Cutting Through the Haze: Standing Out in a Packed IPA World | VinePair

Illustration: Sophia Deng

A half-decade ago, the hazy IPA hit the industry like a sticky tidal wave made from pineapple, mango, and orange juices. Lined up alongside the resinous, resoundingly bitter, and filtered West Coast IPAs, the foggy, fruity IPAs of Vermont and the larger Northeast were not so clearly different. Beer geeks paid pilgrimages to The Alchemist, Tree House, and Hill Farmstead, returning home with suitcases and trunks stuffed with New England IPAs (NEIPAs), more often referred to now as hazy IPAs.

Now, opaque IPAs that taste like pillows plumped with fruit juice are the norm, sold cold at grocery stores — and selling well. How can breweries stand out? I take a deep look into differentiation for VinePair.