# Are all India Pale Ales (IPAs) this bitter? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 27, 2012, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933 "2012-03-27T06:14:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/21 "2012-03-27T17:30:46Z")
> [@Alan\_Smithee](#): > > Haven’t been able to try that one [120 Minute IPA], but their 90 Minute IPA is excellent. It’s got a lot of malt, so it’s actually very well balanced despite a TON of hops flavor. That’s one of my favorites too. When you taste it, it actually goes past bitter into sour-citrusy. ---
**Author:** ![diku](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4af34b/32.png) [@diku](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diku)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/22 "2012-03-27T17:55:27Z")
Red’s Rye PA and Bridgeport IPA are always my recommendations. Hoppy, but not overpowering. Or you could just go get some Stone Ruination. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/23 "2012-03-27T20:55:04Z")
Thanks for the suggestions — I’ll try some of those if I can find them around here (Washington state). I gave the last four bottles of the Double Take IPA to a lady at work who said her husband loves IPA. Then I picked up a 6-pack of Shock Top Belgian White wheat ale, another type of beer I’ve never tried. It’s not bad. ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/24 "2012-03-27T21:54:19Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > Generally, I like a good, robust flavor (and the word “creamy” comes to mind) without the excessive bitterness. When I drank a lot and stuck mostly to the cheaper, “basic” American beers, I honestly liked lagers like PBR and Olympia, so maybe I should look at some craft brewed lagers, if such exist. My big WA recommendation for you would be Mac & Jack’s African Amber. It’s only available on draft but very widely available at sitdown restaurants (actually, following a backlash after it got “too popular” it can be a little difficult to find at good bars). > [@RitterSport](#): > > Try Harpoon IPA – it has an IBU of 42, and the fruitiness is definitely prominent over the bitterness. I never liked IPAs until I tried that one. Good stuff, but I’ve never seen it on the West Coast. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/25 "2012-03-27T22:19:32Z")
> [@cckerberos](#): > > My big WA recommendation for you would be Mac & Jack’s African Amber. It’s only available on draft but very widely available at sitdown restaurants (actually, following a backlash after it got “too popular” it can be a little difficult to find at good bars). The bar in the hotel I work for has a large selection of beers on tap; I could see if we have it there. Hmm, [Moose Drool](http://www.bigskybrew.com/Our_Beers/Moose_Drool) has “creamy” right there in the description, and appears to be more “malty” than “hoppy”. And it’s available here. Anybody tried this and liked it? ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/26 "2012-03-27T23:42:12Z")
I love IPAs, but not the super-macho-hoppy ones. I mostly love east-coast IPAs because that’s what we can get around here and I find they have a much more assertive finish than west-coast IPAs, in the non-macho category at least. A couple of west-coast IPAs I really dig are Bear Republic Racer 5 (CA) and Green Flash West Coast IPA. I haven;t had the opportunity to explore a lot of west coast IPAs, because they don’t migrate this far east very much, but those are two that are within the bitterness range I prefer. ETA - my east coast favorites are: Ithaca Flower Power, Dogfish 60-minute, Southern Tier regular and 2x ---
**Author:** ![Swords\_to\_Plowshares](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b38774/32.png) [@Swords\_to\_Plowshares](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swords_to_Plowshares)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/27 "2012-03-28T00:36:24Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > Thanks for the suggestions — I’ll try some of those if I can find them around here (Washington state). > > I gave the last four bottles of the Double Take IPA to a lady at work who said her husband loves IPA. Then I picked up a 6-pack of Shock Top Belgian White wheat ale, another type of beer I’ve never tried. It’s not bad. Wheat beers are good but Shock Top is fairly low-tier in comparison to others. Try Hoegaarden from Belgium, it should be easy to find. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/28 "2012-03-28T11:52:23Z")
> [@Motorgirl](#): > > A couple of west-coast IPAs I really dig are Bear Republic Racer 5 (CA) and Green Flash West Coast I’ll second the recommend on those! Another unrelated style of beer is “sour” beer. Going to a beer tasting event in April featuring sours. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 9:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/29 "2012-04-03T09:27:33Z")
