The California Food and Wine Festival is not just about culinary discovery and libation succulence. It’s educational too! Here is a tidbit I learned during a seminar in the Festival Showplace.
Every wonder why it’s called an India Pale Ale? Did you just assume it came from India? Well, you’d be wrong!!
India Pale Ales are known for being hoppy beers and their more distinctive bitter flavor. Hops (pictured) is a very important ingredient in the beer making process. It serves as a preservative. So the more hops, the longer a beer can be preserved.
During the time of the British Empire, soldiers would be shipped off to colonies around the world, including India. With the soldiers also came beer. To make the long journey from the British Isles around the horn of Africa (there was no Suez Canal yet) to India, brewers added more than usual quantities of hops. The beer was intended to be diluted once it was tapped in India.
At some point, the beer stopped being diluted and simply served as is and soldiers loved the distinctive flavor. When they returned home to Britain, they would go to the local pub and ask for a pale ale like in India. Soon, British brewers were serving up pints in this style soon to be dubbed India Pale Ale. And a new style of beer was born.
And that's a wrap for now!
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