IPA Varieties Explained: West Coast vs. Hazy vs. Session and Everything Between

IPA stands for India Pale Ale, a category that was originally defined by high hopping rates and elevated alcohol — conditions that helped preserve beer on long voyages to British India in the 18th century. Today it's the broadest category in American craft beer, encompassing beers so different in taste, appearance, and philosophy that the shared name sometimes feels like the only thing they have in common. Here's the breakdown.

West Coast IPA is the original American craft beer IPA — clear, golden-to-amber, and built around bitter, resinous hops. If you've heard someone describe an IPA as 'pine and citrus,' they're almost certainly describing a West Coast IPA. The bitterness is dry and assertive. There's no sweetness to cushion it. The malt is present but recessive — its job is to keep the beer from tasting like pure hop extract, not to contribute flavor. West Coast IPAs are polarizing: if you love them, you love them. If you don't, you find them harsh. Ridgeline IPA is our version of this style.

Hazy IPA (also called New England IPA, or NEIPA) is the transformation that happened to the category in the 2010s. Pioneered by The Alchemist brewery in Vermont, hazy IPAs are intentionally unfiltered, loaded with late-addition and dry hops, and brewed to be juicy rather than bitter. The appearance is opaque and often pastel — orange, yellow, or pale gold that looks like tropical fruit juice. The flavor follows: tropical fruit, peach, mango, melon, stone fruit. Bitterness is low. The mouthfeel is often thick and creamy. This is the style that converted a generation of people who previously claimed to not like IPAs.

Session IPA applies the flavor profile of an IPA to a lower-alcohol framework — typically 4.0–5.0% ABV. The idea is that you can drink more of them without the cumulative effect of a standard 6–7% IPA. The challenge with session IPAs is that reducing alcohol also tends to reduce body, which strips out some of the malt character that supports hop flavor. The best ones are delicate balancing acts. The bad ones taste thin and astringent. It's a difficult style to brew well, which is why we don't currently make one — we'd rather not make a version that isn't great.

Double IPA (DIPA) or Imperial IPA is the opposite end of the spectrum from session — typically 8.0–10.0% ABV, with hop charges scaled proportionally. The goal is maximum hop expression with enough malt backbone to keep it from being undrinkable. At its best, a double IPA is lush, complex, and warming. At its worst, it's boozy and unbalanced. They should be sipped rather than pounded — at 9%, you'll know the difference by your second pint.

Black IPA (Cascadian Dark Ale) uses dark-roasted malts to add color and a mild roasty character to an IPA hop profile. The result is a beer that looks like a porter or stout but tastes like an IPA with a roasty edge. It was briefly fashionable in the early 2010s and has since settled into a niche that its fans are deeply loyal to.

The practical answer to 'which IPA should I order' is: tell your bartender what you liked or didn't like about the last IPA you tried, and let them match you. The category has become so internally diverse that 'give me an IPA' without context is like 'give me a red wine' — technically useful, but not helpful enough for the person on the other side of the bar to make a good call. We love matching people with beers. Just tell us where you've been and we'll figure out where you're going.

← Back to Blog