The Silliness Quotient Ticks Up
Two items for your consideration: “Northern IPA” and “Savoury IPA” (guess where the second comes from?). Both came to my attention this week, which provided a welcome break from all the news stories describing how bad things are in the beer industry.
Northern IPA, an idea apparently concocted by the Lallemand Marketing Department* to sell a new yeast strain, “incorporates the clean drinkability of the modern West Coast IPA with a more prominent yeast aroma profile.” Meanwhile, Matthew Curtis forwards Savo(u)ry IPA to describe a single beer from Norfolk—that’s in East Anglia—using MSG for the purpose of “stimulating your umami receptors.” All right, then!
These are clearly not serious things (yet??), and we had some fun with Northern IPA on Bluesky and Facebook. But it occurred to me that unseriousness like this is actually serious business for an industry. Anyone who has been following beer more than six or seven years will remember the rampant frivolity of the late teens, when breweries were making beers out of breakfast cereal and donuts, or making it taste like pickles or margaritas. You know, back when the beer market was healthy.
It’s a curious relationship. Industries in trouble aren’t very silly. Silliness arises amid bounty. So the serious business of growth and money is in many ways described by veins of the absurd. We could even advance a measure—call it the “silliness quotient”—to discern how healthy an industry is.
Let’s be real: beer is in trouble right now. Sales are way, way down and with tariffs and inflation on the horizon (and maybe worse), it can seem a little bleak. That’s why I absolutely reveled in the lighthearted discussion of Northern IPA this week, which on Facebook devolved into jokes about Doug and Bob McKenzie. It was a real balm to the soul in these trying times. Beer, the liquid itself and the drinking of it, should be fun. Silly, even.
As to Northern IPA and in the interest of silliness, I would like offer you some of the ad copy that Lallemand used to promote their new yeast, Aurora (as in Borealis, get it?):
“The Northern IPA utilizes a high attenuation ale strain fermented at cooler temperatures to achieve a flavor profile that is clean, crisp, and dry. Compared to other IPAs, the Northern IPA presents as dry and more drinkable with low specialty malt usage. It may use hops from any origin but should showcase modern and hop-forward characteristics.”
Sure, they have described IPAs as they are commonly made everywhere. But that’s just great marketing! If they manage to spark some interest and sell some yeast, everyone’s a winner.
On Facebook, Surly brewer Travis Hochsprung mentioned they’d made a batch of this beer with Aurora for CBC, and Lallemand requested they call it a Northern IPA. He reports that the staff loves it, though aside from the cool ferment (60F, 16C), there’s not a lot different about it.
“Dark yellow in color, pretty bitter, clear, lots of citrus, Amarillo, Citra, Idaho 7 for dry hopping. Not terribly different from a WCIPA other than leaning more citrus without any real pine. It's really well-loved by staff here and I'd be happy to make it again. Although I don't know how much of a role the yeast played in its success.”
I will not be attending CBC this year, owing to my habit of only attending the event when it is staged in Portland, but if you’re going, check it out and see if it’s The Next Big Thing. Either way, it sounds good.
____________
* No shade from me! Some of the best styles were born from marketing gimmicks—for example, India Pale Ales, which rose to popularity back in the UK amid a period of interest in the colonies.