All Things Bikes and Tacos! (...and every vehicle imaginable)

I try all kinds of beers. I won’t order an ipa, but if my wife does, I try it. So far, no success. All gross. Same with her sours she likes.

 

I live in the land of breweries and IPAs. A town nearby had 5 breweries with a population of only 8,000. In literally none of them are 8 out 10 beers IPAs. If I had to guess I'd say 4-5 out of 10 tops and I'd bet that pretty accurately matches demand. When I was first introduced to IPAs I wasn't a fan either. At some point I had a good mellow one and went "hmmmm" and that's basically all she wrote. What I've found personally and with most others, once you acquire that taste most other beers are just pretty meh. It's not that I dislike others, I just don't like them as much so why would I drink them instead? And there must be something to it because they pretty obviously swept the craft beer industry.

Sours are basically at the bottom of the barrel for me. I've had a few ok ones but never something I'd drink two+ of.

 

*Laughs in Ashevillian*

 

Agreed! We left Oregon four years ago and they had already been heavily moving to a more diverse selection. Sours, hoppy pilsners, and barelywines were all the rage when we left.

 

I hear ya, man! Not great IPA's are getting so played out. However, just like our beloved Tacomas, IPA's are an extremely complex and diverse category, and I think that's what beer enthusiasts (like myself) love about them. If you don't love IPA's, give a good local Double New England style IPA a shot...the hazier and juicier the better.

That said, I also love a nice, crisp, cervezas style lager, or a boozy bourbon barrel stout. Sour ales, are becoming a thing too (no complaints here!). I think a lot of newer craft brewers focus on perfecting "The One" brew (an IPA in many cases), where other established breweries have expanded their focus to more great beers all around. Not saying one is better than the other...it's a process. Doing a bit of research before visiting will has helped me to know what kind of brewery I'm about to get into.

 

Speaking from experience doing lots of brewing myself and having many friends that got graduate degrees in fermentation science...

Many breweries do lots of IPAs because they are relatively easy to not screw up. You don't have to be as on-point with your grain bill, mash schedule, or fermentation process since the hop flavor will cover for any other mistakes.

 

Yep...makes sense. They're experimenting. I think that's also why they taste so good once they get that recipe tuned just right.

 

I think this is more of a feedback loop. People starting liking IPAs, so they bought more IPAs, so breweries starting brewing more, and then it just cycling out of control to the point that people buy whats available, and the breweries/restaurant serve what's selling, and the beer industry has pigeon-holed itself into IPAs dominating the market. Its frustrating as someone who likes IPAs, but enjoys other beers as well. My wife doesn't even like IPAs, for the most part, so finding a brewery that doesn't cater to IPAs can be tough.

 

I’ve also been told it’s easier to get a higher alcohol content while maintaining the desired flavor with ipas

 

So...when they got bought by AB InBev?

 

Camping will be tough in Moab if you show up on a Friday/Sat, you will probably end up trying to find a spot in one of the dispersed areas.

Monarch Crest is amazing. I highly recommend it. You may have to self shuttle that time of year but it's not that bad if you plan it out. Just be prepared for big weather shifts, it is the Rocky Mountains after all.

 

IPA's made the craft beer industry.

I feel like sours are the new IPA...a majority of them are too vinegar-y, but a good one is refreshing AF.

 

2014-early 2015 was pre-acquisition and they were thoroughly imbedded in the IPA scene already. Announcement of the buyout was in Jan 15, so best case, the books got closed end of Q1.

 

I've heard it's a great beer city! Between that and the biking I'd love to visit! WA has 64% more breweries per capita than NC. And the WA/OR combo makes for a pretty rad amount of breweries within the normal weekend adventure range.

 

Yep, same idea. In simple terms, to get a higher alcohol content you need more grains and more robust yeast. This can be tough to do without making the beer too malty or having the fermentation go wrong (lots of dying yeasty beastys makes funky flavors). If you dump a bunch of hops in there, that helps cover up any of that weirdness.

 

If you're paying for a campsite in Southern Utah, are you even really trying?

 

so basically an IPA is the "idk how to make beer so I'm gonna put hops in it" choice

 

Dude...Shhhh! (I dont think they know about BLM on the East Coast.)

 

Oh how I miss the Ballard Brew Crawl loop.

 

True. The TW audience is much more adventurous and capable than the general public.

Even then, be prepared to possibly have to go way off the beaten path for a spot. Moab has been absolutely PACKED the last few years.