laventure: Delicious mid palate hops from the first sip, smooth and continuous floral characteristics, incredible finish, and easy drinking. Highly recommended.

None were aged though...

Posted by jbcardinale on 2006-02-16 19:49:33 +0000

being ignorant of the origins of IPA, I looked it up on Wiki and....
"Ships typically left London, cruised south past the equator along the coast of Africa, rounded the Cape of Good Hope and then crossed the Indian Ocean to reach Bombay, Calcutta, and Madras. The temperature fluctuations were huge, it was a very long trip (about 6 months) and the rough waters of southern Africa resulted in an extremely violent voyage." I think the beers should be stored in the trunk of a car that's travelling from Maine to Arizona and back or store them outside until summer and once a week walk them around the block...

Posted by G lib on 2006-02-16 19:54:04 +0000

PChippy outed me last night-- to me, all beers taste the same.

Posted by pamsterdam on 2006-02-17 15:21:40 +0000

Can I get some recommendations for IPAs to try while we're in the US? Ed likes Grolsch, hates Heineken. I like any dark ale, hate lager.

Posted by tendiamonds on 2006-02-17 15:31:47 +0000

Smuttynose IPA is fabulous, one of my favorites. So is Wachusett IPA.

Hopdevil will always be special for me.

Casco Bay Riptide Red is technically a red, not an IPA, but it is so florally hoppy, I say get in there.

You should try Brooklyn Lager. Most lagers are poorly done, which is why a lot of people don't think they like them. Brooklyn is fantastic. I'm predominantly an IPA drinker, but the only beer that is _always_ stocked in my fridge is Brooklyn Lager.

Posted by tendiamonds on 2006-02-17 15:34:43 +0000

The main difference betwixt India Pale Ale and American Pale Ale is which hops are used. Most of what we drink in this country and call IPA are actually APAs. American hops are milder, and better used as flavoring hops, as opposed to bittering hops, so APAs are usually very floral, whereas IPAs are more bitter.

Posted by pamsterdam on 2006-02-17 15:35:11 +0000

10D, that rocks. <i>Thank you!</i>

Posted by tendiamonds on 2006-02-17 15:37:52 +0000

Also note that no beer that we drink under the IPA moniker will really withstand the boat to India. The real IPAs are almost entirely dry hopped, meaning the hops go into the kegs with the beer and the bittering is done during storage/shipping. Dry hopping is still done with most "IPA"s today, but the hops are allowed to flavor the beer for a bit, and then they are removed before bottling.

Posted by tendiamonds on 2006-02-17 15:39:58 +0000

My beer fridge is extremely well stocked. Feel free to find your way to Littleton for a tasting while your in town. Maybe we meet for the first time?

Posted by pamsterdam on 2006-02-17 15:41:27 +0000

Only if you promise to keep your shirt on. I have to keep up pretenses in front of my old man.

<i>Edited to add:</i> Thank you very much, that's an extremely kind offer. We may very well be able to do that...

Posted by tgl on 2006-02-17 15:46:07 +0000

Did they ship in the keg or in the bottle. The Dogfish Head ales are known for dry hopping (hence 60min., 90min., right? always go for the 60min., by the way). I need to be doing a websearch on this right now.

Navigating around hops in the bottle seems a wacky idea. Although, adding a bud to your bottle makes more sense than adding a lime.

Posted by tendiamonds on 2006-02-17 15:54:26 +0000

They didn't bottle at all in those days. The kegs were shipped and beers were drunk in alehouses.

Bottle hopping would be less messy than bottle conditioning.

Posted by Null Protocol on 2006-02-17 16:06:21 +0000

fuck that shit. Pabst blue ribbon!

<img src="http://www.cinemafilms.org/images/linch/BlueVelvet.jpg">

Posted by tgl on 2006-02-17 16:56:36 +0000

How does Grolsch differ from Heineken? Other than the ceramic bottle top and lack of world domination of bars catering to late-twenty-something office workers?

Ditto 10D on Smuttynose/Wachusett/Hopdevial. I've been pleasantly surprised by Magic Hat H.I.P.A.

Posted by dawnbixtler on 2006-02-17 16:59:47 +0000

Again I highly recommend "Hazed and Infused" from the Boulder Beer Co. Seems to be getting bigger.

Posted by pamsterdam on 2006-02-17 17:06:12 +0000

Ed says he can't describe the difference... I found this online:

"I would put it [Heineken] somewhere between a weaker, lighter American style beer and a full bodied taste explosion like a Grolsch. In fact if I had to describe it I would say that a Heineken would one day like to grow up to be a Grolsch. The color, aroma and taste are much lighter than expected."

I say both taste like wee wee.

