Mitch Steele of Stone Brewing calls it “a way for craft beer drinkers to enjoy an intensely hoppy beer at a lower alcohol level” It is sort of the hoppy part of an IPA without the puckering bitterness” Jack Harris of Fort George Brewery in Astoria, Oregon describes a Session IPA as “a beer that would be intensely aromatic with hops, full-flavored (not thin or watery), low in alcohol and low in hop bitterness. I contacted 3 commercial brewers, for their take on the new “style”. Calculated IBU’s are probably somewhat similar, but the hop flavor and aroma is more intense with a Session IPA. Notice that I did not say the hop flavor is more “bitter” than a pale ale.
#KIRKLAND CITRA HOP SESSION IPA FULL#
The simplest way to describe the difference is that while the alcohol content of a Session IP A and an American Pale Ale is about the same, the body of a Session IPA tends to be a bit more full bodied, and the hop flavor would be described as more “intense” than a Pale Ale. Out of this dilemma came a new unofficial IPA beer style called “Session IPA”.ĭoesn’t “Session IPA” sound like an over-hopped American Pale Ale? Well, no, they are not quite the same. What is the problem with the numerous IPA styles? Because of the higher alcohol content, you frequently can’t drink more than 2 pints without looking for a pillow. All of these IPA styles and sub styles have 2 distinct characteristics in common, #1) high hop flavor and bitterness, and #2) a higher alcohol content, typically from a low of 5.5% to up to over 10%, with the majority of them in the 7% range.
Add to that “Double IPA” and Black IPA (or Cascadian Dark Ale). We have a variety of official IPA beer styles, including British IPA, American IPA and Imperial IPA. It is no secret that the best selling beer in the USA is the IPA style. What the hop is a “Session IPA”, and how do I make one? By Steve Bader, November 2014