New craft beer style signals change for industry: Russo
The old notion that beer has to be clean, crisp and clear isn’t on its way out, but the rise of the very popular, hazy, rough-hewn, juicy New England-style IPA says a lot about the way beer has changed.
In fact, it may very well say something about how the industry as a whole has evolved to meet modern sensibilities. The style has been popular among hard core beer enthusiasts for awhile, mostly on the strength of Heady Topper from The Alchemist, a Vermont brewery.
For years, people made pilgrimages to the brewery and spent their morning standing in line to buy the beer. It was so popular that a black market developed around it, and the brewery limited the number of purchases. On each of the cans, along with the ABV and art is a plea from the brewer, “Drink From The Can!” The injunction was more about cosmetic concerns than trying to get the best beer experience — but many internet theories exist on the true purpose.
New England-style IPAs are unpasteurized and unfiltered. That means there can be bits of hops or maybe some yeast floating in them. The can hides this fact, along with the overall haziness that can come from some of the other parts of the process.
The thing is, we only have come to think of beer as something that shouldn’t be opaque in the last century or so as filtered, pasteurized lager beers gained popularity and prominence. As recently as the last few years, New England-style IPAs were judged as inferior in many beer competitions because they didn’t meet the clarity standards beer judges are taught.
As their popularity exploded, however, it was clear, um, obvious, that the beer wasn’t going away and accommodations have been made.
The reason these cloudy, fresh-tasting beers are now made at pretty much every brewery is they are irresistible to a broad range of beer drinkers. Last year’s hottest beers were sour beers. They filled a niche for people who thought they didn’t like craft beer by providing a taste alternative. This year New England-style IPAs will be pervasive, and for similar reasons.
Along with being unfiltered, and therefore hazy, many New England-style IPAs are also super flavorful without being bitter. Not long ago, there seemed to be a race to make IPAs as bitter as people could stand, and many craft beer drinkers could stand very, very bitter beers.
It scared a lot of people away who otherwise could have become craft beer — and even (and especially) — IPA fans.
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New England-style IPAs certainly are “hoppy,” but they are not bitter. It has to do with when they are added into the brewing process. Since they have mostly flavor and aroma hops, they produce a really pleasant, flavorful experience without the aggressive bite IPAs have become known for popularly.
Once brewers felt comfortable experimenting with the New England-style IPA, the sky was the limit. Many breweries make a few different kinds and continually experiment with how juicy (literally juice-like) they can make them. The innovation has brought even more people into the independent craft beer fold and created more IPA converts.
As beer continues to get more localized, there really is a beer for everyone, and recent numbers about craft beer’s growth in 2017 are starting to bear that out.
Last year, independent craft beer grew 5 percent, accounting for more than 12 percent of beer sold. It grew more slowly than in previous years, but that makes sense given that the number of breweries communities reasonably can support is starting to plateau.
What is really interesting and exciting is that craft beer revenue grew 8 percent and accounted for more than 23 percent of retail sales. Even big beer companies like Budweiser last year would have reported losses if it weren’t for the craft breweries it bought. Overall, beer purchases were down 1 percent in 2017.
Think of it this way: Beer has joined the digital revolution. Just as there is an entertainment outlet for every taste, there is a beer for every taste. As a result, people are willing to pay more for the beer they want and breweries never tire of finding new things for them to drink.
The old staples still are around, just like network shows, and millions of people still are perfectly satisfied with those offerings. But every time there is a new choice available, it wittles another few devotees away.
The rise of the New England-style IPA and the continued success of independent craft beer is just the latest reminder that we are in a special transitional time where innovation still is rewarded even as what was acceptable in the past tries to hold the attention of the future.
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