The Most Popular Style Of Craft Beer In The US

While craft beer breweries in the U.S. have been on a slight decline, the industry's creativity and ingenuity have helped beer giants like Anheuser-Busch grow their portfolios while allowing independent breweries to truly shine. Apart from being independent and creative, craft beer breweries have also been applauded for their sustainable, eco-friendly practices like using recycled packaging materials, repurposing spent grains, and exploiting renewable energy to fuel the brewing process. 

Among the many craft beers worthy of calling out and celebrating, the most popular style in the US has been India Pale Ale, otherwise known as IPA. According to market research compiled via Accio, the IPA category represents nearly 40 percent of craft beer sales by volume. IPAs are a type of beer brewed with a high hop content, contributing to a bitter finish. That said, there are many different styles of IPA, offering a range of different flavors, hues, and other characteristics. 

The range of styles is one of the key contributing factors to the IPA's success as America's favorite craft beer variety because there's a flavor and mouthfeel that satisfies both beer connoisseurs and newcomers to the craft beer scene. The IPA styles with the most appeal for consumers have been the Session IPAs for their lower ABV content and Hazy or Juicy IPAs, known to be less bitter than other IPA varieties while also bringing tropical fruity flavors to the mix.

A cicerone we interviewed asserts that when approaching IPAs, the most important distinction to make is between the West Coast IPAs and the Hazy IPAs. West Coast IPAs are among the most bitter due to the addition of hops at the beginning of the brewing process. They also offer different tasting notes like citrus and resin and are transparent when poured. Hazy IPAs, on the other hand, are brewed with hops from more tropical regions, which are added at the end of the brewing process or during fermentation. They're noticeably sweeter and offer notes of pineapple, mango, passionfruit, and orange. True to their name, Hazy IPAs have a cloudy appearance when poured. While a sweet, fruitier, and full-bodied Hazy IPA might appeal more to newcomers, a West Coast IPA — with its crisp, bitter finish — is often thought to be more refreshing.

If you're trying to choose the best IPA for you, check the IBU (International Bitterness Unit); an IPA with an IBU above 45 is for bitter beer lovers. If you want a balance of bitter and sweet, look for an IBU of 35 or below. While all beers need to be stored in your fridge, it's recommended that you don't drink IPAs straight out of the fridge. Letting them warm up to 40 degrees Fahrenheit will bloom the flavors that colder temperatures mask. You can also offset the bitterness while complementing the tasting notes of IPAs with food pairings; we recommend a blue cheese and IPA pairing at your next tasting party.