The rise, and fall, and rise of IPA

Any beer fan in the UK could hardly have failed to notice the ever increasing popularity of IPA beers over the last 5-10 years. There seems to be a never ending stream of suppliers with a new craft brewery emerging every week.

We’re not complaining – our taste buds moved across to IPAs several years ago, preferring the lighter hoppier taste of an IPA compared to a more traditional British bitter. But it did get us thinking about where IPA originally came from and what was behind its recent surge in popularity….

IPA stands for India Pale Ale – it was first brewed, it seems, in London in the 1780s by Hodgsons Bow Brewery. There was a strong demand for British style beer emanating from Brits in India, but many of the beers exported to India often spoiled during the voyage, which in the pre-Suez canal era could take as long as six months

Hodgsons made a beer with extra hops which was designed to be cellared for up to two years before being drunk. It was thought that this longevity would help the beer survive the passage to India. It did – in fact it emerged tasting better than before. 

Or at least that’s one version of the story – others claim that the fortuitous combination of Hodgsons’ location next to the East India dock and their willingness to offer long lines of credit was what really sealed the deal. The full truth seems to be lost in the mists of time, but either way Indian Pale Ale was born.

Over time other brewers joined the party and the beers were gradually made paler and more refreshing to suit the hot Indian climate. By the 1840s the beers had become popular in the UK too. The US, Australia and Canada also started brewing their own IPAs in the late 1800s having originally imported them from England.

But as journey times shortened and refrigeration became available the specific need for IPAs tailed off and IPAs became less popular. Weaker and less characterful versions were sold in the UK, often just called Pale Ale. And that, it seemed was the end of IPAs.

However in the late 20th Century a new craft beer movement gathered pace in the US. Bored by the bland mass market offerings, new craft breweries sprung up, looking for more flavour and many turned to the past for inspiration. Additional inspiration could be found in new styles of hops, many of them developed in tandem with the US Department of Agriculture.

These new beers had a more intense flavour than their traditional forbearers and a new IPA trend took off, first on the West coast of the USA, then spreading across the whole country.

Meanwhile back in the UK the revival of IPAs can be at least partially attributed to a single seminar on Burton pale ales organised by pub owner Mark Dorber at his pub, the White Horse, Parson’s Green, in 1990. (Or the Sloaney Pony, as it’s sometimes known. If you’ve been there, you’ll understand…)

The seminar led to a pale ale festival in 1992 and an IPA festival in 1993, for which Bass brewed a strong IPA based on Bass recipes going back to the 1850s. Mr Dorber then helped to organise an IPA conference in 1994 at Whitbread’s brewery in London, attended by brewers from both sides of the Atlantic.

The IPA revival was now well underway, with many UK brewers using American hops to produce more zingy hop-forward brews. Beers brewed with UK hops tend towards a more subtle, earthy flavour, with herbal and floral notes. US hop-based varieties tend to have a more up-front, zesty flavour with citrus, pine and resinous notes. 

Modern IPAs have also led to a rejuvenation in beer can graphics. As more and more breweries have joined the throng, the need to stand out on the shelf has become more urgent and many breweries have turned to design to give their brews a fresher image in keeping with the fresher taste, as shown in this IPA collection from allaboutthebeer.co.uk

Which brings us nicely round to our new craft beer t-shirt. It’s a good-looking and not entirely serious design called Troppo – taken from the Australian phrase ‘Gone Troppo’ – used to describe someone who’s losing the plot in the heat.

We see it is an artisan-brewed IPA using local ingredients (of course). One of our more off-the-wall designs, the arty minimalism of the label is offset by a flying kick boxer, which makes no sense at all but it made us smile and, hey, its beer…

You can find out more about our Troppo t-shirt here.

Thanks to Elevate at Unsplash for lead image.