Welcome to the world of NEIPA, which is like IPA saying to itself: "Remember your roots, but take it to the next level!" NEIPA stands for New England India Pale Ale. And where did it all begin? Well, like any good story, this one has its original home - in this case New England, USA, sometime in 2004.
I'll try to explain simply what NEIPA is all about, and then we'll talk about our experiences with this beer.
NEIPA is an unfiltered, cloudy beer with a distinct aroma of American hops, which gives the beer the taste and aroma of tropical fruits. The beer is also less saturated and not as bitter as we are used to in the Czech Republic, and it also has a beautifully creamy body.
And now to specific experiences.
I don't know exactly if the guys at The Alchemist had a clear intention, but their aptly named Heady Topper NEIPA is said to have been the first. And nothing can be said other than that NEIPA simply succeeded.
I met NEIPA for the first time sometime in 2018, just when I was moving from the Matuška brewery to Zichovce, and it can be said that the first good NEIPA appealed to me in a positive sense. And of course, it became an instant hit on the craftbeer scene.
And since thorough study and tasting is the foundation, I immediately secured samples from Heady Topper and Tree House, pioneers of the style, plus of course many others.
I won't talk about all the NEIPAs we've brewed at the breweries where I've worked, but when I decided to go my own way in 2022, I had an idea. How about trying a combination of the most popular NEIPA style with RAUCH style? It sounds really crazy, but it just stuck in my head and wouldn't come out...
And so our HANGBOARD NEIPA RAUCH 14 came to light. Just a NEIPA with smoked wheat.
God bless you, and maybe we'll talk about the RAUCH beer style sometime next time.