Try a classic Florida IPA for IPA Day

IPA is a day to celebrate. It is not a Hallmark holiday designed by breweries to sell more IPA. IPA is the GABF Category with the most entries, it doesn’t really need any help. Instead, IPA Day is a chance to break out and try something hoppy and see what happens when brewers start to paint with these green flowers.

While the release of any new beer is great news, there are some IPAs that show how Florida has changed and how Floridian beer drinkers’ palates have evolved over the years. Some brewers take a unique spin on the classic IPA and some add their own twist to make it one of a kind. Here is a list of ten classic Floridian IPAs to try out for IPA Day this year.

Dunedin BreweryPiper's Piper’s Pale Ale: As the oldest craft brewery in the state, Dunedin Brewery had to be included, even though this is technically a pale ale. This light colored beer combines hops to make an approachable pale ale named for Dunedin’s Celtic heritage. As a side note, this one holds a special place in my heart because it is the first hoppy Floridian beer I have ever enjoyed back in 2005.

 

 

Old Elephant FootTampa Bay Brewing Company Old Elephant Foot IPA: Another iconic brand that helped to build a brewery, this West Coast style IPA puts hop flavor above malt character and asserts itself like a slighted ex-girlfriend. This is Tampa Bay Brewing Company’s best-seller, and the first beer they canned with head brewer David Doble indulging in the first beer off of the canning line.

 

 

 

Website-Jai-Alai.0Cigar City Brewing Jai Alai IPA: The gold standard in citrusy IPA, a beer that many beer enthusiasts can pick out of a blind tasting. Cigar City Brewing’s first bottled beer, the fuel that pushed them to expand, and the brewery’s first beer in cans, Tampa Bay and beyond cannot seem to get enough of this one. Named for the Basque sport of kings that used to be huge in Florida, this beer gives Cigar City Brewing the title of brewery that was built by a 7.5% ABV IPA – a title that few other breweries can claim.

 

 

 

 

I-10 IPA CanIntuition Ale Works I-10 IPA: Another West Coast style IPA, this one is Jacksonville’s Intuition Ale Work’s workhorse beer. Available in cans and named for the highway that runs from the Atlantic through Jacksonville, Tallahassee, and beyond the state’s western border, this mainstay is almost always on draft.

 

 

 

 

cat3Due South Brewing Category 3 IPA: One of South Florida’s finest IPAs, this beer has a hurricane of hops in every can yet does its best to maintain the balance of malt sweetness and bitter hoppiness. This is the first beer that Due South owner and former homebrewer Mike Halker ever entered into a contest, and it won an award. Named for the hurricanes that plague Florida in its hottest months, this one is available in cans throughout Florida’s east coast.

 

Proof Brewing Warpath DIPAProof Brewing Warpath Imperial IPA: An imperial IPA, but one not to be ignored, Proof Brewing’s Warpath IPA was originally brewed for the Florida State Seminoles’ national championship win in 2014. Since then, this beast of an IPA is one that we have written about before and one that is a joy to behold. Bruising bitterness and a wonderful malt presence, this one lives up to its name as the hops are on the warpath. It is unfortunately draft only and a beer that Proof only releases occasionally, enjoy it while it is here because like all good things, the supply will come to an end.

 

Fort Myers Brewing LogoFort Myers Brewing OYA IPA: A favorite beer of the Best Florida Beer Competition, Fort Meyers Brewing’s OYA Double IPA is packed to the gills with citrus and tropical fruit character. Characterized by a high alcohol content and a flavor profile to match it, this one will knock you on your back if enjoyed without caution. At just over 9.1% alcohol, this is one to enjoy with moderation while it is here, as it is not around for long once it’s tapped.

 

 

Orchid IslandOrchid Island Brewing Star Ruby IPA: Part of Orchid Island Brewing’s Grove to Glass project, this IPA utilizes fresh Indian River grapefruit in the beer. Brewer Alden Bing tries to incorporate Florida citrus into every single Orchid Island beer, and this hazy deliciousness is his showpiece. This one has limited distribution and all of it close to Vero Beach, so it may require travel, but proves that good things come to those who wait.

File Aug 05, 9 45 21 AM7venth Sun Brewery IPA is Dead and New England Killed It IPA: Part of the great tongue-in-cheek humor that Florida’s craft brewers have, this easy-drinking IPA teases those lovers of hazy so-called New England IPAs. Purposely made to be hazy, this one may make fun of New England but has scorching Florida summer on its mind.

 

 

 

 

BN_feature-843x403Swamp Head Brewery Big Nose IPA: One of the beers that put Gainesville on the craft beer map, Swamp Head Brewery’s Big Nose IPA was brewer Craig Birkmaier’s awarded homebrew recipe scaled up for everyone to enjoy. Now in cans, Swamp Head may be famous in Gainesville, but is available throughout Florida.

