20 Best Types of IPA Beers: Detailed Guide (2023 Updated)
Last Updated on December 29, 2022 by Lydia Martin
Fruity, bitter, and refreshing IPA beers (Indian Pale Ale) are widely recognizable because of their intensive hop flavor. Every IPA craft beer undergoes a brewing process that lends complex flavors and appearance that is always true to its style.
Here are different types of IPA beers that you should not miss out on.
Top 20 IPA Beer Types & Styles
1. English IPA
ABV: 5 – 7.5 %
Color: Light copper to medium amber
Examples: Brooklyn Brewery East India Pale Ale, Three Floyds Blackheart, Summit India Pale Ale, Sixpoint Bengali IPA, Goose Island IPA
Quick Description:
British brewers added hop as preservatives to beer [1] to keep it fresh until it reached India. However, the seasonal beer is less hoppy than its American IPA counterpart, with balanced high hop flavor and malt.
2. Imperial IPA
ABV: 4-12%
Color: Light copper and medium amber
Examples: Three Floyds Dreadnaught IPA, Pliny the Elder, Bell’s Brewery Hopslam Ale, Stone Ruination IPA, Russian River Brewing Co., Dogfish Head 90-minute IPA
Quick Description:
Imperial IPA is an American beer style with stronger, more aggressive bitter, and bolder flavors. The American IPA (Double IPA) has loads of hoppy flavor that amped up the version of West Coast IPA.
3. West Coast IPA
ABV: 5.5 – 7%
Color: Gold to copper color
Examples: Blue Point Hazy Bastard IPA, Sierra Nevada’s Hazy Little Thing, Green Flash Palate Wrecker
Quick Description:
West Coast IPA is almost similar to an English IPA but does not use American hop varieties for a bolder flavor profile. Independent craft brewers pitched the West Coast IPAs with Chinook, Citra or Cascade hops for bitter and fruity flavors.
4. East Coast/New England IPA
ABV: 5-7%
Color: Gold to copper color
Examples: Sierra Nevada’s Hazy Little Thing, Blue Point Hazy Bastard IPA
Quick Description:
East Coast IPA is relatively new but based on the West Coast IPA style. However, the New England India Pale Ale is different because East Coast brewers use complicated British yeast for unique flavor and smell.
5. Rye IPA
ABV: 4-7 %
Color: Pale Amber to mahogany
Examples: Sixpoint Brewery Righteous Ale, Harpoon’s Rich and Dan’s Rye IPA, Magic Hat Ticket to Rye IPA, Sierra Nevada’s Ruthless Rye,
Quick Description:
Rye IPAs is one of the unique beer styles because it is an IPA pitched with rye. Aside from the tropical fruit notes of the modern IPA, it has the right spicy notes from rye, amplifying the fruity flavor of India Pale Ales. But what’s the cheapest beer to drink?
6. Black IPA
ABV: 5-10 %
Color: Dark brown to blackish color
Examples: Stone Brewing Co. Sublimely Self Righteous Ale, Black Perle by RJ Rockers Brewing, Sierra Nevada Blindfold, Frostbite by Foothills
Quick Description:
Black IPA is a fairly new beer style of IPA that is often called “Cascadian Dark Ale.” The hops are aggressively present in the Black IPA, but it features different flavors like coffee, light caramel, chocolate, toffee, and other dark notes.
7. Belgian IPA
ABV: 6-12 %
Color: Pale gold to light amber with a cloudy finish
Examples: Brasserie D’Achouffe Houblon Chouffe Dobbelen IPA, 3 Floyds Live a Rich Life, Flying Dog Raging Bitch Belgian Style IPA, Stone Cali-Belgique IPA
Quick Description:
Belgian IPA is a popular beer style and is considered a hybrid style of typical IPA by Americans. Brewers use Belgian-style yeast in its brewing process, which sets it apart from other fresh hopped IPA.
8. White IPA
ABV: 4-7 %
Color: Medium amber
Examples: Anchorage Galaxy White IPA, Lagunitas a Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ Ale, Lagunitas a Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ Ale
Quick Description:
Beer drinkers are fond of the White IPA-a hybrid of Belgian white and American. It is a bitter beer with a high carbonation level and low hop character.
9. Wet-Hop IPA
ABV: 5.5-9%
Color: Dark yellow
Examples: Lagunitas Wet Hop IPA, Sierra Nevada Harvest Wet Hop IPA, Driftwood Sartori Harvest IPA, Three Floyds BrooDoo
Quick Description:
Wet-Hop IPAs use fresh, right off the vine, and unprocessed hops for the British IPAs. It is a hopped pale ale that uses more hops but is less bitter. They are moist and full of flavor.
