It's Bitter To Be Hoppy, The Rule-Breaking Cocktail For IPA Lovers

Beer is not just a standalone sipper, although there are certainly people who prefer it that way. Beer can, and does, serve as an important ingredient in cocktails. Traditionally, these drinks have been rather simple. The Black Velvet, for example, an inspired pairing of Champagne and Guinness, has been a bar staple since the mid-19th century. The Shandy, another beery cocktail favorite, dates to the same period. Both, notably, have only two ingredients. In recent years, however, beer-aided cocktails have gotten a lot more creative and complex, as a new generation of mixologists has sought out bigger and bolder flavors.

That's certainly the case with It's Bitter To Be Hoppy, a boundary-breaking mixed drink that includes only five ingredients, the most notable of which, from a flavor perspective, is IPA.

Scotch whisky and Aperol, the trendy Italian aperitif, are also included, along with some citrusy accents, giving It's Bitter To Be Hoppy an eclectic mix of ingredients. The IPA is on hand for its hops, of course, which contributes to the cocktail's tasty and strikingly original flavor profile.

Want to use Lagunitas, a popular West Coast IPA, to make your It's Bitter To Be Hoppy cocktail? Knock yourself out. The original recipe doesn't explicitly call for any particular brand, so whatever IPA happens to be your favorite is fine to use. That's not the case with Scotch whisky, another important ingredient. Maybe that's because an iconic Scotch brand came up with the recipe in the first place.

Lowland Scottish distillery Auchentoshan has been around since 1823, but didn't debut its American Oak, a triple-distilled Single Malt Scotch Whisky aged in bourbon barrels, until 2014. This Auchentoshan offering is notable for its vanilla, coconut, and caramel flavors, and has inspired several creative cocktails, including It's Bitter To Be Hoppy, a recipe first published during the summer of 2016.

Of course, in the years since the cocktail premiered, IPAs have exploded in popularity — to the point that the hoppy beer style now accounts for over 40% of craft brewery sales. As a result, the cocktail has met with an eager market clamoring for new showcases of IPA's distinctively hoppy flavor profile.

How integral is IPA to It's Bitter To Be Hoppy's flavor profile? Of the drink's nearly 5-ounce serving size, IPA accounts for more than half of it. To try the cocktail for yourself, pair 2.5 ounces of chilled IPA with 1.5 ounces of Auchentoshan American Oak in a cocktail shaker, along with 0.5 ounces of Aperol.

Don't shake it, though. As any experienced bartender knows, cocktails that rely heavily on boozy ingredients like beer and liquor should be stirred rather than shaken in order to prevent dilution and diminution of signature flavors. It's true that citrusy drinks are generally shaken, but despite the six dashes of lemon bitters and 0.25 ounces of fresh grapefruit juice added to the cocktail mix, the stir mandate remains in effect. After It's Bitter To Be Hoppy has been gently agitated, strain it into a coupe glass, and add a garnish of lemon.

The slightly bitter tastes of hops and Aperol contrast nicely with the zesty citrus tang and sweeter notes of vanilla and coconut courtesy of Auchentoshan's American Oak barrel aging. For a cocktail boasting several strong flavors, It's Bitter To Be Hoppy is bright, balanced, and perfect for summertime sipping.