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Rose City Heresy: India Pale Ales

March 29, 2009 by Dave 4 Comments

As regular readers know, I’m a fan and booster of Portland beers, restaurants, and sports teams [Rip City and Rose City ‘Til I Die!]. As often as possible I promote and attend local festivals. I regularly read, link to, and recommend local blogs and I keep tabs on media paeans to, and critiques of, my hometown.

I love Portland.

But not all my opinions jibe with the hometown consensus, for my love is not blind.

I am a Portlander, but I am firstly my own man.

ipaTake, for instance, local beer brewers and consumers’ obsession with hops and a beer style, the Northwest India Pale Ale, that generally tastes like rancid grapefruit juice. I prefer beers that are interesting, or even subtle; IPAs are seldom the former and never the latter. One day I might be in the mood for something sweet and malty, the next day dry and toasty. Sometimes something a bit Belgiany, or tart. In the fall, when the hops are fresh and the air is crisp, I may even enjoy one of the banal and ubiquitous Northwest IPAs of which I whinge – the hop aroma is nice. But I’m tired of local bar and beer festival lineups where IPAs make up a third to half of the available beers. Show some creativity! When I want a grape fruit juice I’ll order a Greyhound.

Filed Under: Beer, kvetch, Portland

Comments

  1. Mary Sue says

    March 29, 2009 at 6:38 pm

    Heathen.

  2. XUP says

    March 30, 2009 at 6:50 am

    It’s a passing fad. Microbreweries here all seem to be into fruity beers at the moment.

  3. Dave says

    March 30, 2009 at 7:42 am

    Mary Sue – I know! But I just don’t get it. I can respect a good IPA, but I just don’t want my tongue numbed by one.

    XUP – I’m hoping that’s the case. I have seen a lot more Belgian style ales recently, which is a good trend!

  4. Marcus says

    March 30, 2009 at 9:23 am

    Couldn’t disagree more, Dave. I love a hoppy IPA and love that it’s become Portland’s flagship beer. You know you’d be hard-pressed to find a brewery in town that doesn’t offer several delicious alternatives to hop-heavy Indian Pales. Of course, I don’t think there’s a brewery that doesn’t offer an IPA. Cheers!

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