Beer of the Week: SDBNA IPA

The 2024 San Diego Beer News Awards (SDBNA) are in the books, but there’s one component of this year’s ceremony that lives on. It’s this week’s featured beer, SDBNA IPA. A San Diego-style IPA, it was originally conceived by 20-year industry veteran Kris Ketcham of SDBNA host venue, Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens – Liberty Station, and some guy (i.e., me). Since the theme of this year’s awards was “celebrating the next generation”, we worked with SDBNA banner sponsor Yakima Chief Hops to get our hands on a variety of newer hop varietals borne of their collaborative Hop Breeding Company (HBC). After a lengthy and comprehensive hop-rub session, we went with a combination of HBC 586, HBC 630, HBC 638, HBC 1019 and HBC 369 (the original number of since-named Mosaic) plus a touch of Simcoe. The result is an incredibly dry and easy-drinking IPA (exactly what we were going for) that I believe starts out with peach, pineapple and the slightest red-berry notes before ending with a quick, piney nip leaving a lasting hint of citrus hard-candy in its wake. Ketcham has his own impressions (and he’s forgotten more about beer than I may ever know, so you’ll definitely want to get his take below), as did the 20 or so brewers from 14 other San Diego County breweries that came over to help brew SDBNA IPA. Those craftspeople hail from Abnormal Beer Co. (Rancho Bernardo), Ballast Point Brewing (Miramar), Barley & Sword Brewing (North Park), Division 23 Brewing (Miramar), Fall Brewing (Miramar), Guadalupe Brewery (Vista), Hodad’s Brewing (Serra Mesa), Hopnonymous Brewing (Kearny Mesa), Jacked Up Brewery (Escondido), Latchkey Brewing (Bay Ho), Modern Times Beer (Point Loma), The Roadies Brewing (Vista), Societe Brewing (Kearny Mesa) and WestBrew (Vista). There may not be enough white space on the entire internet to include all of their takes on the beer, and since yours is ultimately the only one that matters, pay Stone’s Point Loma location a visit to check it out for yourself. It’s tasty and went over well at the SDBNAs, making it a winner in its own right!

SDBNA IPA is a beer brewed with Brandon Hernández and multiple San Diego breweries for the 2024 San Diego Beer News Awards. The focus was on using a variety of innovative hop products along with some HBC (Hop Breeding Company) hop varietals that may potentially become the next generation. For this San Diego-style IPA, we used a blend of American pale and Pilsner malt with a combination of HBC hops that included HBC: 586 (T90), 682 (T90), 630 (Cryo), 1019 (Cryo) and some Mosaic 702 (HBC 369) for a little extra punch. While not overly intense in aromatics, this beer has a plethora of aromas and flavors that include citrus candy, Peach Rings, banana Runts, cotton candy, cherry cola, vanilla crème, pine and sweet wood. An easy-drinker at 6.66%, this beer will satisfy those looking for a clean, dry IPA they can drink all day.”

Kris Ketcham, Senior Manager of Brewing & Innovation, Stone Brewing

Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens – Liberty Station is located at 2816 Historic Decatur Road, Unit 116, in Point Loma