Beer Alert: New Generation Anniversary Ales And American Classics

American Craft Beer|May 30th, 2026|

A stylized, tattoo-art style graphic for Firestone Walker "Gen 10 West Side IPA" featuring a central brewery building inside a large number "10," flanked by an illustrated lion on the left and a bear on the right.

(Courtesy Firestone Walker Brewing)

Summer is ON and the beer biz is addressing things with an always interesting roster of beers that pair brilliantly with the season.

Gen-10 (Venice, CA) – Firestone Walker’s The Propagator R&D brewhouse in Venice is celebrating its 10^th anniversary with small batch” IPA homage to its origins on the west side of Los Angeles. Crafted by innovation brewing manager Sam Tierney Firestone Gen-10 West Side IPA is an uber-limited 7.2% ABV West Coast-style India Pale Ale made with both classic, ‘cryo,” and “new frontier” hops.

Citra and Mosaic and Mosaic are the exact hop pairing used a decade ago for the Propagator’s Gen-1 IPA. But this time Mosaic is applied in its hyper-concentrated Cryo form, alongside a dry-hop addition of Krush to maximize the brew’s punchy essential oils without adding unwanted vegetal notes. But that’s not all! Gen-10 also features Thora hops. a cutting-edge, thiol-heavy hop variety developed over the past decade to supercharge the beer’s tropical aromatics.

Intentionally rolling back the ABV to the original Gen-1 formula, while implementing a decade’s worth of hop and yeast research, Gen 10 starts with a light, bready sweetness which quickly evolves into a layered, resinous bitterness that eventually gives way to a crisp and incredibly dry finish that lingers.

A bottle of Heavy Seas Blackbeard's Breakfast Imperial Coffee Porter resting on a bed of roasted coffee beans next to a poured glass of dark beer with thick froth.

(Courtesy Heavy Seas Brewing)

Blackhearted (Baltimore, MD) – Heavy Seas recently returned a highly anticipated limited release that takes decadent drinking to the next level. Part of the brewery’s Uncharted Waters Series, Heavy Seas Blackbeard’s Breakfast is a 10% ABV Barrel-Aged Porter with the deep, roasted coffee character Crafted with Dark Sumatra coffee from Baltimore’s Chesapeake Coffee Roasters, this highly anticipated small batch release. The end result is a complex beer with layers of chocolate, coffee, and a touch of caramel, completed by a smooth, warming finish

Moon Shot (New Glarus, WI) – New Glarus Brewing is renowned for its internationally lauded Spotted Cow Cream Ale, but they also offer a terrific year-round that’s equally sessionable and just as interesting. A bright bold blend of five hops that flirt obligingly with the smooth malty backside, New Glarus Moon Man is a classic 5% ABV American Pale Ale that should never be overlooked.

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