Yup, I’m drinking another IPA. I do drink other styles, I promise! I decided to pick up Sierra Nevada’s newest seasonal release, Flipside Red IPA, because it was new and I’m a sucker for anything they release.

Flipside Red seems to be Sierra’s new Fall seasonal that could possibly replace Tumbler. IPAs are all the rage and by far the most popular style in the country, so I get adding another one to their seasonal releases. Sierra will now have 3 seasonal IPAs (Celebration, Ruthless and Flipside), which I’m not complaining about, but I really hope they keep Tumbler around because it is a great brown ale.

As it’s name suggests this red IPA pours a deep reddish brown with a nice white head. I instantly picked up the bright citrusy notes from Sierra’s new favorite hop, Citra. Cascade is the hop that built Sierra, but Citra is the hop that is becoming king. The aroma is pretty similar to Torpedo and Ruthless Rye, both of which make heavy use of Citra hops. It would be fun to do a side by side tasting of all three. Flipside has a firm bitterness and finishes nice and dry. It’s full of those classic citrusy hop flavors with just the slightest amount of maltiness. The 6.2% abv is also nice, making this lowest abv IPA on Sierra’s roster.

This is another great beer from Sierra Nevada and will keep hop heads happy until Celebration is released later in the year. There is nothing exceptional that jumps out about this beer, but that isn’t a bad thing. A good, fresh IPA is always welcomed on the shelves, specially in Hawaii.