What will they think of next with IPA? First, of course, there was the original India Pale Ale, which has its origins all the way back to the 19^th century. They sort of fell out of fashion, though, at least until the beer renaissance of the early nineteen eighties here in the United States.  American IPA then became all the rage, as opposed to the more traditional (and less hoppy) English IPA. West Coast IPA became the hoppiest yet, and in the early nineties India Dark Ale, also known as Black IPA, emerged. Belgian IPAs combined the hoppy style with funky Belgian yeast strains.

It seems, then, only logical that with black IPAs established it was only a matter of time before we had White IPAs, and so here they are. White IPAs are a hybrid between IPA and Belgian Witbier. The first such beer I tried, Shock Top Wheat IPA, failed to impress. Much better, and more refreshing, was Samuel Adams Whitewater IPA. Today, I’m here to tell you about the latest White IPA to come my way, Saranac White IPA.

Here’s what Saranac says about their beer:

Saranac White IPA is a tasty innovative twist on a traditional IPA. We've taken a delicious American IPA bursting with Citra hops, and given it a whole new direction by adding the refreshing fruitiness of orange peel & coriander and the softening characters of wheat malt and oats. You'll notice the complex hop flavor you've come to expect in an IPA, balanced with the extraordinary bright flavor of a wheat beer. Cheers to twisting tradition!

The beer has an alcohol content of 6% by volume, on the low end for an IPA but a bit more than average for a Belgian Wit. Originally released in early 2012 as a seasonal beer, it has proved popular enough to be deemed a year round release from Saranac. Though I have yet to see it in bottles here in Georgia, I did manage to wrap my lips around a mug at my local Taco Mac.

That mug of Saranac White IPA arrived a hazy golden color with a thick creamy head formation; a fine layer of Brussels lace coated my glass as the liquid descended. The beer has a very citric hop nose and proved quite appetizing, indeed. Taking a sip, the palate is at once balanced between light caramel (IPA malt profile) and light crackery wheat (Wit malt profile).

There’s certainly a huge grapefruit hop aroma here, blended nicely with some fruity citric character from the orange peel. A hint of coriander lurks underneath all this, another vestige of the Witbier component of this beer. The whole affair finishes with a bang, a long, dry bitter bang at that.

Saranac White IPA is hoppy, lightly spicy, and very refreshing.  To my taste, all the hops mean it leans more to the IPA side than the Wit one. Still, it’s the best White IPA I’ve tried yet, and has me won over from my former skepticism on the style. Add in that it was quite the bargain at $4.75 a pint, and washed down a Beef on Weck sandwich quite nicely.

Folks, we have a winner.

Home