I prefer Palm, Orval, or pretty much any other Belgian trappist ale. Yum! I do like Budvar & Pilsner Urquel as well, and those are lagers, I guess... Thing is, I'm really stupid about American beer. Looking forward to learning more.

Posted by tgl on 2006-02-17 17:08:54 +0000

Isn't that wheat? Or am I thinking of Magic Hat's Hocus Focus? Pocus?

I've been on a Magic Hat kick lately. After months of wavering in front of the beer cooler at <a href="">Vinnin Square Liquors</a>, I finally grabbed a pack of St. Gootz. I failed in describing it when I called it "sweet", alas. It's an incredibly rich, dark wheat beer. A Very Good Winter Seasonal That Is Not "Spiced".

Posted by buzzorhowl on 2006-02-17 17:09:32 +0000

Pammo, what are your Boston dates again?

Posted by buzzorhowl on 2006-02-17 17:10:14 +0000

(I'll check the other thread. Yow!)

Posted by dawnbixtler on 2006-02-17 17:42:49 +0000

Grolsch is much fuller bodied, yet finer carbonation, and much drier than Heineken. Grolsch also went to a plastic plunge with their hinge cap about 8 years ago. Stoner conspiarcy theorists believe that the plastic version was introduced because the ceramic one was too perfect a roach clip.

I do like Heineken, but I also like Coors Light... is there any beer I don't like... Hamm's, Bud Ice, Michelob Ultra?

Posted by tgl on 2006-02-17 17:45:39 +0000

When your body says move, 10D says "get in there".

Posted by Miriam on 2006-02-20 18:25:41 +0000

I can't seem to find Fin Du Monde here. That makes me sad...and sober!

Posted by pchippy on 2006-02-20 21:57:26 +0000

I'd like to put in a good word for Tremont, and for Tuckerman's pale ale. I also like Harpoon. The Ipswich IPA, which easily won our blind taste test last week, was only fair as far as IPAs go--it didn't have much breadth, flavor-wise, and was also (as tgl noted) not especially aromatic.

I dislike the silly pseudo-occult packaging and marketing of Magic Hat. The beer isn't bad, but one can do better with any of a number of New England microbrews.

Maybe at some future taste test we can concentrate on IPAs. I promise not to pull any sneaky tricks like I did with Glib last time...

Posted by tendiamonds on 2006-02-21 13:28:15 +0000

I concur with praise for Harpoon. I love that beer. Great in bottles. Better in kegs. However, I never buy it. I do everything I can to avoid buying it. I still drink lots of it. One of the things I love about the GBA and Harpoon is that if you go to a bar that has a "nothing special" beer selection, they usually have Harpoon, so it's my default beer.

The Outlook sometimes as Wachusett IPA on draft, which cuts into my Harpoon drinking.

Posted by tgl on 2006-02-21 13:42:37 +0000

Had a WIPA last night, I wasn't as impressed as I have been in the past. I think I've grown too accustomed to the overhopped styles. Which is why I don't get too excited for Tuckerman's or Tremont.

Harpoon's floral bouquet and citrusy/clean taste is immensely satisfying.

TLA help on GBA, please.

Posted by tendiamonds on 2006-02-21 16:26:59 +0000

Greater Boston Area

Posted by cdubrocker on 2006-02-21 16:34:41 +0000

While in SF I had some White Hawk IPA on tap, and enjoyed it lots. Sort of intense, with a floral-citrus thing going. Don't know about its local availability.

Posted by dawnbixtler on 2006-02-21 18:55:19 +0000

Tuckerman's is a very quaffable pale ale, and light for a pale ale at that. Great golden almost lager-ish color, let's you know that you'll be able to have 3 or 4.

For the record I am a fan of Magic Hat's packaging. Any time someone can make us take things less seriously - I think as a nation we take drinking and the applicable laws too seriously - I am for it. I also think the name "Fat Angel" is terrific.

Posted by tgl on 2006-02-21 20:16:54 +0000

There's a line between "traditional American IPAs" and the overhopped bitter blasters I find myself gravitating towards. I would not compare Tremont or Tuckerman's with Harpoon, for instance, at least not on hoppiness alone. We are starting to group Pale Ales (Tremont, Tuckerman's, Geary's, Smuttynose (Shoals) in with the IPAs (Ipswich, WIPA, Harpoon) not to mention the hop monsters (Hop Devil, M.H. HIPA, Smuttynose IPA, the much missed Lucknow IPA). It seems that the farther I go into hop madness, the lesser my affection for "regular" IPAs. Even copious amounts of PBR can't bring me back.

While it's true that packaging (labels, bottle caps w/ quotes) has no effect on flavor, I appreciate the whimiscal approach. Paying $8 a six-pack warrants some attention to aesthetic, and not just the flavor kind.