Raise a glass of India Pale Ale and toast! The first Thursday in August is IPA Day. The new holiday celebrating America's fastest-growing beer style was created by Ashley Routson, the self-styled "Beer Wench," who works for Bison Brewing, and Ryan A. Ross, who until recently worked for Karl Strauss Brewing in San Diego.

IPAs have been getting a lot of attention lately, largely because their popularity has grown at a dizzying pace, selling faster than any other type of beer. But these days, it's hard to talk about India Pale Ale as just one beer style, as countless brewers try to put their own unique spin on the ubiquitous IPA.

In the beginning, there was simply India Pale Ale, an 18th century pale ale that was more highly hopped so it could better survive the journey from England to the British colony in India. At least, that's the traditional story. It's not really true, as several beer historians have conclusively shown, but legend persists -- probably because it's such a good story.

Despite the myths that surround IPAs, it's more likely that they simply developed over time from October ale, which was a stronger version of pale ale brewed to be aged. It was sometimes called "keeping ale." These ales were sent to India, along with many other kinds of beer, and eventually became wildly popular there and back home.


Then, as so often is the case, with so many innovative American brewers trying to distinguish themselves in an increasingly crowded field of brewers, IPA experienced a split. Early American craft breweries used more distinctively American hop varieties -- such as Cascade, Centennial and Chinook -- to make IPAs that were notably more floral and fruity than their English cousins. The style divided into English IPA and American IPA.

In the late 1990s, another IPA type was added to the canon: Imperial or Double IPA, which likely originated with Vinnie Cilurzo of Russian River Brewing, when he was still in Southern California at his first brewery, Blind Pig Brewing.

With more hops than regular IPAs and higher alcohol content, these new extreme IPAs were popularized by Vic Kralj, who started hosting his annual Double IPA Festival at his beer bar, The Bistro in Hayward, in 2001. Shortly thereafter, a new IPA judging category was added to the Great American Beer Festival competition.

But it didn't stop there. When I helped judge the California State Fair beer competition earlier this summer, one thing that stood out was how many other distinct types of IPAs are being made now. There were so many we created a whole new judging -- "Other IPA" -- so they wouldn't go up against beers that were too different. When you judge beers, it's best to compare like beers with like beers. It's one of the few places where beer styles really matter.

One of the most popular of these newer styles is a "triple IPA," which is even stronger and hoppier than Double IPA. The most well-known of these is Russian River's Pliny the Younger, which comes out in very limited quantities the first week of February each year.

Other IPA types include a "black IPA" (or "black ale"), which uses roasted malt to give it stronger malt flavors and, of course, darker color. There's a "white IPA," which adds traditional witbier spices, such as coriander and orange peel, and "rye IPA," which adds rye malt to the grain build for extra spiciness.

There's a "Belgian IPA," which uses distinctive Belgian yeast; a "farmhouse IPA" that is essentially a highly hopped saison; a "wild IPA," which is brewed using wild yeasts like a lambic is; and IPL or India Pale Lager, an IPA brewed with lager yeast. Add "red IPA," "herbal IPA," "spiced IPA," "session IPA," "West Coast IPA," "San Diego IPA," and "single hop IPAs" and you should have some idea of the wonderful craziness.

So celebrate IPA Day with any one of the many types of India Pale Ales available at local beer bars and shops. It may be a cliché to say, but if you like hops, there really is something for everybody when it comes to IPA.

Contact Jay R. Brooks at BrooksOnBeer@gmail.com. Read more by Brooks at http://www.ibabuzz.com/bottomsup.