There are times when it seems like everything is an IPA these days, for better or worse. That doesn’t mean, though, that there aren’t outstanding fusions of stronger hops character and styles which don’t often feature them! It’s for that reason that I look skeptically at things like the Red or Brown IPA (since hoppy reds and browns have always existed), but see things like White or Belgian IPA as being genuine opportunities for innovation and expansion. If ever there was a beer style family that seemed to miss the boat on hops, it was the Belgians. Today we’re going to talk through an approach to them that showcases the flavor of their hops while preserving the distinctly “Belgian” character of Belgian beers, embodied in the Belgian IPA.
STYLE
You have to love the often-brutal honesty of the BJCP Guidelines. In discussing the Belgian IPA in Category 21B, the authors offer this frank assessment: “The choice of yeast strain and hop varieties is critical since many choices will horribly clash.”
They’re not kidding. A haphazard and careless approach to this style is an invitation to disaster, like putting cheese on fish. It’s not that it can’t be done, it’s that there are myriad ways to screw it up. Some of that is going to come down to palate and preference, of course, but that doesn’t mean we can’t take care not to create an “orange juice and toothpaste” situation.