Ranger IPA (and baked beans) and Two Hearted Ale

I did end up picking up a pack of New Belgium's Ranger IPA last weekend and tried it out with several foods. I stand by my last post that IPA is good for cutting through fatty and creamy foods that you see at parties. Also, the style is delicious in my opinion, so it's a great choice of beer for having a good time with friends.

There was one pairing that stood out for me this weekend. The IPA paired well with baked beans. These beans were prepared with a generous amount ground beef and had a subtle mustard flavor. The malt and hop flavors in the beer had a nice interplay with the savory and sweet flavors of the beans. I don't see baked beans like this too often, but if you happen to, grab an IPA and try this pairing!

I also had a bottle of Two Hearted Ale, an IPA from Bell's Brewery in Michigan, in the fridge so I decided to do a bit of a side by side between the Two Hearted and Ranger.

New Belgium Ranger IPA
6.5% ABV, Simcoe, Cascade, and Chinook hops

This India pale ale had an unusual and intense floral, grassy hop aroma. Of course, hops are a flower and the aroma of this beer reminds you of this. Being an active American IPA drinker I am very familiar with the aroma and flavor of Cascade hops, which are very popular aroma and bittering hops in America.

However, I have to admit that there was some hoppy element to the aroma and flavor of this beer that seemed very new to me; perhaps this may have to do with the Simcoe hops (12-14% Alpha acid), which I may not have had before and are apparently good bittering and aroma hops.

The flavor was full of lively, floral hops. I didn't find the beer exceptionally bitter, and it was balanced and delicious. Though it wasn't as luscious and "alive", this pleasantly made me think back on the Great Divide Fresh Hop IPA I had this holiday. I really liked the interesting and unusual take on IPA and the floral characteristics of this beer. I look forward to enjoying Ranger in the future.



Bell's Two Hearted Ale
7% ABV, hops unlisted

This is a very popular beer among hopheads, having been recommended to me by my cousin and kindred spirit in beer up in Boone. I quickly realized why this was so highly regarded after taking my first whiff of this IPA. The piney aroma is strongly of hops, and comparison with the floral aroma of Ranger illustrates the broad range of aromas that could be described as hoppy.

The flavor profile is very well constructed and essentially an exemplary prototype for American-style India Pale Ale. Piney and slightly spicy hops are upfront in the flavor, but very well balanced in the full body of the beer. This beer is an excellent offering of the piney hops flavor school of IPA's. The attention surrounding this beer is well-deserved, and I would absolutely recommend this as a great, well-executed IPA.







Both of these beers were great but very different styles of India Pale Ale. Two Hearted Ale was a well-executed and exceptional beer typical of the American style IPA. Ranger IPA on the other hand was a unique take on the style that featured heavy floral hop aromas and flavors that reminded me somewhat of Fresh Hop beer.