Highest-rated IPAs in Colorado

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November 4, 2022
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Highest-rated IPAs in Colorado

Bitter is better for IPA lovers. This hop-forward brew is the most popular craft beer style in the United States, accounting for nearly half of all beer sales in off-premise retail establishments in 2024, according to Circana data.

India pale ales originated in England in the 1800s, with the phrase first appearing in print in 1835. Brewer George Hodgson typically gets the credit for its development. His competitors started calling his hoppier brew India pale ale because of his contract with the British East India Company.

American brewers first began making English IPAs in the late 1800s, but Americans preferred lagers. It wasn't until 1975, when Anchor Brewing Company launched a dry-hopped pale ale, that craft brewers started to latch onto the style. In 1991, Oregon brewer Teri Fahrendorf made an IPA with all-American ingredients, creating the first American IPA.

Like other ales, IPAs contain top-fermenting yeast, which gives them a robust flavor and aroma. IPAs are loaded with hops, responsible for the beer's characteristic bitterness and its notes of citrus, floral, or pine. These beers are known for their higher alcohol content, ranging from 5.5% to 7.5%, although session IPAs are lower in ABV, and double or triple IPAs are higher.

Brewers like IPAs because they allow for bold creativity. West Coast IPAs are known for their high hop levels, with brewers pushing the bounds of bitterness. While true IPA aficionados love that element, many are now leaning toward the more approachable New England-style IPA, which is hazier in appearance and maximizes the fruitier characteristics of hops without the extreme and potentially off-putting bitter taste.

Whatever your IPA preference, there are endless options to choose from. Stacker compiled a list of the best IPAs from Colorado, using data from BeerAdvocate, and sorted them according to their weighted ranking. Beers without images were excluded. Only IPAs that made BeerAdvocate's top 100 beer list by state were included.

#12. Codename: Superfan

- Rating: 4.17 (273 ratings)
- Type: American IPA
- ABV: 6.5%
- Brewery: Odd13 Brewing
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

#11. Blocks Of Light

- Rating: 4.26 (56 ratings)
- Type: New England IPA
- ABV: 6.2%
- Brewery: Outer Range Brewing Co
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

#10. Codename: Holidayfan

- Rating: 4.36 (29 ratings)
- Type: New England IPA
- ABV: 10.0%
- Brewery: Odd13 Brewing
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

#9. In The Steep

- Rating: 4.24 (149 ratings)
- Type: New England IPA
- ABV: 6.7%
- Brewery: Outer Range Brewing Co
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

#8. Transmountain Diversion

- Rating: 4.32 (65 ratings)
- Type: New England IPA
- ABV: 8.6%
- Brewery: WeldWerks Brewing Co.
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

#7. Juicy Bits - Double Dry-Hopped With Galaxy

- Rating: 4.31 (78 ratings)
- Type: New England IPA
- ABV: 6.7%
- Brewery: WeldWerks Brewing Co.
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

#6. Maharaja

- Rating: 4.23 (5,834 ratings)
- Type: Imperial IPA
- ABV: 10.2%
- Brewery: Avery Brewing Company
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

#5. IPA

- Rating: 4.26 (3,350 ratings)
- Type: American IPA
- ABV: 7.0%
- Brewery: Odell Brewing Company
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

#4. Extra Extra Juicy Bits

- Rating: 4.31 (183 ratings)
- Type: New England IPA
- ABV: 8.4%
- Brewery: WeldWerks Brewing Co.
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

#3. Myrcenary Double IPA

- Rating: 4.28 (3,022 ratings)
- Type: Imperial IPA
- ABV: 9.3%
- Brewery: Odell Brewing Company
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

#2. Juicy Bits - Double Dry-Hopped

- Rating: 4.34 (144 ratings)
- Type: New England IPA
- ABV: 6.7%
- Brewery: WeldWerks Brewing Co.
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

#1. Juicy Bits

- Rating: 4.30 (641 ratings)
- Type: New England IPA
- ABV: 6.7%
- Brewery: WeldWerks Brewing Co.
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou, writing by Jill Jaracz, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 51 states.

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