Okay, well, today I picked up a 12-pack “variety pack” from Red Hook Brewery, a Seattle brewery. Three bottles of [ESB](http://redhook.com/beers/esb/) (I’d had this before, yum!), three bottles of [Copper Hook](http://redhook.com/beers/copperhook/) (tasty!), three bottles of [Pilsner](http://redhook.com/beers/pilsner/) (not bad at all), and finally, three bottles of [IPA](http://redhook.com/beers/ipa/). I had one of each, finishing with the IPA, and I gotta say this is an IPA I can drink. IBU of only 44. Very tasty! ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/30 "2012-04-03T12:25:35Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > Hmm, [Moose Drool](http://www.bigskybrew.com/Our_Beers/Moose_Drool) has “creamy” right there in the description, and appears to be more “malty” than “hoppy”. And it’s available here. Anybody tried this and liked it? Moose Drool is kind of like a more flavorful Newcastle. Brown ales aren’t really my thing, but that used to be one of the most widely avaliable micros out here in Montana (back before there were more breweries than people like there are now), so I’ve drank a lot of it over the years and have come to like it well enough. The Big Sky IPA, however, is one of my absolute favorites that might be worth a try if you can find it. It has a higher IBU number (65, I think), but also has some other flavors in there that really take the edge off and make it palatable to drinkers who don’t usually go north of 50 IBU. For me, it was really the gateway drug into some of the ridiculously hoppy IPAs I like now. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/31 "2012-04-03T13:23:35Z")
It’s interesting that you mention Guinness as a bitter beer that you like. I’m definitely unfamiliar with the vocabulary for discussing beers, but part of the reason I dislike Guinness is the lack of bitterness: it tastes to me like faintly metallic mud. As for west-coast beers, I still hold a special place in my heart for Widmer’s Hefeweizen, the American-style wheat beer that convinced me to like beer a couple of decades ago. It’s not what I drink these days (I live in Beer City USA, and I mostly stick to local stuff), but it was mild and fizzy and delicious. ---
**Author:** ![aerodave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f08c70/32.png) [@aerodave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aerodave)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/32 "2012-04-03T13:47:49Z")
I’m actually becoming a bit of an IPA convert. I’m doing a Beer-A-Day challenge this year (and [blogging](http://366bottles.blogspot.com) the experience, if that’s your thing). And since every other bottle at the local craft beer emporium these days is an IPA (or Double IPA), I’ve had more then my share so far. At the beginning of the year, I considered myself to be a hater of IPAs. I liked brown ales, hefeweizens, various Belgian styles…anything where hops and bitterness weren’t the stars of the show. But after having at least a couple IPAs every week for a few months, I have to admit I’m enjoying them. A big part of appreciating such a style has been consciously drinking with a critical purpose. I try to pay attention to what I’m tasting, and that allows me to get past my closed-minded instinct to say “bitter! blah!”. Also, the frequent exposure has sort of recalibrated my taste buds. What was bitter before is now just a “hint” of hops. Now I look back, and I probably rate IPAs higher on average than most other styles. On my blog’s 1-5 rating scale, I’ve given a lot of 4+ scores to IPAs, and my old trusty Belgians are the ones that keep disappointing me. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/33 "2012-06-04T04:32:31Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > It’s interesting that you mention Guinness as a bitter beer that you like. I’m definitely unfamiliar with the vocabulary for discussing beers, but part of the reason I dislike Guinness is the lack of bitterness: it tastes to me like faintly metallic mud. Okay, I’m quite late responding to this. When I posted that, it had been more than 20 years since I’d last had a Guinness (probably 1987-89). Since posting, I’ve picked up a 6-pack of Guinness Draught, and was surprised at how non-bitter it was - it was actually more sweet/fruity. Though I’m not sure if that’s precisely the same Guinness I drank back then. I seem to remember