By Julia Burke, Beer Editor When beer enthusiasts rate a beer, they often talk about balance. Technical correctness. Drinkability. Good integration of flavors. Nothing out of place or over-the top. When hopheads rate a beer, they want one thing. Dank, sticky, resiny, more-bitter-than-a-tongue-scraper hops. Lupulin junkies don't necessarily want a "balanced" or "sessionable" brew. When the Brits learned that they could use hops as a preservative when shipping beer to the troops in India, the India Pale Ale was born. When the San Diegoans learned that they could take that idea and crank up the hop bill and alcohol past…
Posts Tagged“IPA”
Saranac Wet Hop IPA
By Mark Tichenor, Rochester Beer Correspondent It might not yet be a gold mine, but farmer Rick Pedersen of Seneca Castle, New York is definitely sitting on something. Pedersen Farms is one of the few in Western New York to fully embrace the craft beer revolution by cultivating hops. In doing so, they spur the resurgence of this once-ubiquitous New York State crop. This makes it possible for breweries like Saranac to brag that their new Wet Hop IPA is made with all-New York hops, a claim that, until recently, would have been untenable. Wet-hopping is basically adding fresh hop…
Chatham Brewing 8-Barrel Super IPA
By Julia Burke, Beer Editor I made my first visit to Chatham Brewing recently and based on what I tasted I know it won’t be my last. This small, neighborhood-friendly brewery has a dynamite lineup with balance and great flavor across the board. Craving hops, I brought home a growler of this baby. This double IPA pours a rusty amber-copper haze into a pint glass with a fluffy one-to-two-finger head and good lacing. The nose surprised me at first with intense citrus, as in someone-just-peeled-an-orange fresh citrus fruit. As the beer warmed up slightly it reveals an elegant malt profile;…
Saranac Imperial IPA
By Kevin Burns, Beer Columnist Saranac Imperial IPA is produced by the F.X. Matt Brewing Company and Saranac brand stirs up mixed feelings amongst the many self-proclaimed "beer geeks." While all knowledgeable beer fans recognize the contributions that the Matt family have made, there are some who love this line of beer and others who think the line is nothing more than average. This particular beer pours a dark amber color with a finger width, off-white head. The aroma is sort of cloudy, with nothing more than muddled hops and malt showing through. The body has some malt up front with…
Brown’s Brewing Company IPA (Troy, NY)
I'm not a big cocktail or spirit guy (though I do enjoy a little Bourbon with some regularlity). No, when I'm not drinking wine, beer is what you'll find in my glass most often. I probably drink as much beers as I do wine actually, because: They come in single-serving packages I can enjoy it without feeling compelled to pull out my notebook My beer knowledge pales in comparison to what I know about wine, and that's okay with me. In some ways, I prefer it that way. But, the geek (and my beer-loving buddy Woody) seem to be changing…