There are many, many double IPAs in the world–so many that it can be hard to tell them apart. The style has become so synonymous with craft beer that it’s become a sea of sameness. We don’t like that, so we’ve decided to cut some new trail on a series of more experimental versions. But what does that even mean? How do you innovate a style that’s defined so popularly?
In our case we’ve decided to take a hard turn from our normal approach to the DIPA. This means throwing out the old rulebook. No leaning into the indomitable A-Game formula for reference or bringing back a minor version of Hops&Dreams with a varied dry-hop just do say it’s different. We wanted to play by a completely different set of rules, with all new formulations and ingredients. We’ve found a number of rare hops that we’re going to be working with, and we’ll be employing some cutting-edge techniques to get the absolute best out of them. We’re also going with all new malts, from new suppliers, in new ratios.
In short, this series is 100% brand-spankin’-new.
You all know we’re nerds and we love all things space so we’ve decided to go with constellation names, based on the timing of their releases. The first one is Aries. Aries is 40% wheat and flaked oats. That’s significantly higher than what we’d normally do, so we’re expecting a plush, slightly doughy presentation with a big, fluffy foam stand. Hopping for this one is a blend called “Trident”. Made by our friends at Hopsteiner in Yakima, WA, it’s secret enough that they won’t even tell us what the components are beyond it being a pelletized blend of three Pacific Northwest varieties. Our initial samples show an incredible range of Citrus, Passionfruit, and Tropical aromas. It’s far more complicated than any one variety by itself, making this blend wonderfully exciting to work with. Given that not every new hop can be a “Citra-killer”, we think that hop blends like this represent a significant step forward in the industry. Companies like Hopsteiner who are creating these blends are getting more out of the crop in a more sustainable way, and that’s not such a bad thing either.
Leo comes after, and Sagittarius after that. Each unique, much like the constellations they are named after and the people who live under their signs. You’ll want to try each one!