I first learned about the milkshake IPA at BeerAdvocate’s Microbrew Invitational in Boston last spring. Burley Oak Brewing Company, based in Berlin, Maryland, was offering a variety of IPAs brewed with lactose. Lactose, or milk sugar, adds a subtle sweetness and a creamy mouthfeel to a traditional IPA.

Coogi Sweater was my first Milkshake IPA at that event, a double IPA with oats, Citra, and Motueka hops. Lactose gives the beer an “extra pillowy mouthfeel.” This new beer style certainly made an impression on me; I’ve been seeking out milkshake IPAs ever since. The J.R.E.A.M. series from Burley Oak has become a favorite craft beer of mine.

Personally, the new trend of milkshake IPAs has brought me back to regularly drinking the hazy (or now opaque or murky?) IPA. Previously, I was beginning to get fatigued by the same juicy NEIPAs (however delicious they may be). I was looking for a bit of diversity of my beer fridge. And the milkshake IPA has delivered.

What are Milkshake IPAs?

A milkshake IPA is a hybrid version of the traditionally hoppy and bitter India Pale Ale. Brewers add lactose or milk sugar, an unfermentable sugar, to it. The lactose imparts a creamy, soft, round, and full-bodied mouthfeel. Often the lactose in milkshake IPAs is accompanied by vanilla and fruit.

The first milkshake IPA is attributed to Omnipollo out of Sweden. Tired Hands, located in the suburbs of Philadelphia in Ardmore, teamed up with Omnipollo. Together, they made Extra Vanilla Milkshake, a Mosaic and Citra IPA conditioned on vanilla beans. Tired Hands Brewer Jean Broillet IV has continued to experiment with the style. Blackberry, strawberry, mango, guava, watermelon, tangerine, and even zucchini bread have made their way into his sought after milkshake IPAs, among other adjuncts.

The Brewers Association has not yet recognized the milkshake IPA as an official beer style in their guidebook. But, could it be next? In your opinion, should it be next?

The Milkshake IPA Becomes a Trend in Vermont

Not until recently, however, did this new trend in IPAs come to Vermont. Craft breweries, like Burlington Beer Company, Four Quarters, Frost Beer Works, Foam Brewers, Good Measure, Farnham and Ten Bends, are the first to pioneer this trend in Vermont.

But, are milkshake IPAs well received in Vermont? By many, yes. Other craft beer fans, however, are anti-milkshake IPA. Many people are against the use of adjuncts as a thickening agent at large, whether pectin from apple puree or lactose. Also, the milkshake IPA is often sweeter than bitter, giving a different flavor profile than a traditional NEIPA.

The milkshake IPAs in Vermont dramatically differ on the bitter to sweet scale. Burlington Beer Company’s two milkshake IPAs thus far this summer have been quite bitter on the finish. Brewer Joe Lemnah has added more milk sugar to his next milkshake IPAs being released soon to balance out the bitterness from the hops. Four Quarters’ Strawberry Shakedown, on the other side of the spectrum, has less of an IPA hop presence and more fruit and sweetness.

Additionally, Vermont breweries have been utilizing lactose in other styles of beer. Four Quarter’s Morning Star is an Imperial Breakfast Stout with coffee and lactose. Foam Brewers’ Strawberry Jam, an American Wild Ale, was brewed with lactose. Then, it was conditioned on strawberries and vanilla beans. Vermont Pub & Brewery’s Milk Stout is just that, a creamy, sweet stout with milk sugar.

Milkshake IPAs from Vermont Breweries

Burlington Beer Company – Williston, Vermont

Roadside Bandits is a 6% ABV Blueberry Pancake Milkshake IPA  and the first released in BBCO’s milkshake IPA series.

Nu Disco Jumpsuit is a Tangerine & Mandarin Milkshake IPA and BBCO’s second milkshake IPA this summer.

Upcoming: Midnite Vultures will be BBCO’s next milkshake IPA, with pineapple and cherry.

Four Quarters Brewing, Winooski, Vermont:

Strawberry Shakedown is a highly drinkable 7% ABV strawberry milkshake IPA with lactose and 120 pounds of fresh strawberries from Charlotte Berry Farm.

Foam Brewers, Burlington, Vermont:

Folk Implosion, a double IPA with lactose at 8.4% ABV boasts tasting notes of pineapple, clementine and creamy sorbet.

Entertainment, a 7% ABV IPA, was brewed with lactose and double-dry hopped with Amarillo, Citra, and El Dorado hopes, and features tasting notes of honeydew, candied pineapple and orange rind.

You Would Know, an 8.7% ABV DIPA, was conditioned on apricot puree and includes lactose, and has hints of orange, apricot, and mango.

Frost Beer Works, Hinesburg, Vermont:

Lushicle, a double IPA at 8% ABV and variant of the popular Frost beer Lush, has lactose added for a “soft, creamy mouthfeel accentuating its juicy character.”

Good Measure Brewing, Northfield, Vermont:

Life in Technicolor – Key Lime from Good Measure is a 5.1% ABV American Pale Ale brewed with key lime zest/juice and milk sugar. The IPA features Columbus, Equanot, Citra, and Zythos hops, along with lactose and milk sugar to balance out the zest of the citrus and create a round mouthfeel.

Ten Bends Beer, Hyde Park, Vermont:

Cream Puff Bar is a 8.3% ABV double IPA brewed with lactose, oats, and honey malt with varying fruits, including pineapple, peach and mango.

Farnham Ale & Lager

66 Milkshake #3, a DIPA at 8.4%, was brewed with mango for a mango milkshake (or perhaps a mango lassi?) IPA.

What’s your favorite milkshake IPA (Vermont or not!) you’ve tried? Share in the comments below to keep the conversation going.