Beer of the Week: Dragon Fruit IPA

From the Beer Writer: If you’re looking for an education on pitaya—AKA, “dragon fruit”—you can hit up a farmers’ market or tap the shoulder of the produce manager at your local grocery store, but there’s a third option that’s a lot more fun. Head to Escondido to visit Jacked Up Brewery when their annual edition of this week’s featured beer, Dragon Fruit IPA, is on the menu board, and learn all about its namesake fruit from the staff. Years ago, the retired couple behind this popular neighborhood house of brews and live music made the acquaintance of a gentleman who asked if they had any interest in the dragon fruit he produced at his nearby farm. At the time, he grew both white and pink fruit, and explained to the couple that the pink was much more flavorful. They told him they’d take his entire crop in perpetuity, but asked that he plant only pink from there on out. He accepted their terms and that partnership birthed one of Jacked Up’s most popular beers, a triple IPA (though you’d never know it if not previously informed) brewed with a bit of residual sweetness to match that of its exotic pink adjunct. It’s addition also adds a pretty tint to the beer, which comes across much like a blood-orange IPA but with an earthy sweetness that, if you’ve ever dug into the dotted flesh of this cactus delicacy, is unmistakably and delightfully dragon fruit.

From the Brewer: “Our Dragon Fruit IPA has 33 pounds of fresh dragon fruit or pitahaya in every barrel. This fruit is grown for us in Escondido by one local grower who fertilizers twice a year. He only grows the pink fruit because it is the sweetest. We only brew small quantities of this beer, and every batch is hoppy and refreshing. The dragon fruit taste is similar to a combination of sweet pear and juicy watermelon. Each batch is different. The mouthfeel of the beer lingers over the tongue, and once swallowed, the sweet taste stays with you. Dragon Fruit IPA comes in at 8-to-12% ABV (alcohol-by-volume) and it is made only once a year. This is our sixth batch.”—Michael Poulson, Owner, Jacked Up Brewery