When London’s Beavertown brewery set out to make the perfect IPA, they took a meticulous approach. First, they collaborated with a host of other breweries passionate about the style to understand the full spectrum of the style and exactly what they wanted their flagship IPA to be.
The brewing then began, and the “Invasion of the Lupuloids” commenced (lupulin being the active ingredient in hops, and therefore found aplenty in hoppy IPAs). This wave of numerous beers came with full details of the brew revealed, from yeast strains used to hop oils per 100g. Beavertown’s approach was to give all the ‘hopheads’ out there the chance to make an informed decision about exactly what they wanted their ideal India pale ale to be.
As the feedback flowed in, the IPAs kept flowing in the taproom. Adding all this feedback into the brew kettle, again with full details revealed, 10 further IPAs were served up to the British craft brew scene. Again, discerning drinkers deliberated over the adjustments and Beavertown’s brewers tweaked their formulas. Four years after the project began, Lupuloid was unleashed.
The ideal IPA?
The efforts certainly weren’t in vain. Lupuloid is everything an IPA aficionado could want, and in stunning packaging to boot – the can art from artist Nick Dwyer is standout to say the least. On first pour I was a little bit underwhelmed, with a light straw colour it looks too light to offer a big hop it. Wrong. As you realize when your nostrils fill with the dank hardcore hoppiness.
With a cocktail of citra, mosaic and equinox hops and a healthy IBU (international bittern units) score of 55, the taste takes you on a tour of the vast range of flavours these amazing plants can conjure – from grass to resinous pine, on to tropical fruit and biting citrus. Despite this heavy hop motherload, the flaked oats and wheat in the grist give Lupuloid a smooth mouthfeel that makes it eminently drinkable.
After so much experimentation, there was a risk this IPA became over engineered and overthought, but the opposite is true. It’s simply stunning. Lupuloid hits hard on hops but balances bitterness. It’s fruity without being sickly, it’s light without being lightweight. It’s a IPA of iterations, several years in the making. And well worth the wait. Bland beers beware – The Lupuloid is here.