A hoppy, malt-rich red ale pitched between an amber ale and an India pale ale. Deep amber to reddish-brown, it pairs a substantial caramel-malt backbone with a high, assertive hop character. The result is bigger and more bitter than a standard amber but more malt-driven than a straight IPA, with a strength to match.
In the glass
Origin
The hoppy red ale is a malt-accented branch of the American India pale ale boom. American amber and red ales had long balanced caramel malt against American hops, but as the IPA craze pushed bitterness and gravity upward through the 2000s and 2010s, brewers began applying full IPA-level hopping to a darker, caramel-rich red base. The crimson color comes from the same crystal and roasted malts that give an amber its hue, while the hop load and strength climb toward IPA territory. As enough of these beers reached the market to form a recognizable type, competition organizers gave them a dedicated category rather than judging them as ambers or as IPAs.
Notes
This style is, in everything but name, what most drinkers call a red IPA. The Brewers Association files it under amber and red ales and labels it “double hoppy” to flag the elevated hop rate, but the sensory target is the same crimson, caramel-backed, heavily hopped ale sold elsewhere as a red IPA. It sits one tier below the imperial red ale, which pushes gravity and bitterness higher still. The caramel malt is what keeps it distinct from a standard IPA; the malt is meant to stand up to the hops rather than disappear beneath them.
Defining examples
Bear Republic Red Rocket Ale·Green Flash Hop Head Red (discontinued)·Sierra Nevada Flipside Red IPA·Summit Horizon Red IPA