10. Dry-Hop IPA
ABV: 5-12%
Color: Light amber
Examples: Bell’s Hopslam, Maine Beer Dinner, Tree House Alter Ego, Hill Farmstead Edward
Quick Description:
Dry-Hop IPA is one of the traditional IPA styles where hop is added to the beer for aroma. Dry hopping gives the beer specific aromas and unique flavors.
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11. Brut IPA
ABV: 3.8 – 5%
Color: Clear to light gold
Examples: New Belgium Brut IPA, Sierra Nevada Brut IPA
Quick Description:
Brut IPA is called the champagne of beers because of its dryness and crispness. It is one of the lesser-known styles of IPA in the beer industry, and it uses enzymes like amyloglucosidase, which is widely used in stouts.
12. Milkshake IPA
ABV: 3.5 – 6%
Color: Light gold
Examples: Westbrook Peach Milkshake, Edmund’s Oast Pineapple Milkshake IPA
Quick Description:
Milkshake IPA is a byproduct of the New England IPA. It is a popular style because it is milky, creamy, and cloudy.
13. Session IPA
ABV: Below 5%
Color: Light Amber
Examples: Sierra Nevada Nooner IPA, Founders All Day IPA
Quick Description:
Session IPA is a light beer with lighter ABV and IBU. It has a light body with an increased level of hop with a malty finish.
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14. Sour IPA
ABV: 5-7.8%
Color: Pale
Examples: Eight State Forever Sour IPA, Almanac Sour IPA
Quick Description:
Sour IPA is under the sour beer category, and unlike other IPAs in line, it is not famous but slowly becoming accepted. The sour flavor of the sour beers comes from the bacteria lactobacillus [2].
15. Fruited IPA
ABV: 5 – 7.5%
Color: Golden amber to dark brown
Examples: Ballast Point Grapefruit Sculpin, Dogfish Head Aprihop,
Quick Description:
Fruit IPA comes with fruit-fresh, juice, puree, pulp, or concentrate. It is more of a category of IPA and has wonderful flavors such as lemons, peaches, grapefruit, or virtually any fruit.
16. Triple IPA
ABV: 10-13%
Color: Bright milky yellow
Examples: Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA, Boneyard Notorious, Foam Pop Crimes
Quick Description:
Triple IPA is not for people with a sensitive stomach and weak heart because it contains a high ABV. It can be bitter, soft, tropical, or piney, but some come sour with lactose.
17. Alcohol-Free IPA
ABV: 0-0.5%
Color: Pale yellow
Examples: Big Drop “Pine Trail” , Brewdog “Nanny State”, Kehrwieder “Ü.nn”
Quick Description:
Alcohol-free IPA does not taste like a typical British IPA and does not contain alcohol. The brewers use a special type of yeast to achieve the IPA type.
18. Double IPA
ABV: 7-12 %
Color: Straw to medium amber
Examples: Transmigration of Souls, Puff, Molten Lava, 1Z Enuff
Quick Description:
Double IPA is assertive in flavor and aroma and contains higher alcohol content than a standard IPA. To achieve the ABV, it contains more malt and should be hop-centric.
19. Grapefruit IPA
ABV: 4.5-7.5%
Color: Ruby red hue
Examples: Grapefruit Sculpin, Samuel Adams Rebel Grapefruit
Quick Description:
Grapefruit IPAs are brewed with a blend of Horizon and Cascade hops, then Altus hops. It is a seasonal IPA with serious citrus bomb-lively, bitter, refreshing, and bright.
20. Coffee IPA
ABV: 5-9%
Color: Hazy orange yellow
Examples: Moirai Coffee IPA, Stone Mocha IPA, Rockmill Mystery
Quick Description:
Coffee IPA has a sturdy bitterness, but it is amazingly fresh. It has a bright mocha flavor with refreshing beer on the side.
FAQs
How many main types of IPA beers are there?
Based on the Beer Judge Certification Program, there are nine main IPA beers: American, Belgian, Black, Brown, Double, English, Red, Rye, and White.
What’s the most popular IPA beer?
The most popular IPA beer is the Hitachino Japanese Classic Ale, an English IPA brought to Japan in the 19th century. It is matured in Cedar casks used to brew traditional Japanese sake.
In Summary
IPAs are overly hopped pale ale, and the hop serves as preservatives to keep beer fresh from England to India. Some IPAs taste like citrus, while others are fruity, bitter, and strong.
There are several different styles of IPA, and each features alcohol content that ranges from 3% to 12%. Caramel and crystal malt are used for the color of the IPAs.
References:
- https://www.britannica.com/topic/beer
- https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-790/lactobacillus
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