Listen. I drink a fair share of IPA’s. Cascadian to Milkshake, Brett to White, Brut to whatever is coming next. But with the recent passing of yet another IPA Day, I feel like a shake up is needed.
This is no slam to the creator of IPA Day or to those breweries that plan events around it or Untappd for the badge. But even when it was started, lo those many years ago, IPA was not the underdog style and in the succeeding years has only grown bigger and spawned numerous offshoots.
I would suggest that IPA Day work in tandem with my idea of Your Style Day. #MyBeerStyle. Where everyone can comment on what style they are currently loving to drink, what their mom drank, what they are learning about. The point being to get people to talk about what they like, what the consumer is buying.
And it doesn’t have to be all sunshine and roses. You could talk about a style you have never liked and why or the style that your spouse can buy without fear of it being popped open because, literally, only he likes it. Start a conversation, be it IRL or Snapchatting.
If we want to support creativity in beer making, we need to try multiple styles. Keep things fresh and alive which will mean keeping people on their toes.