Schlafly pivots from haze to clarity with new Crisp IPA

The name doesn’t dance around it. Crisp IPA is exactly what Schlafly says it is—clean, clear, and loaded with bright hop flavor. No haze, no fruit puree, no smoothie mouthfeel. Just hops, clarity, and a dry finish. And for the folks behind the brew, that’s kind of the whole point.

“Crisp IPA quickly communicates to the consumer that you can expect a clean and crisp hoppy beer,” the brewery explained when we asked about the name. “And given the great response we saw to the test batch we poured at our pubs and at a few festivals last fall, people immediately get it.”

The 7% ABV IPA lands somewhere between a West Coast throwback and a modern hybrid. It’s dry-hopped with a blend of Amarillo and Cascade for that grapefruit-and-pine backbone, plus Idaho 7 and Krush for a softer, tropical, new-school vibe. The result is a beer that smells bright, drinks fast, and finishes clean—exactly what more and more IPA fans seem to be craving right now.

That shift away from haze wasn’t accidental.

“In a time where many breweries are pumping out hazy IPA after hazy IPA with different names that all basically taste the same, we wanted to rise above the hazy crowd,” said Schlafly’s brewing team. “As one trend slows, another gains momentum—and we wanted to be more tip-of-the-spear.”

To get that “crisp” profile just right, the team used a lager-meets-ale fermentation method: it starts cold, like a lager, and finishes warm, like an ale. Unlike Cold IPAs, which usually include rice or corn, Crisp IPA sticks to a grain bill that leans West Coast, keeping the finish clean and grain-forward without that adjunct sweetness.

“For me, a ‘crisp’ beer is bright or clear in appearance, the flavors are focused and defined rather than soft and muddled, and it has a refreshing dry finish,” said the brewer. “Lots of styles can be crisp—but this one owns it.”

Crisp IPA is available now in six-packs and on draft at Schlafly’s Tap Room and Bottleworks, and it’ll run through the summer across their full distribution footprint.

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