Apparently there is a day dedicated to IPAs, and that day is today. It makes sense to celebrate IPAs since America has been in the midst of a monster beer revolution for the last 15 years and IPAs have been at the forefront of it. I would rather have a day specifically set aside for Italian sausage because if any food/beverage deserves its own day it’s Italian sausage, but sticking with the IPA theme I’ll talk about some of my favorites, both locally-made and from out of the state. here. I’m not going to make this a list of massively obscure IPAs or rare whales where I take the attitude of “What? You never had Pine Juice 9000 from Squat-n-duke Brewery in Peru? You’re clearly fail.” Nay, I’m going to talk about IPAs that are worth crossing the street for that are available here, today.
Let’s start local. In my opinion the following are the best three IPAs being made in Ohio, which is saying something since all we do is win when it comes to both national and world beer competitions in the IPA and double IPA categories. Ohio, if you have not noticed, is where it’s at for IPAs these days.
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Columbus Brewing Company Bodhi/Creeper: Both are double IPAs, both are amazing, both can prove difficult to get, both have an insane amount of well-deserved hype surrounding them, neither are bottled and both taste really similar to me. I don’t care which one I’m drinking, they’re both really damn good. They have a great amount of hops to them with a nice malt base all the while keeping an awesome balance that won’t leave your mouth begging for pretzels or gum to try and salvage your taste buds. They aren’t bitter, they are clean finishing with a citrusy character that makes me want to drink multiple of them. Because they are fairly similar to me I will call them beer number one rather than one and two. Creeper isn’t currently in season but if you’re lucky you can find Bodhi on tap today.
Rhinegeist Truth: Rhinegeist is down in Cincinnati and they have struck gold with this IPA. Literally gold as that beer sells out fast. If you are familiar with this hoppy beer you know what I’m talking about. While it does have a more aggressive character than Bodhi/Creeper it does maintain a similar balance without a noticeable malt or alcohol presence. The hop profile is a perfect balance of citrus, grass, pine and herb. It hits perfectly and doesn’t have a big bitter finish. It’s not as easy finishing as Bodhi/Creeper but it also won’t wreck your palate. It should also be pretty easy to find today as Rhinegeist is everywhere lately.
Hoppin Frog Gangster Frog: This beer is stupid good. It has a hop complexity that the aforementioned beers do not. The aroma on this beer is huge hops and the flavor tastes like you’re getting into a pretty big pine beer but then the citrus starts and the other flavors follow and then it stops. There is no bitter finish at all. It’s just clean and refreshing. The one hang up with this beer is that there does not seem to be any rhyme or reason as to when it’s in stock. Sometimes it’s around and sometimes it’s not, so if you’re looking for it for your IPA day celebrations, good luck.
There are plenty of other Ohio IPAs worth imbibing — Ohio is killing with IPAs to the point where an IPA list for Ohio would look like two college basketball brackets. This is just a quick and easy list of my favorites so don’t start with the whole “What about this IPA or that IPA?” bit.
Onto some great non-local IPAs that are available year-round. Yes, Hi-Res is amazing and in my top 10 but I can’t go out and buy one right now so I’ll talk about beers that may be taken for granted but should not be, beers that should be revisited and enjoyed.
- Deschutes Fresh Squeezed IPA: This is a great beer. It’s juicy, it’s floral, it’s hoppy and it has a fairly large flavor. Sure, there’s a little bitterness on the finish but not enough to really be offensive. Again, it has a great balance. It’’s a beer that I could drink a lot of. And do.
Breckenridge Small Batch 471: This is the most aggressive of the listed IPAs but it’s still not going to make your eyes water or anything like that. It has a champagne-like crispness to it that I love with a fair amount of pine and grapefruit rind.
Weyerbacher Double Simcoe IPA: This is my favorite year round IPA. It smells like you are in a pine forest filled with flowers and those little pine air fresheners hanging from the pine trees. It tastes pretty much the same but it has such a crisp clean finish that it’s not a palate wrecker. This is the one beer from my list of six that hop heads can agree on. It’s unbalanced and madly aggressive but it lacks an overly bitter finish.
There you go. Many of my beer selections are balanced versus the mega death hop that hop heads seem to love. While I do enjoy those beers from time to time, I’m more of a balance guy which keeps me out of the hop heads cool kids club, but that’s ok, I’ll be over here with my balanced beers. And Italian sausage.
Editor’s Note: you can pick up Rhinegeist Truth, Deschutes Fresh Squeezed IPA, Breckenridge Small Batch 471 and Weyerbacher Double Simcoe IPA today at Mike’s badass beer store, Crafted Drafts (which, in full disclosure, is a client)
