1. Anchor Liberty Ale

IPA was originally an English beer style, but most of today's IPAs are an American interpretation of it: American IPA. Anchor Brewing's Liberty Ale is considered to be the first of its kind, the trailblazer of IPA. It has been brewed since 1975 using only their signature Cascade hops. This powerful hop variety provides the characteristic citrus flavour.

In 1975 this strong hoppy style was in fact very revolutionary. Today, we see it as a common IPA (or American Pale Ale) with an excellent balance between sweet and bitter, a beautiful interaction of malt, hops and yeast. A must for every IPA fan!

2. Wild Beer Nebula

In the last few years, the beloved sub genres of India Pale Ale; New England and Hazy IPA styles have taken off.

Their characteristic misty appearance, soft mouthfeel and fruity character is rounded off with a mildly bitter finish. This is achieved by combining a huge amount of dry-hop (a technique that allows a maximum amount of fruity hop aromas to enter the beer) with a fruity yeast that doesn't sink to the bottom. Small particles of hop attach themselves to the "mist" in the beer - consisting of floating yeast cells and proteins from the malt- and voilà: a beer disguised as fruit juice.

Nebula from Wild Beer Co is a good example of this, super fruity and with only 5% alcohol it is very pleasant to drink.

3. Oedipus Gaia

Oedipus Gaia is as hoppy as they come. This West Coast IPA is bursting with tropical fruit and has aromas of grapefruit, passion fruit, cannabis and pine. Not forgetting the citrus hit and caramel kiss to finish.

Oedipus Gaia deserves to be in this list, and it has the awards to prove it! In 2018 it won gold medal at the Dutch Beer Challenge!

4. Stone Brewing IPA

A standard-bearer to IPA lovers that are keen to pay homage to the almighty hop. Stone IPA is the flagship beer of Stone Brewing, the beer that gave them their reputation for hops. It is a standard West Coast IPA, a type of IPA recognisable by its orange colour, clear appearance and an almost aggressive use of hops.

A fruity, hop-resin beer, in which sweet malt (the malty backbone) should provide balance to the powerful, long and clean-bitter aftertaste. This punchy Stone IPA is actually a far cry from anything "standard".

5. Het Uiltje Dr. Raptor

Dutch brewery Het Uiltje are the uncrowned kings of hops. Robbert Uyleman and his team know how to handle the hop, as evidenced by the many prizes they have won. They are renowned for their hop-forward beers, namely the insanely hopped, Dr Raptor.

This is an Imperial IPA or Double IPA, the superlative of the India Pale Ale. That means a lot of hops, leading to an exuberant beer. The distinctive hop aromas of citrus, tropical fruit and malty tones are not to be missed. The firm body and alcohol content provide a counterbalance to the impressive hop yield.

6. Samuel Smith India Ale

Often American style IPAs are criticized for the heaviness of the hops. This can mask the other flavours and make it too bitter. Samuel Smith's India Ale is different. It is characterised by full bodied flavour, excellent balance of sweet malt tones and bitterness from the hops. An Ale with notes of honey, biscuit and marmalade.

You may not immediately recognise this as an IPA, especially if you are used to American IPAs. But this is a classic British India Pale Ale, the IPA it all started with.

7. La Cristal IPA du Mont Blanc

IPA can take many forms, as evidenced in this French style, brewed in the Alps at the foot of Mont Blanc. The very soft glacier water and the relatively long lagering time (resting time after fermentation) at freezing temperatures create a crystal-clear IPA with a gentle character, in which the hop still plays the leading role.

At 4.7%, La Cristal IPA from Brasserie du Mont Blanc can be considered a session IPA and is therefore very refreshing. The lager technique makes this a hybrid style: fermented with top-fermenting yeast, but lagered like a bottom-fermented beer.

8. Oproer Black Flag

Black IPA is a bit of a strange name for a beer style, black and pale are quite the opposite of each other. Yet you often hear it as an IPA variant: a beer with all the properties of an IPA, but very dark in colour.

Black Flag is described as a hybrid of a stout and IPA. So dark, roasted flavours combined with hop aromas and bitterness. You can also call this Cascadian Dark Ale, after the Cascade Mountain range, an area in the US where a lot of hops are grown. Or American-Style Black Ale, because it is black in colour and American-hopped. Either way, Black Flag belongs on this list. Packed with flavour and hopped like an IPA.

9. Brussels Beer Project Delta IPA

Belgium, beer land of traditions. The Brussels Beer Project is a brewer who respects these long-standing Belgian beer traditions but likes to push the boundaries of brewing with experimental flare.

Delta IPA is their first beer and the rising star of the brewer’s assortment. According to co-founder Sébastien, the hero of the Brussels Beer Project, The Delta IPA is where their adventure with beer began. An experimental beer by Belgian standards, especially back in 2013, the year of which the beer came out. Delta IPA is fermented with saison yeast, a type of yeast with deep roots in the Belgian beer tradition. The result is a refreshing India Pale Ale, with tropical aromas and a relatively mild-bitter, but a rather dry finish.

10. BrewDog Punk IPA

Arguably the most famous modern IPA around, Punk IPA is an icon of its style. Rumour has it that Punk is the "beer that kick-started" the craft revolution, a real trailblazer.

This light, golden classic is an explosion of flavour, tones of mango, pineapple, grapefruit, lychee and much more. It's in the aftertaste that this IPA really flexes its bitter muscles, this riotous concoction is finished off with a real bitter hit.