An International Beer Day may sound like the most inclusive, open-arms event since the advent of the Gregorian Calendar in 1582, but it used to represent pure torture for those avoiding gluten... until great gluten free beer came along.
Now we can all celebrate – but beware, the beer powers-that-be decided to shoehorn International IPA Day in the day before International Beer Day! (Surely that should make it a public holiday?!)
When is International IPA Day?
Since 2011, International IPA Day has been celebrated every first Thursday in August, thanks to Ashley Rousten – author of “The Beer Wench’s Guide to Beer: An Unpretentious Guide to Craft Beer” – who established the hoppiest day in the calendar.
What is International Beer Day?
Go back another four years to 2007 and you'll find Jesse Avshalomov and his pals in the pub deciding that beer needed its own day of international recognition. They convinced their local in Santa Cruz, California, to put on an event and everyone started to have a good 'ol time in the name of beer every first Friday in August.
What to do on International Beer Day...
- Get to your local (venue or bottle shop), gather with friends and enjoy the taste of great beer.
- Celebrate those responsible for brewing and serving beer.
- Unite the world under the banner of beer, by celebrating the beers of all nations together on a single day.
We’re extremely strong advocates for each of these three purposes, so let’s all get on board this International Beer Day. Grab a photo of you living the three purposes with a TWØBAYS and tag us using@twobaysbeer and #internationalbeerday
What is an IPA?
IPA, or India Pale Ale, is a bigger version of its base style Pale Ale – bigger in flavour, ABV and hop profile – generally brewed to 6.0% abv or higher to stay true to a style that was first brewed in Britain in the late 1700’s.
What does TWØBAYS IPA taste like?
The development of the IPA you see in our cans today started in the Taproom with an IPA named Hairy Legs after a cycling group founded by our CEO Richard Jeffares. Then we put out a Mosaic IPA and Eddy, a Belgian IPA (5.8%), before settling on the recipe for our core IPA.
Each of these IPAs went down very well with our Taproom faithfuls and long-range visitors alike, so it was tough choosing one to put into cans. In the end, we went with a Simcoe and Mosaic-hopped IPA. And since, we've evolved the recipe to include Galaxy, Amarillo and Magnum hops, replacing Simcoe to allow pine flavours and balanced bitterness to cut through zesty aromatics.
In 2021, the beer won a gold medal at the Indies (Independent Beer Association Awards) – to add to two silver medals and three bronze medals – with judges commenting it is a "cracking beer" with a "lovely citrus and tropical hop profile", "excellent" balance and a mouthfeel that is "exemplary of style".
This style of beer isn’t readily available to the gluten free community and it’s perfect for this time of year.
What about the rest of the range?
Whether it's over a footy game, a long overdue catch-up with friends, a big family feed, a cold winter night or a ripping summer day, it's why we brew a gluten free beer for every occasion.
- Lager 4.5% abv: A good old-school clean, crisp Lager. Ideal to crack after a long day on the tools.
- Session Ale 3.5% abv: A beautifully sessionable, flavoursome mid-strength Pale Ale.
- Pale Ale 4.5% abv: Flirting with florals, a refreshing introduction to the wonderful world of hops. Perfect sunset refreshment.
- XPA 5.0% abv: The middle sibling... punchy and rambunctious with an amped up hope profile. Matchmaker – great with food from gluten free beer battered Fish and Chips, to tacos and curries.
- IPA 6.0% abv: The robust IPA... full of flavour with a balanced character and beautifully hopped to cut through the malt complexity. This is for that 'sink into the sofa' moment.
- Stout 6.2% abv: Featuring chocolate and almond aromas, rich coffee and caramel flavours.
When were IPAs first brewed?
Although some evidence suggests that IPAs were brewed earlier, the name came from British sailors who traveled to India as part of the East India Company in the late 1700s.
Legend has it that a brewer by the name of George Hodgson pioneered the drink specifically to export to India, because it was too hot to brew on the subcontinent and because it matured en route; a journey of four to six months.
Hodgson's Bow Brewery was two miles from the East India Docks in London, which made it convenient for traders. After losing their Russian markets, brewers further north in England's Burton, quickly began brewing beer for export to India.
By 1840, IPAs were in high demand in the UK, and the beer was widely brewed across the British Empire by the late 1800s. Although recipes did not change, UK brewers started calling the beers pale ales instead of India pale ales. Before 1900, breweries in the US, Canada, and Australia brewed similar IPAs to those in England.
IPA became a popular choice among the craft brewing community in the 1990s, especially in the UK and the USA. There’s so much variety under the umbrella term “IPA” that it’s difficult to nail down a strict definition. There are alcohol free IPAs and 13% ABV IPAs, plus a whole host of flavours introduced by fruits, herbs, spices and other edibles.
