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Hazy IPA and session beer styles gain updates in 2022 Beer Style Guidelines
The Brewers Association (BA) has updated its Beer Style Guidelines including clarification for hazy IPAs and lower ABVs for session beers.
The guidelines, which serve as a resource for brewers, beer judges and competition organisers, are set to identify beer styles all around the world and grow global appreciation for beer in all its iterations.
Responding to brewer and judge feedback, the BA has standardised its language on ‘juicy or hazy IPA’ styles, adding verbiage about “hop burn” which is believed to be caused by prolonged contact time between the vegetative matter of hops and the beer. After all, ‘hop burn’ wasn’t terminology used when brewing traditional IPA, but has become very common with the emergence of hazy IPA beer styles.
According to reports, the BA has also modernised its ‘session beer’ and ‘session IPA’ categories, adjusting the lower end of the ABV downward to 0.5%, as brewer interest in lower ABV beers has increased rapidly over the past two years.
BA competition manager Chris Swersey said: “Craft brewers in the US and around the world continue to push the boundaries of beer by reviving long lost styles and by innovating in new beer flavour spaces.”
Despite there being no new style additions in 2022, there are a plethora of revisions and clarifications across categories including:
Experimental IPA
Session beer
Session IPA
Standardised verbiage in juicy or hazy styles
Traditional Belgian-style gueuze
Bohemian-Style pilsner
American lager
American-Style India pale lager
Specialty beer
Chilli beer
Other examples of significant updates include adding several hybrid IPA styles to the experimental IPA category.
Swersey explained: “With so many diverse beers being made, we rely on expert feedback to help identify categories that need an update to ensure the beer style guidelines remain as current and relevant as possible. We are grateful for the feedback provided by drinkers, brewers, and judges alike from around the world which helps us compile this trusted resource.”
The Beer Style Guidelines combine historical significance, traditional authenticity along with popular trends reflected by up-spikes in craft beer sales.