Hey Founders! Love your beer, and I love your Founders All Day IPA. Newsflash for you, though: Founders All Day IPA is not an IPA. Nor is it technically a Session Ale, as you describe it on the label. Seriously. It’s more an American Pale Ale if you ask me. Let’s take a look at the reason that I say this.

India Pale Ales historically have lots of hops, a good malt body, and an alcohol content between 6% by volume. Session ales are usually defined at 4% alcohol by volume and under. In my opinion, you can “session” any beer you like, you just have pace yourself while you drink it. Still, lower alcohol session beers are made to be beers you can enjoy more than a few of without too much ill effect.

At any rate, Founders All-Day IPA just does not have the gravity think body) of an IPA, and it has too much alcohol to really be called a session beer. That doesn’t mean you can’t session it as I said earlier, this beer is definitely a candidate for that application. Some beer geeks today are even arguing that a new style is emerging, India Session Ale, though I am a little skeptical of that.

OK, you say, if Founders All Day IPA isn’t an IPA, and it’s not a session ale, what is it then? It’s an American Pale Ale. Brewers have been producing American Pale Ales for decades, and I have always referred to them as “IPA Lite”. Like Founders American Pale Ale, they have the unmistakable character of American hops but with a bit less body and lower alcohol content.

Here’s what Founders says about All-Day IPA:

The beer you’ve been waiting for. Keeps your taste satisfied while keeping your senses sharp. An all-day IPA naturally brewed with a complex array of malts, grains and hops. Balanced for optimal aromatics and a clean finish. The perfect reward for an honest day’s work and the ultimate companion to celebrate life’s simple pleasures.

Founders All Day IPA pours to a bright golden amber color with a medium fizzy foam of short duration and an amazingly bright citrusy hop nose laced with subtler hints of piney resin. Taking a sip, the beer has a very light malt body underneath that barely makes itself known before the hops take over: quite fruity with citrusy lemon and grapefruit, a hint of piney resin, and then a big lingering bitter grapefruit seed-like bite in the finish. Really, the hops are explosive here, very pronounced, and make this a very refreshing and wonderful beer.

In some ways, this beer reminds me of Stone Levitation Ale. Both beers have about the same alcohol content (4.4% for the Stone beer, 4.7% for All Day IPA). They both lean heavily toward the hops side, although in different ways. And they’re both very refreshing summer beers. They’re also both priced at $9.99 a six-pack.

Anyway, Founders All Day IPA may not really be a session beer, and it may not be an IPA. But it’s a darned fine beer of amazing citrusy hop character that I just can’t get enough of. If you’re looking for a delightfully bright citrusy glass of hop juice that you can sip over an afternoon and on into the evening, Founders All Day IPA is the beer for you. It's even available in cans.

Well done, Founders. You keep me coming back for more.

Update July 24th, 2014: Enjoyed a mug of All Day IPA on tap at Taco Mac tonight. That big citrusy-resiny hoppiness paired extremely well with an order of Buffalo Wings. A good deal, too, at $6 for my 20-ounce pour.

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