Wild Goose Brewing Company - Wild Goose India Pale Ale

Winning a Silver Medal at the 1996 World Beer Championships is not this beer’s only accolade. In 1997 it also took home that festival’s Gold Medal, and that same year was declared a festival “World Champion Ale”. These days, you might find this beer a bit tame if you’re used to the “hop-bombs” that currently are offered as IPAs. In the modern evolution of this style, particularly since being interpreted in the Pacific Northwest, hugely aromatic hops have come to redefine the style. Wild Goose’s IPA is a true to style IPA—often tough to find in the U.S.. Note the balance of grains to hops in the aroma, with slight peppery note and citrus background. Expect floral hops with a subtle creaminess in the aroma and flavor. Look for a chewy maltiness that leads beautifully into the dry, intensely bitter finish. Enjoy with sushi and plenty of Wasabe.

The U.S. microbrewery renaissance really picked up steam in the early to mid 1990s. For this reason, it’s not often we find microbrewed beers, particularly from the east coast, that were around in the 80s. The breweries that did kick things off were pioneers of sorts, laying the foundation for the tremendous selection of top notch microbrews we currently enjoy. One such brewery was the Wild Goose Brewing Company. As one of the first microbreweries on the East Coast, we owe them a debt of gratitude for being brave enough to challenge the mass produced macro-brewing Goliaths. Since firing up their brewkettle back in 1989, their traditional British-style beers have been recognized as some of the finest east of the Rockies. Over the years, they have gained the praise of beer lovers nationwide, and there’s good reason behind their success—what with their original brewmaster having been under the tutelage of industry legend Alan Pugsley, and having learned his trade at Peter Austin. For anyone who doesn’t know Alan Pugsley, he has helped design and set up some of the best microbreweries in the United States including Shipyard, Geary’s, and Old Nutfield, just to name a few. His attention to detail and obvious knowledge of hops and malts is clearly apparent to beer lovers and beer judges alike. Many of the original recipes created in those early days are still produced exactly the same way today, but they’re brewed by a new generation of microbrewing zealots; the entire Wild Goose beer line was ultimately acquired by a worthy successor: The Frederick Brewing Company in Frederick, MD. Named one of America’s Top 20 Breweries by Food & Wine magazine, they faithfully continue to brew the outstanding Wild Goose line in homage to the great beers that helped usher in a new era of beer drinking in the states. For more information about the current site where the Wild Goose beers are brewed (Frederick Brewing Company) call (888) 258-7434 or check out their web site at www.wildgoosebeer.com.