Milkshake IPAs may not sound like a beer genre you’d gravitate towards, but this new craft style out of Colorado successfully straddles both worlds. Grab a long straw (if you have to), because this marvel of chemistry just might be here to stay.
What is a milkshake IPA exactly? It’s a beer brewed with milkshake flavors like chocolate, vanilla and strawberry. Westword reports that milk sugar and lactose was originally used to brew IPA during a collaboration between Pennsylvanian and Swedish breweries. The ingredients can be used during the brewing process to create a sweet flavor, silky consistency and even opaqueness not unlike its namesake ice cream confection. These beers also contains a light touch of hops for balanced but novel flavor profiles that have enticed and charmed the palates of some of the most discerning craft beer fans in the world.
Most of the breweries experimenting with milkshake ingredients are in Colorado (with a few others scattered around the country), so your best bet would be to book a trip and take Westword’s recommendation to visit the taprooms at Weldwerks, Station 26, Odell and 4 Noses. Get your hands on a pint.