it being darker. I was actually disappointed in that Guinness - it seemed awfully sweet, and after three bottles I still wasn’t feeling even a hint of a buzz. Again, I remembered it being stronger. Anyway, I’ve pretty much been sticking with the offerings from the Redhook brewery, since I’m enjoying all their offerings. However, while doing my shopping at Costco today, I discovered they have their own “Kirkland Signature” branded selection of craft beers. The price was right (about $18 for a 24-bottle case), so I picked up their variety pack. Six bottles each of Amber Ale, IPA, Belgian White, and (American) Pale Ale. So far I’ve tried one of each. I enjoyed the Amber and the Belgian White. The Amber has a very robust, nutty/bready/fruity flavor. The IPA was even less bitter than the Redhook IPA, but rather unimpressive and it had a rather blah aftertaste. The Pale Ale is tasty, not at all bitter and almost no aftertaste. I’ll need another bottle of the Belgian White to be able to descibe it, but it wasn’t bad (though I don’t have much to compare it to). ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/34 "2012-06-04T14:03:30Z")
Guinness Draught is only 4.2 The Original/Extra Stout is 5, and the Foreign Extra Stout is 7.5. You can drink the draught all night and not catch a buzz. Stick to the original. Who brews the Kirkland selection? It ought to be somewhere on the box. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/35 "2012-06-04T15:39:01Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Who brews the Kirkland selection? It ought to be somewhere on the box. The “Hopfen Und Malz Brewing Company” of San Jose, CA. ---
**Author:** ![Pork\_Rind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pork_rind/32/111_2.png) [@Pork\_Rind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pork_Rind)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/36 "2012-06-04T15:44:56Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > I once made a barleywine that hit 100 IBU easily, but tasted not that bitter due to the absolute shit-tonne of fermentables I used. The OG was so high my hydrometer wouldn’t register, and it finished somewhere around 1.2! I don’t thi k you made beer or even barleywine. You made gravy.🙂 ---
**Author:** ![ekweizn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7c8e57/32.png) [@ekweizn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekweizn)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/37 "2012-06-04T16:11:18Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > The “Hopfen Und Malz Brewing Company” of San Jose, CA. Behind the fake brewery name of the Kirkland/CostCo brand beer is Gordon Biersch. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/38 "2012-06-04T17:00:58Z")
> [@ekweizn](#): > > Behind the fake brewery name of the Kirkland/CostCo brand beer is Gordon Biersch. LOL, I just looked at the name “Hopfen Und Malz” again and realized it’s “Hops and Malt” 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Labor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Labor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labor)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/39 "2012-06-04T17:07:02Z")
> [@Dervorin](#): > > This is one of the reasons I’m not a big fan of IPAs - most of the ones I’ve tired tend to be much too hoppy and bitter for my liking. With so many non-IPA beers available in the UK, I’ve not tried one in a long time. I’m fully in support of Dervorin. Furthermore, my thought is that IPA’s are the new wave of beers. Everybody wants to tell me about the IPA they just tried. I don’t like the hoppy taste. I prefer sweeter beers, stouts and weizen, epsecially hefeweizen. But hey, if you like htat bitterness, more power to you. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933/40 "2012-06-04T17:07:30Z")
> [@Pork\_Rind](#): > > I don’t think you made beer or even barleywine. You made gravy.🙂 No kidding. It was the product of a late night drinking in the back of the homebrew shop. We dumped everything that was laying around into that batch: mashed all the grains that were piled up under the crusher, tossed in all the random hops in the freezer, poured in the cans of malt that had lost their labels, and added several packages of either rice solids or malto-dex (we weren’t sure - white powder). The end result was 7 gallons of…something. We couldn’t get an OG on it, so we just hit it with 4 different kinds of yeast and let it work. It aged quite nicely and was still winning awards 4 years after we brewed it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-all-india-pale-ales-ipas-this-bitter/616933.md?page=3)