This IPA is an exciting beer with a floral in aroma and an incredible hop flavor. The maltiness is increased (over a regular pale ale) to help balance the aggressive hop usage. This contributes to the higher alcohol content as well. When India was part of the British Empire, pale ale shipped to the troops would often spoil due to the rough voyage and temperature extremes. The brewers had a theory that if they loaded the beer with extra hops, the hops would preserve the beer. Of course, this added significantly to the beer’s flavor and aroma. When the troops returned to Britain, they had become "hop-heads", appreciating the beauty of the hop "over-influence". Regular pale ale was simply not enough anymore! A new beer style, India Pale Ale, had been created: an aggressively hoppy and now quite happy to be home pale ale. http://www.abcbrew.com