Southern Tier IPA (NY)

Southern Tier Brewing has only been around a few years -- Lew Bryson's 2003 book New York Breweries doesn't even mention it -- but has already become one of New York State's top breweries. They're apparently doing a great job with distribution. My nearby Wegmans has shelves stocked with Southern Tier bombers near the back of the produce department (it's also sold in the walk-in beer cooler). I imagine any brewery would love to have that space.


Southern Tier makes a number of "special" beers, but this IPA is one of their standards. The name of the game here is balance. This isn't particularly bitter, not because it lacks flavor, but because it has other things going on. The hop bite is citrus and (to a lesser extent) pine. There's a malty backbone to it as well, and it leaves a pleasant, long aftertaste. I could drink a bunch of these. I recommend this highly, except perhaps for those who want their IPAs to be extreme. For newbies, I would think this would make a great introduction to the style.