Thirsty Thursday

Thirsty Thursday: Peak Organic Brewing Company IPA

Victoria Krog | Staff Photographer

Peak Organic Brewing Company IPA features citrus and floral hops for a bitter, yet smooth taste. The beer is 7.1 percent alcohol, and contains a distinct grassy aftertaste.

In recent years, the organic food movement has swept through grocery stores like wildfire. The new Trader Joe’s that opened on Erie Boulevard just last month had all of us racing to its doors to buy countless organic products that we apparently need.

While organic food products are now a staple in grocery stores, I was surprised to discover beer distributors are also creating organic products. Peak Organic Brewing Company is one of the most established organic breweries, and its India Pale Ale certainly highlights these all-natural ingredients.

IPAs are typically identified by hoppy flavor profiles. Hops, hoppy and hoppy-ness are terms that beer enthusiasts love to throw around. Hops are a key ingredient in beer — along with grain, yeast and water — and are added to beer to balance the sweetness of malt.

Hop flavors and aromas can range from citrus and pine, to earthy and spicy. When beer buffs discuss the hoppy-ness of a beer, they are talking about how bitter it is. Peak’s IPA has an International Bittering Units score of 76, which is a relatively high level of bitterness.

Peak Organic’s IPA does not use traditional bittering hops, but instead sticks to solely citrus and floral ones. This is what gives the beer a crisp, earthy taste. The goldenrod colored brew developed a thin, effervescing head as I poured it into a glass and blasts of bubbles continued fizzing long after the beer had settled. This champagne-like consistency made the beer as refreshing as it was flavorful.



While this 7.2 percent alcohol beer is distinctively hoppy, it goes down surprisingly smoothly. A strong grassy aftertaste remains on the tongue and in the back of the throat, but a piece of cheese or pepperoni pairs nicely with the beer and diminishes the last traces of the beer.

I have never been a fan of IPAs, so I will not be racing to the organic beer section for this Peak Organic IPA any time soon. That being said, it’s definitely a refreshing, earthy brew that could satisfy many who want to explore organic beer options.





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