Atlantic IPA: The conclusion and release

BrewDog has once again blown other beer brands out of the water with the unveiling of the most ambitious brews by any drinks brand in over 200 years - Atlantic IPA.

After two tempestuous months aging aboard BrewDog founder James Watt's mackerel trawler on the North Atlantic, Atlantic IPA will be the first commercially available, genuine sea-aged IPA in two centuries - a project which is typical of the scale, audacity and boldness characteristic of BrewDog in its quest to take the UK beer industry by storm.

James was given an 1856 "Brewer's Handbook" as a gift last Christmas which contained an even older original IPA hoppy recipe - which provided inspiration for him to embark on BrewDog's latest voyage of creating waves in an otherwise flat beer market.  The following month (January 2009), he set off on a journey on his fishing trawler in the North Atlantic with eight barrels on-board, each containing beer brewed from the original recipe.

Atlantic IPA (and James!) survived two months on the North Atlantic, involving a tense barrel-rescue-mission, beatings from force ten storms, 60 foot waves and encounters with killer whales. Upon safe return to dry land, the IPA was bottle conditioned and is now available at www.brewdog.com and Uto Beer, Real Ale (both London), Cornelius (Edinburgh) Beer Ritz (Leeds).

The beer also features a stunning, custom hand-drawn label by young Scottish Desinger Johanna Basford. The hand-drawn label depicts the cask's perilous journey in the stormy seas. You can read more about the story behind the label and view the conceptual drawings on Johanna's blog: http://www.johannabasford.com/blog-article/105

Originating in the 1700s, India Pale Ales were developed in Britain and sent by sea to British people living in India. The beers travelled inside oak casks on board sailing vessels however the lack of refrigeration and tempestuous sea journeys often compromised the quality. India Pale Ale was born when brewers realised that together, hops and alcohol act as a natural preservative ensuring that the beer could withstand the voyage and arrive in good condition.

James Watt, BrewDog's Head of Stuff, said "Today the term IPA has lost its meaning and UK brewers mainly use it to describe beers which are neither particularly hoppy or high in alcohol, Duecher's IPA at 3.8% being a prime example of the complete butchering of the style. It's sad to see the great IPA heritage in this country come to stand for nothing more than a sparingly hopped low ABV blonde session ale.

"We wanted to take the style back to its roots and we have created the first genuine, commercially available IPA for 2 centuries. Going beyond the realms of what would normally be deemed possible in order to deliver is what we're all about at Brew Dog. We're constantly pushing ourselves to come up with audacious, unusual and cool concepts and Atlantic IPA is definitely the most ambitious brew project we've accomplished to date."   

Oh and you can buy yours here:

http://www.brewdog.com/product.php?id=39