When they are not introducing Italian-style Pils to America (Pivo Pils) or blowing minds with their barrel-aged beers blended like wines (Anniversary, Parabola) and experimenting with cocktails in beer form (Tequila Barrel Sunrise, Mezca-Limón) Paso Robles, California’s Firestone Walker Brewing is pursuing their ongoing quest for the perfect West Coast IPA.

As brewmaster Matt Brynildson recently explained to New School Beer contributor Ben Keene, he has been obsessing over the West Coast IPA style since before Firestone Walker even existed. After 15 years of tinkering with the style, the latest fruit of that labor has culminated in the brand new year-round Hopnosis IPA. A product of the Cryo Hops revolution, Hopnosis is a modern popular version of the style with lighter bitterness but explosive tropical hop aromas and west coast dankness from Mosaic Hops.

“Hopnosis represents everything we’ve learned about hopping techniques over the years, all rolled into one beer,” said Brewmaster Matt Brynildson. “This is our ultimate new-school expression of the West Coast IPA.”

Hopnosis is now rolling out to all Firestone Walker markets in 6-pack and 12-pack (12-ounce) cans; 19.2-ounce cans; and on draft.

Cryo Hops® Magic

The Firestone Walker brewing team has developed an arsenal of favorite new-age hops for IPA—all of which are featured in Hopnosis. These include hops from New Zealand and the Pacific Northwest, with a focus on Mosaic Cryo Hops® as well as Idaho 7 and Nelson.

Cryo Hops® are made by collecting the concentrated lupulin from whole-leaf hops, which contains the pure resins for bitterness and aromatic oils. “Mosaic Cryo Hops® are the centerpiece of Hopnosis,” Brynildson said. “They provide intense hop aroma and flavor with incredible integration, enabling us to make a hop-forward beer that is low in bitterness, super smooth, and delicious.”

Hopnosis is extravagantly double dry hopped, with nearly five pounds of hops used for every barrel brewed. The resulting beer is loaded with hop-derived flavors of mango, passionfruit, white grape and lychee. The ABV of Hopnosis is 6.7 percent, providing an excellent balance of flavor and texture.

West Coast Wonder

The origins of Hopnosis date back to Firestone Walker’s original West Coast IPA—Union Jack, which was introduced in 2007. Hopnosis also reflects concepts learned while developing the Luponic Distortion revolving IPA series and the Mind Haze family of IPAs. Finally, it draws inspiration from numerous brewing collaborations here and abroad.

These experiences have yielded a variety of hop integration techniques that Brynildson and his team brought to bear in creating Hopnosis.

“This is where the West Coast style is headed,” Brynildson said. “Aromatic hops and new hopping techniques are driving the future. On top of that, Cryo Hops® are opening up fresh possibilities. Now you can get all of the ‘oomph’ of hop saturation that you want from a West Coast IPA, but with less of that classic bitterness, more of these new-age hop flavors, and a whole new level of balance and drinkability.”

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 Founded by brothers-in-law Adam Firestone and David Walker in 1996, Firestone Walker Brewing Company is a California beer company with three innovative brewing facilities. Firestone Walker’s main brewery in Paso Robles produces a diverse portfolio ranging from iconic pale ales to vintage barrel-aged beers. The Barrelworks facility in Buellton makes eccentric wild ales, while the Propagator pilot brewhouse in Venice specializes in R&D beers and limited local offerings. Firestone Walker is also the brewery behind 805, one of the nation’s fastest-growing beers. Firestone Walker was recently named “Best American Brewery of the Decade” by Paste Magazine.