This week on Beer Sessions Radio™ on The Heritage Radio Network, host Jimmy Carbone welcomed Peekskill Brewery brewmaster—and recent champion of Brooklyn Magazine’s blind IPA tasting—Jeff O’Neil to talk about what makes a good IPA a great IPA. Jeff and Jimmy are joined by Brooklyn Magazine Editor in Chief Mike Conklin, who talks about why he decided to host the blind tasting (to get beyond the hype), and fellow brewer Mike Philbrick of Port Jeff Brewery (whose Party Boat IPA ranked third on Brooklyn Mag’s list). The panel agrees that freshness is the most critical factor in an IPA (tasting tip: if you get an onion-y or chlorophyll taste on the back end of the hops, your IPA is pretty darn fresh!), making judging somewhat skewed owing to the fact that beers typically have to be shipped a month out from actual judging.
Also in the studio are Os Cruz and Gene Reda II of TalkBeer, a newly launched forum where beer lovers and makers can—surprise!—talk about beer! The pair have plenty of tips on how to taste and rank beer in a meaningful objective manner. Os agrees in the blind tasting formula: “Blind tasting tells you a lot about yourself, and it tells you a lot about your assumptions about tasting and how your mind is going to play tricks on you.”
The panel talks about up-and-coming farm brewery Plan Bee, along with the merits of beer awards and whether or not they are meaningful outside the beer community. Plus a lot of great IPAs are poured during this week’s show. You can catch the full episode here.