Everybody knows the story: 2020, SUDDENLY the entire world changed. Our communal picture, already muddled by the blight of Trumpism, became far more clouded by the kind of global pandemic that NO ONE but a relative handful scientists saw coming and, as millions became sick and even died, that cloudy picture became damned near opaque.
Fast forward (there was actually nothing “fast” about it) to 2024 and we’ve regained a measure of clarity…and not just in our daily lives.
Back when the pandemic hit, we were in the fat middle of the NEIPA or “hazy IPA” craze. Breweries everywhere were making beers that looked more like smoothies and younger consumers (Okay, some older ones, too) were guzzling them like they were the Fountain of Youth. They were The Right Thing at The Right Time, a diversion from the norm, at a time when diversion was desperately needed. And, even for those who reflexively loathed Hazys from the git-go, they at least provided diversion in the form of Something To Bitch About, a resource which, in modern America, is of immense value.
For me, the rule was the same for Hazys as for any other beer style: celebrate the good ones, pour the bad down the sink…and I did that quite a bit. Breweries or PR firms would send samples of the Next Big Hazy and I would taste it and…it was unbalanced and clumsy and several even had prominent off-flavors. There were a LOT of great ones. A Vermont brewery sent me two and they were drop-dead delicious. But for the rest of America, one truism held fast: if you want a great beer of any style, try one from a great brewery.
Now, we’re mostly out of the fogbank of uncertainty and, as if by kismet, beers are clearing up, too. The style of West Coast IPA has existed for some time, as has the Northwest or PNW IPA, but both gained distinction in the wake of the all-encompassing Haze and now they come as a welcome return to some degree of normalcy. And with the renewed interest in the styles, brewers have managed to find techniques and ingredients – especially a spate of newer hybrided and imported hops – that pack as much flavor and/or fruitiness into clear beers as were the main reason Hazys came to popularity.
I’m going to single out two and they are brands that most everybody can find, somewhere in the US, even if it involves shipping.
I, personally, am in the tail end of what I christened #DarkSummer, my own reaction to my boredom with MOST summer-weight lagers and “session IPAs”. This summer, I vowed to drink ONLY dark beers, which I find every bit as refreshing as these ephemeral soda pop beers and far more flavorful. I allowed myself TWO exceptions: From our local Echoes Brewing, a BRILLIANT young brewery in Poulsbo, Washington, a Belgian-style IPA called “Nun’s Bad Habit”, a 99% perfect example of a style of IPA which has remained HIGHLY under-appreciated, and “Clear Horizons” West Coast IPA from one of the nations top OG producers, Colorado’s Avery Brewing.
If, like most readers of this website, you don’t live in Washington and rarely travel here, you’ll never taste “Nun’s” but you will almost certainly find “Clear Horizons” and, if you’re curious about what people mean when they say “West Coast IPA”, this is your template. “Horizons” is a lambent dark gold in the glass, a genuinely pretty beer that almost begs you to sip it. If you obey that impulse, you’ll bless the day you read this because Horizons over-delivers on what it promises and clearly shows Adam Avery‘s titanic brewing chops. From the website:
Dry Hop Varieties:
Citra
Mosaic
Amarillo
Strata
Azacca
Hop Varieties
Citra
Chinook
Strata
Amarillo
Malt Varieties
Pale Barley
Vienna
Carapils
Yeast Varieties
Cali Ale
This is a juggling act on the scale of Anthony Gatto (google him) of the sort that defies MOST lesser brewers. Adam and his team handle this embarrassment of riches as deftly as anyone could, assembling a tapestry of flavors that more than matches any Hazy ever made but does it without need to leave in undissolved solids to blow up flavors. It’s crystal clear, emphatic, endlessly interesting, and as clean and inviting as newly-fallen snow. As Sam said on their website, “We took the best parts of IPAs we love, either from the East Coast, the West Coast, or no coast whatsoever, and evolved it into something that is truly unique and defines a new space in the IPA category.” Normally – maybe 80% of the time – this sort of copy is just marketing fluff but here, Avery has actually managed to make something not quite like anything else. It explodes with mango and tangerine and pineapple and sweet herbs and pink grapefruit and a mellow, subdued malt character that adds a flattering, subtle undertow of nuts and toasted bread and crackers and caramel. If Horizons is the new template for what “West Coast IPA” means, that bar may be set so high that few breweries can get within miles of it. 97 Points
Wayfinder Beer Retro Gold West Coast IPA, from Portland, OR, may actually not be all that widely distributed but you should be able to get it if your state allows alcohol shipping. (If it doesn’t, MOVE) But it may be one of about five labels at the pinnacle of this style; one that absolutely DOES get to the plane of Avery “Clear Horizons”. It brings a nicely bitter hops edge to the forefront, living up to the term “Retro” by harking back to the time when the IBU Scare was in full swing but civilizing the whole profile with a bright maltiness that pulls the balance of it into near perfection. Brewer Kevin Davey dances around among the various style of neo-European lagers and big, rib-sticking ales with immense grace and finesse. Retro Gold marries the pine needle dankness of the past with the tropical flavors of modern IPAs and an adroit dose of malts to make…THIS. And THIS is nothing short of remarkable. 98 Points
The Pour Fool 