History

The West Coast IPA crystallised in San Diego in the 1990s through a small group of breweries chasing extreme bitterness and dry-hop character. Stone Brewing (1996, Escondido) ran Stone IPA from launch and codified the style commercially. AleSmith IPA (1995) and Ballast Point Sculpin (originally homebrew) followed. The style emphasises hop aroma over malt sweetness, a crystal-clear body and IBU counts above 70. By 2026 the city holds the largest concentration of West-Coast-style IPA producers in the country, with Societe (The Pupil), Pizza Port and Pure Project all running canonical examples.

Common allergens: Gluten

Make it at home

Yield Makes 19 litres (5 US gallons)Hands-on 4 hrTotal 336 hrDifficulty Advanced

Ingredients

  • 5.5kg pale 2-row malt
  • 300g Munich malt 10L
  • 200g crystal 40L
  • 60g Columbus hops (high alpha, for bittering at 60 min)
  • 60g Centennial hops (flavour, at 15 min)
  • 85g Citra + Simcoe blend (whirlpool, after the boil)
  • 115g Mosaic + Citra blend (dry hop, day 5 of fermentation)
  • 11g Safale US-05 American ale yeast (dry)
  • Mash water adjusted to 200ppm calcium sulphate (gypsum) for hop bite
  • 5g Irish moss (clarifying agent, last 10 min of boil)

Method

  1. Mash the grains at 65C (149F) for 60 minutes. Sparge to a pre-boil volume of 23 litres.
  2. Bring to a rolling boil. Add Columbus hops at the start of the 60-minute boil.
  3. Add Centennial with 15 minutes left. Add Irish moss with 10 minutes left.
  4. At flameout, cool to 80C (176F), add the Citra/Simcoe whirlpool addition, stir, hold 20 minutes.
  5. Cool to 18C (64F), transfer to a sanitised fermenter, pitch yeast. Ferment at 19C (66F) for 7 days.
  6. On day 5, add the Mosaic/Citra dry hop. Cold-crash on day 10. Keg or bottle on day 14, carbonate to 2.5 volumes CO2, drink within 3 months for hop freshness.

Tip from the editors. Water chemistry matters more than recipe. If you can't add gypsum to push sulphate to 200-250ppm, the bitterness goes round and dull. Hop fresh and drink fresh; West-Coast IPA is at its best within 6 weeks of brewing.

This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.

Where to eat west coast ipa

West Coast IPA in San Diego

Stone Brewing World Bistro and Gardens Escondido ★ 4.5

Gastropub$$$escondido

Stone Brewing World Bistro and Gardens in Escondido is Stone's flagship destination brewery and restaurant since 2006, the one-acre beer garden, 36-tap room and farm-driven kitchen.

Signature: Stone IPA flight, Beer-braised short ribs, Garden-fresh salads

Order: A Stone IPA flight to compare the eras of the West Coast original; the beer-braised short ribs from the kitchen.

Tip: Take the brewery tour at 1pm before lunch; the back garden is the move on warm afternoons.

1999 Citracado Pkwy, Escondido, CA 92029 Book →

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