Today we are here to talk about one of our favorite styles, and we know that it is also about you: IPA beer, or India Pale Ale.
The IPA are bitter beers with a strong aroma of hops. And that is, apparently, what makes them the favorites of many: their strong bitterness and that, in themselves, they give the palate a different experience.
Hops are precisely what characterize this style, which provokes new aromas and flavors that are only found in craft beers. In a nutshell, IPAs owe their popularity to the fact that they are very hoppy, with a very pronounced bitterness and an aromatic presence that attracts and enchants the palate.
They are the favorites of those who like to try new things, who are looking for intense aromas and flavors. In addition, the style IPA has a lot of history and some curiosities that you will love to knowr. We tell you everything:
10 curiosities about IPA beers
1. Although their name includes the term “India”, they were not born there. These beers were created in London. In the 18th century, India is an English colony and armies have a major logistical problem: supplying their troops with the precious liquid. The long journey and the temperatures in the cellars meant that the beer barrels reached their destinations expired, sour and moldy. At that time, pasteurization and cold storage did not yet exist. How was this solved? Changing the recipe: the alcohol content was increased and an extra hop was added to act as a preservative. And so the IPA.
were born.
2. Its name also contains Pale Ale, because it is the original brew style that was shipped to the colonies. This recipe was a typically English, lighter version of the then-popular dark ales.
3. And who came up with the idea of changing the traditional recipe to be able to send beers to the other side of the world? The solution was born from the mind of an East London brewer: George Hodgson. He took the recipe for the Pale Ale that was brewed at his Bow brewery and made some adjustments: he increased the addition of hops, taking advantage of its bacteriostatic properties, and increased the alcohol content.
At least that's what the popular story says. Recent researchers have pointed out that the idea for the new recipe was not Hodgson's. However, he did have enormous success in India and this was due to the fact that his brewery was located in a strategic point, near the docks of the River Thames, where the ships of the British East India Company docked to pick up the goods. That's why his beer became the most popular in the colony.
4. Despite its British origin, the first time the term IPA was used was in Australia. Specifically in 1829, in a newspaper advertisement –the Sydney Gazette– in which they advertised the East India Pale Ale as “the drink of the summer”.
5. Nor were the English the ones who preserved the original recipe, but it was the American craft movement, in the 70s, which rescued this style and made it fashionable again.
6. The universe of IPAs is wide, but among the most common variants are: Session IPA, English IPA, American IPA, Double or Imperial IPA, Triple IPA, White IPA, Black IPA .
7. The Spiegelau glass is one of the most recommended for tasting IPA beers since it was created especially for this style.Its name comes from the factory where it was made, the Spiegelau Glass. Its superior shape preserves the aromas and concentrates them.
8. It is recommended to serve them at a temperature of 10° to 13° (although some can be served at a lower temperature).
9. As they have such a strong bitterness, they are beers that will always have more than 40 IBU. The IPA beer with the most bitterness in the world comes from the Canadian brewery Flying Monkey and has 2,500 IBUs.
10. India Pale Ale can be paired with strong, spicy or spicy foods, blue cheeses and desserts such as carrot, apple or ginger cake.
Did you know all these anecdotes about the IPA? And above all… what is your favorite domestically produced IPA? We're sure it won't be easy to decide on one.
Sources: Ambar.com; storestation.mx; pintabeer.com
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