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Author Topic: The Blurred Lines Between Styles  (Read 2960 times)

Offline skyler

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The Blurred Lines Between Styles
« on: November 25, 2009, 12:19:19 pm »
A lot of my favorite beers fit neatly into several BJCP style categories. Many of the hoppy amber ales from California, for example, may fit better in the "American Pale Ale" category than "American Amber Ale" and many more Pale Ales could be considered IPA's as well. Cross-national style categories are of particular interest to me. If an American brewer produces something which closely resembles a Dusseldorf Altbier, he may well call it an "American Amber" or something like that.

In tasting an IPA that I recently made with only summit hops, I was considering this sliding style scale. I meant for the beer to be an American-hopped ESB, but the efficiency was higher than planned (I got a 15% jump in efficiency when my LHBS got a new mill), so I increased the hopping a bit to put it into English IPA territory. What I am tasting now is so clearly an American Pale Ale to my tastebuds. On paper the IBUs (50) are too high, but the low co-humulone of the summits have led me to consider this a more malt/hop balanced beer than an IPA, particularly given the yeast used (S-04) and the fermentation temperature (72F) lent considerable fruitiness.

So what is an English IPA, really? I don't even know if the style needs to exist. Most beers called IPA in Britain are just bitters with more hops. I never once saw an IPA in Britain that was over 6% abv, that's for sure. Near as I can tell, an English IPA, according to BJCP is just an American pale ale with English hops and malt. Given how many American breweries use English yeast as their house strain, that's how I see it, anyway.  

Do other people have the same difficulty I do with determining what to call a beer? Do certain differentiations just seem like they don't need to be there? I feel like IPA should be one category and American Amber Ale doesn't need to exist since Altbier, APA, and ESB tend to encompass the style well enough. And there should be a "Golden Ale" option in lieu of "Blonde Ale" to account for Cream Ales, Blonde Ales, and the British equivalents.

Ok, my 2ยข.

Offline bonjour

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Re: The Blurred Lines Between Styles
« Reply #1 on: November 25, 2009, 02:28:25 pm »
In tasting an IPA that I recently made with only summit hops, I was considering this sliding style scale. I meant for the beer to be an American-hopped ESB, but the efficiency was higher than planned (I got a 15% jump in efficiency when my LHBS got a new mill), so I increased the hopping a bit to put it into English IPA territory. What I am tasting now is so clearly an American Pale Ale to my tastebuds. On paper the IBUs (50) are too high, but the low co-humulone of the summits have led me to consider this a more malt/hop balanced beer than an IPA, particularly given the yeast used (S-04) and the fermentation temperature (72F) lent considerable fruitiness.
  Then I would enter this beer as an American Pale Ale in a competition.  What a beer is is what it comes out as.  The style guides are there only to help the judges judge beer.

Fred
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Offline deepsouth

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Re: The Blurred Lines Between Styles
« Reply #2 on: November 25, 2009, 04:54:05 pm »
electronic dance music is a lot like the bjcp.  lots of styles when in reality, fewer would work.

ymmv.
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Offline elipsis

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Re: The Blurred Lines Between Styles
« Reply #3 on: November 25, 2009, 06:20:09 pm »
So what is an English IPA, really? I don't even know if the style needs to exist.

Well, there's an historical argument here. The IPA style originated in Britain as a way to ship beer to the colonies in India without it going bad. Extra hops and elevated alcohol content ensured that the beer survived the voyage by ship. The American version came about later emphasizing the hops and alcohol even more than the British original. It's gotten a bit ridiculous, I think, that American IPA's are typically pushing past 6% ABV and 60 IBUs.

Mostly I ignore style designations unless I'm specifically brewing a beer to enter a competition. I try to brew beers that my friends, family and I like to drink. IMHO people get too caught up in classification.
On tap: IPA, stout, cider
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Offline hopfenundmalz

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Re: The Blurred Lines Between Styles
« Reply #4 on: November 25, 2009, 06:55:41 pm »
>It's gotten a bit ridiculous, I think, that American IPA's are typically pushing past 6% ABV and 60 IBUs.
This fall I brewed a British IPA that was 1.070, and was at 66 IBU's.  Based on a recipe for circa 1900 Whitbread IPA.

This will be aged for at least 6 months, then heavily dry hopped.  Can I still call it a British IPA?
Jeff Rankert
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Offline The Professor

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Re: The Blurred Lines Between Styles
« Reply #5 on: November 25, 2009, 08:01:13 pm »
It does get confusing.
To say the least, I'm not a big fan of the "style" guidelines as they are.  And the list keeps getting bigger and more confusing.

Harmless enough though, I guess, since they really apply only to homebrew competiion.

On a side note with reference to skylar's post...and not intending to hijack:
Strong, hoppy American IPA's are nothing new by any means. 

The other old farts in attendance here besides me will 1) chuckle that I am bringing it up (again) ...
...but 2) remember fondly  the great IPA from 40+ years ago (see my avatar)...well over 7% ABV (a former brewmaster from the company  told me it was possibly around 7.5%)  and between 65-70 IBUs at least,  and aged 1 year in wood prior to bottling to boot (and no...the hop profile was not diminished by the aging...intensely bitter and unbelievably aromatic).   

I only bring it up repeatedly because I think it's very important to remember and note that there were some big brewery beers in the 'dark ages' that would stand up today's micro product (and in some cases, surpass it).
 
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Offline dean

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Re: The Blurred Lines Between Styles
« Reply #6 on: November 25, 2009, 08:35:00 pm »
Come up with something new that a Lot of people like and it will become a style.  It is funny how many styles are So Similar.  I just try to brew a beer that I like and then every so often something that other people like... it works for me.   ;)

Offline hopfenundmalz

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Re: The Blurred Lines Between Styles
« Reply #7 on: November 26, 2009, 06:57:26 am »
That beer from 40 years ago was the first IPA I ever had.  Ballantines.
Jeff Rankert
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