South Florida Craft Beer: Why Hoppy Is Sexy Right Now

• brett and seamus: thanks for your comments. I hope my clarification helped. this is what I'm talking about, also in this week's wall street journal: "Two centuries later, some American Märzens still fight to prove their worth. Many brewers simply ratchet up the hops with citrusy, local varieties, tugging the style too far from its balanced, softly spicy German roots. " and the link: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204831304576597272947207778.html also, half the selections are german because. . . american marzen's are super hoppy right now.

• Yes, love the hoppy beers, especially the IPAs and double IPAs. I'm an east coast guy, but seems like most of my favorites are from out West - California specifically: Stone IPA, Anderson Valley Hop Ottin (my fave), Sierra Nevada Torpedo, etc...

• John, Point taken. I agree with you and clarified the lead. The original question to him was twofold: one, why are hops to popular right now, and two, why are American Marzen beers so different from German-styles, particularly when it comes to hops? (I don't necessarily think of marzens as hoppy beers at all, but in pulling American marzens off the shelves, the balance seems to lean toward hoppy, which I had addressed in the review.)  I'd venture to say Greg agree with you on the role of American craft beer in the beer revolution and would likely have a breakdown of categories of styles, regions etc. He is like a beer professor. 

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• I like to think of hoppy beers and IPAs as the "gateway" beers into the craft world. What Engert is saying about them is true -- they are often not complex products, but thirst quenching flagship beers that appeal to both the novice and experienced craft drinker. However, the quote also really glosses over -- and almost marginalizes -- the many outstanding American breweries making complex, nuanced, and ever-evolving beers.  For example, Cigar City's immense popularity here in South Florida and throughout the country has little do it with it's flagship beer, Jai Alai IPA, and more to do with its ability to create boundary-pushing product like Guava Grove and Hunahpu's Imperial Stout. There are American craft brewers oak aging beers and infusing them with myriad herbs, vegetables, and spices. There are brewers pushing style boundaries by fusing old world Belgian technique with ingenuity in both grain and hops.  I'm sure it's not Engert's intention to say that American craft beer scene is facile - rather, an expert such as him is undoubtedly aware that America is at the forefront of the beer revolution, producing beers that truly never have been made before. But the context does seem to paint a somewhat incomplete picture of a very broad subject.  Nevertheless, I'm glad to see the subject being brought up here. Thank you for the article.

• I am with Seamusx; the jump directly from Marzen to hoppy American-style beers is extremely confusing and undermines the credibility of the column.

• Marzen are malty lagers. How exactly are American craft brewers favoring Marzen-style beers if they prefer hoppy ales.  I think there is some confusion here based solely on the color of the beers in question.  Marzen lagers are not very similar to IPAs and the like.

• <3Hops

• I've long loved a good, super hoppy IPA. Didn't really realize it was something of a trend in the beer world until reading - and enjoying - one of your recent beer reviews comparing my beloved hoppy beers to Pam Anderson. There's something about the bold taste that just does it for me. Especially love Dogfish Head 60 Min IPA and Harpoon IPA, but what I'd really love is a Founder's IPA. Alas, they don't ship to FLA.

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