[micsager]

Whitewater IPA...
Wheat ale brewed with apricots and spices

Yeah, 'IPA' is evidently getting to be a loose term to Jim Koch. Tried the new Rebel IPA last week. It was fresh - smelled and tasted like a Pale Ale at best.

I've been drinking a lot of the Rebel as of late.  I like it.  But, you're certainly right that it's not the hoppiest beer around. 

[blatz]

Rebel is 45 ibus, 6.5% so that may explain the lower hop perception to a degree.

[HoosierBrew]

Rebel is 45 ibus, 6.5% so that may explain the lower hop perception to a degree.

Yeah, that gives it a BU:GU of ~ .69  .  Pretty pale ale-ish. And I love APA - it's a great style.  Just thrown by the West Coast IPA sales pitch. Having said all that, it's not a bad tasting beer.

[euge]

I drank one in Houston at the southwest terminal. They have the worst beer concessions there.

[Jimmy K]

Rebel is 45 ibus, 6.5% so that may explain the lower hop perception to a degree.

Yeah, that gives it a BU:GU of ~ .69  .  Pretty pale ale-ish. And I love APA - it's a great style.  Just thrown by the West Coast IPA sales pitch. Having said all that, it's not a bad tasting beer.

I had the same debate over one of my beer I entered in competition. I brewed it as an IPA and it's numbers are similar. It's right in the middle of the IPA style for abv and IBU, but the bitterness was very gentle. It's also at the high end for pale ale, because there is overlap. I decided it would do better as a pale ale.
 
But like I said, restrained bitterness is my impression of west coast IPA too.

[reverseapachemaster]

I drank one in Houston at the southwest terminal. They have the worst beer concessions there.

You can only say that because you didn't go through DFW.

[euge]

OMG it's worse in DFW?!

[denny]

But like I said, restrained bitterness is my impression of west coast IPA too.

WHAT???

[HoosierBrew]

But like I said, restrained bitterness is my impression of west coast IPA too.

WHAT???

That was my thought, Denny. Now granted my sample size was restricted to California and not the PNW, but I took a trip out West a few years back and tried alot of the high profile beers out there - Alpine, Ballast Point, Stone, Bear Republic, Russian River, etc. - and found them to be among the hoppiest ( and best) I ever had.... by far. Bitterness on those IPAs was moderately high to melt your face. And I know not every brewery in the western states makes beers that way, but my impression was that a lot do. They're definitely not scared of hops at those breweries. Those are actually the IPAs I try to emulate today.

[Stevie]

OMG it's worse in DFW?!

Dfw sucks but for one terminal. I am convinced that the airport purposely schedules all the layovers at that terminal so people think it is a nice airport.

[denny]

That was my thought, Denny. Now granted my sample size was restricted to California and not the PNW, but I took a trip out West a few years back and tried alot of the high profile beers out there - Alpine, Ballast Point, Stone, Bear Republic, Russian River, etc. - and found them to be among the hoppiest ( and best) I ever had.... by far. Bitterness on those IPAs was moderately high to melt your face. And I know not every brewery in the western states makes beers that way, but my impression was that a lot do. They're definitely not scared of hops at those breweries. Those are actually the IPAs I try to emulate today.

Did I misunderstand you?  I thought you were saying that west coast beers weren't hoppy.

[HoosierBrew]

That was my thought, Denny. Now granted my sample size was restricted to California and not the PNW, but I took a trip out West a few years back and tried alot of the high profile beers out there - Alpine, Ballast Point, Stone, Bear Republic, Russian River, etc. - and found them to be among the hoppiest ( and best) I ever had.... by far. Bitterness on those IPAs was moderately high to melt your face. And I know not every brewery in the western states makes beers that way, but my impression was that a lot do. They're definitely not scared of hops at those breweries. Those are actually the IPAs I try to emulate today.

Did I misunderstand you?  I thought you were saying that west coast beers weren't hoppy.

I was saying that SA new Rebel IPA, which passes itself off as a 'West Coast IPA', isn't very hoppy at all, after actually trying West Coast beers that clearly are.

[The Professor]

...Yeah, 'IPA' is evidently getting to be a loose term to Jim Koch. Tried the new Rebel IPA last week. It was fresh - smelled and tasted like a Pale Ale at best.

Oh, I don't know...IPA has become a pretty loose term in general in the USA.

[denny]

I was saying that SA new Rebel IPA, which passes itself off as a 'West Coast IPA', isn't very hoppy at all, after actually trying West Coast beers that clearly are.

Got it now!  Thanks!

[denny]

...Yeah, 'IPA' is evidently getting to be a loose term to Jim Koch. Tried the new Rebel IPA last week. It was fresh - smelled and tasted like a Pale Ale at best.

Oh, I don't know...IPA has become a pretty loose term in general in the USA.