 

Brix-Main-Logo-New-Separated-Colors-filledPlayalinda Brewing Bring It! IPA: Playalinda Brewing’s Ron Raike knows how to bring it, as he loads this IPA down with Citra and galaxy hops and knocks it out of the park. One of Florida’s newest IPAs from a brewer who got his start in Orlando, this is one of Florida’s most noteworthy and head-turning IPAs, despite its limited presence on the east coast of Florida, available primarily on draft at Playalinda and festivals the brewery pours.

 

Tomoka Twist of CaneTomoka Brewing Twist of Cane Double IPA: The Orange Park craft brewery’s double IPA has a unique twist in it with the addition of cane sugar adding to the malty sweetness that’s offset by the hop addition. Big but not overwhelming at 8.5%, this IPA’s sweetness belies the alcohol presence underneath. This DIPA pours well at the Orange Park brewery or is available in canned 4-packs throughout the state.

The spirit of IPA Day: try something new

IPA Day

Every year IPA Day comes around and many folks regard it with the same affection that they regard so-called Hallmark Holidays. In the case of craft beer, IPA Day is like going to an art museum with a new pair of glasses. There is that tap handle that has always caused curiosity, but has never wound up your glass. Today is that day. IPA Day stands as a chance to sample new beers as many breweries around the U.S. and the globe choose to showcase new and different angles on classic IPAs.

In the spirit of IPA Day, here are five IPA types to pour in the trusty IPA glass today:

The Classic (East Coast/ West Coast): These are the beers that made the day, and the cause for celebration. These IPAs showcase the citrus and pine flavors that America has grown to love, the flavors that made IPA the most entered category at the Great American Beer Festival. Like Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, or The Princess Bride, these are the go-to classics that yield new twists every time they’re imbibed.

Floridian Examples of this include Cigar City Jai Alai IPA, Intuition Ale Works I-10 IPA, and Tampa Bay Brewing Company Old Elephant Foot IPA.

Session IPA: Session IPAs are a craze in IPAs- mixing the high-octane flavors of an IPA or double IPA with the low gravity of a so-called session beer. Sometimes these blur the line between pale ale and IPA, but the style is taking hold and looking for new faithful followers like a classic mixtape that can go in the stereo on repeat.

Examples of Session IPAs include Cycle Brewing Fixie, Green Bench DeSoto Low IPA, and 7venth Sun Time Bomb IPA.

Fruit IPA: These IPAs bring together what on the surface may seem like an unlikely combination: fruit and IPA. Depending on the fruit, sometimes the combination can seem natural, like grapefruit in an IPA, and other times it can seemed forced like strawberry jalapeño. Occasionally these are not every drinker’s favorite, but sometimes the combination ends up being a cult hit. It could be the beer version of Rocky Horror Picture Show or Rocky 5, but no one knows until it winds up in an IPA glass.

Floridian Examples of Fruit IPAs include Proof Grapefruit Guru, Orchid Island Star Ruby, and Funky Buddha More Moro.

Imperial or Double IPA: The big brother of all the previous styles that has been around the block. These brash and braggadocious IPAs have no problem expressing machisimo in the form of lupulin. A double IPA is an IPA that has read the warning signs and has decided to run with scissors, climb to the top rung, or pull the tag off the mattress while still in the store. These beers have alcohol by volume climbing up from seven percent and up, and probably a few tattoos as well.

Examples of Floridian Double IPAs include Swamp Head Tropical Disturbance, Due South Category 5, and Fort Myers Brewing OYA.

Eclectic IPA: These are the IPAs that don’t really fit into other categories and there are as many as the hops in an IPA. These ales showcase ingredients of many and varied origins; they embody the spirit of experimentation that so many craft brewers embrace- trying to put new beers in front of their faithful. From atypical ingredients like habanero peppers, coffee, or fresh hops; to a twist on an IPA like a brettanomyces IPA or a bourbon, wine, or brandy aged IPA, maybe even a Belgian IPA; to a new base beer like a white IPA (based on a wit), there is something new to try all over the world on a day like this.

Examples of Florida’s eclectic IPAs are not limited to Coppertail Hoppucino Coffee IPA, JDub’s Ay Caramba! Jalapeño IPA, Angry Chair Silver Alert White IPA, and Engine 15’s Wet Hop Ale.

Like the many faces of the beer, the spirit of IPA Day is one with infinite possibilities. IPA Day is a day to join old friends and try a new beer or two. At best, it is a day when old friends and new beers meet and memories are made, at worst, well, a beer or two can be crossed off of the “I wonder what that tastes like” list. With craft brewers all over the world going all out to give patrons a new IPA to test drive, it seems like a good day to get over bitterness and pour something hoppy.