snjoland

Over the last decade, India Pale Ale has established itself as a staple in the range of all craft breweries. The style has now not only been honed to absolute perfection, it is also divided into countless subcategories.

One of these derived creations is the so-called Cold IPA. This variation of the classic is said to be the master brewer Kevin Davey from Wayfinder. The American initiated the evolution of the IPA with three clever moves. He replaced some of the malt with rice and corn to create a dry character without sacrificing body and mouthfeel. He used a brewery’s own yeast culture, which is actually used to make lagers, to give the hops free rein with a subtle yeast flavor. And he delayed the cold hopping process as much as possible. These changes to the brewing process resulted in a dry IPA with a straightforward, clean profile and placed more focus on hops than ever before.

A modern example of this style comes from Orca Brau: Snjóland has a strong 7.1% alcohol content, contains rice flakes, is cold hopped with the hop varieties Simcoe and Citra and fermented at low temperatures with a Kölsch yeast. Despite its revolutions, the beer is slim, clean and drinkable and brings a skilful balance of strong grassy notes and juicy fruit into the glass.