Countdown to the Big Game – IPA Edition

by Matt Demarco

To get you ready for the big game on February 1st, we will be highlighting crowd-pleasing beers that pair with football and recipes you can make with them.
 

I have chosen four IPAs that are as American as football and apple pie. All the beers are floral, piney, and citrusy which are the main components of a highly regarded American IPA. These beers pair well with tailgate food, especially foods that are spicy, salty, or fried. For spicy food, hops amplify the spice and then wash it away; the bitterness can help put the fire out. Salt and fat tone the bitterness down and showcase the malts a little more in the beer. It allows you to taste the food instead of the hops. Citrusy IPAs even pair well with chocolate cake or brownies because the chocolate showcases the citrus and vice versa.

Then at the end of this post, I have included a simple recipe for hummus that can use any of the following IPAs.  Cheers!

Avery IPA – 

Avery makes a classic west coast style hop bomb IPA.  It pours an orange, amber color that has some haze that settles out and has lots of bubble and a nice fluffy head. It smells like tangerine and a hint of sugary sweetness, it kind of smells like an orange creamsicle. There are hints of grapefruit and fresh grass. When it hits your tongue, there is an explosion of grapefruit and orange peel with a touch of malt sweetness. It finishes with a dry bitterness with a hint of earthiness. This is clean and crisp IPA that will keep you wanting to sip it until it’s gone. It has a big hop punch that does not hang around on your tongue too long. Perfectly pairs with a 2 foot hoagie or shrimp and scallops. This beer comes in cans and bottles. 6.5% ABV / 65 IBUs

Evolution Lot No. 3 IPA – 

Lot No. 3 is a personal favorite of mine. It is a beer that flies under the radar. I don’t like to use complex to describe beer but it is the only way to describe the party in your mouth that happens when you drink it and that comes from the 10 different hops it is brewed with. It pours with a bright amber color and a mild haze with a nice creamy head. It has a nice aroma of grapefruit, orange peel, pine, and little grassiness. With each sip, the malts showcase a mild caramel flavor before quickly giving way to hops that combine grapefruit and pineapple taste before hitting you tongue with pine and grassy notes. It finishes dry and leaves a hint of citrus behind. This is a very enjoyable beer that I prefer sip to enjoy the layers of flavor. This beer will leave a great taste in your mouth, even if the outcome of the game doesn’t. Tastes great with pizza or a cheesesteak. 6.8% ABV / 65 IBUs

Founders Centennial IPA – 

This beer has been around for a long time but it is just as good as when it was first released. Unlike many other IPAs that use a combination of hops, this beer is brewed with just Centennial hops. It pours with a golden amber color and has an aroma of fresh oranges and grapefruit and candy-like almost toffee malt sweetness with a hint of floral notes. This beer has a big hop punch upfront of juicy grapefruit taste with hints of tropical fruit and some piney characters that is a very well-balanced. This beer has a slightly sweet malt backbone with a creamy mouthfeel and a slightly dry finish and the bitterness disappears at the end of each sip. It is a very drinkable IPA even though it is higher in ABV. This is a world class IPA that you don’t have to stand in line for. Founders makes this IPA in cans and bottles.  Goes perfect with wings or ribs. 7.2% ABV / 65 IBUs

Sly Fox 360 IPA - 

This IPA from Sly Fox comes in a 16 ounce can with a 360° lid. If you don’t know about the 360° can, the whole lid comes off turning the can into a pint glass that you can take where you can’t take glass. This malty IPA features Bravo, Cascade, Centennial, & Lemondrop hops and is generously dry-hopped. It pours with a nice orangey, amber color and a lasting white head. It is smooth for an IPA and has a balance of biscuit malts, lemon zest, pine, and resin flavors and has a somewhat dry finish. This is a beer that you can drink all day and still enjoy the game without ruining your pallet. Pairs well with sharp cheeses and pulled pork. 6.2% ABV / 70 IBUs.

IPA Hummus

Once you have your IPA picked out for the big game, take one and make some IPA Hummus. Just a note: this recipe will have an alcohol content since hummus is not cooked.

2 cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup tahini
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 whole lemon, juiced
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
4 ounces of an IPA of your choice

Combine the ingredients except the beer in a food processor. Once all ingredients are combined, pour in beer slowly mix until desired consistency is reached. Chill for at least two hours. Add additional salt to taste. I like to drizzle a small amount of olive oil and sprinkle paprika on top before serving.

Variations:

You can add tons of different flavors to your hummus. You just have to watch how much liquid you add. There is nothing worse than watery hummus. Here are a few of the different ways I change it up.

- Jalapeno: add 2 fresh jalapenos, stemmed, seeded and chopped – if you like extra heat, you can leave some seeds

- Roasted garlic: Add 4 cloves of roasted garlic, minced. Take 4 cloves of garlic, unpeeled and roast them in a skillet over medium heat. Turn them until both sides are brown and garlic is soft. Remove from peels and mince.

- Roasted Red Pepper: Add 2 whole red peppers, roasted and chopped or 3/4 cup chopped jarred roasted red peppers. To roast peppers, place on a sheet pan in a 500° oven for 30-40 minutes until wrinkled and charred. Cool and then chop peppers, removing stems, peels, and seed. Save any juices from peppers in a bowl. Place chopped peppers in the bowl with juices and add 1 tbsp of olive oil.