What's The Difference Between A Double IPA And A Triple IPA?

The world of craft beer can often seem complex to the uninitiated thanks to the daunting number of styles and sub-styles available today. This can be especially true with IPAs — that is, India Pale Ales, the ultra-popular style with a wide variety of variations that has risen to the top of the craft beer scene. Two of these, double (also called Imperial) and triple IPAs, have become beloved among connoisseurs. Double and triple IPAs take the core elements of the style — bitter hoppiness with pine, citrus, and/or tropical fruit notes — and supercharge them along with a higher alcohol by volume (ABV), with the triple having the highest amount of alcohol.

Where typical IPAs have an ABV of around 5% to 7.5%, double IPAs (DIPAs) can range from 7.5% to 10%. Triple IPAs (TIPAs) are even stronger, with an ABV of typically 10.5% or more. Along with a higher ABV, they both also tend to have a high IBU, or International Bitterness Unit scale, which measures the level of bitterness from 0 to 120. An average IPA, depending on the sub-style, can range around 30 to 70 IBUs. Both DIPAs and TIPAs often reach the high end of the scale, from around 60 to as much as the 100 IBU mark. Another difference between doubles and triples is when they first came about.

Although the first IPAs were British and likely date back to the 18th century (other sources date the beer style's birth to the 1830s), DIPAs and TIPAs are much, much younger. Both are also often attributed, at least those that were commercially produced, to the same brewer: Vinnie Cilurzo. In 1994 he crafted Inaugural Ale at Blind Pig Brewing in Temecula, California, the first ever DIPA available for sale. Cilurzo later moved over to Russian River Brewing Company in 1997 and began producing Pliny the Elder, the OG double IPA that's been around for close to 30 years, and set the bar for the style.

Cilurzo brewed the first triple IPA, Pliny the Younger, at Russian River Brewing Company in 2005, and again helped kick off yet another IPA craze that has continued into the present. Besides Pliny the Elder, some other standout DIPAs include Sierra Nevada's Big Little Thing Imperial Hazy IPA, Voodoo Ranger Imperial IPA from New Belgium Brewing, and Victrix Squatch Juicy Imperial IPA by No-Li Brewhouse, which won top honors at the 2026 World Beer Awards. As for TIPAs, besides Pliny the Younger, Lawson's Finest Liquids's Triple Sunshine, Notorious from Boneyard Beer, and Sierra Nevada's Hoptimum, are all excellent choices. A word of caution: Because double and triple IPAs are higher in alcohol and IBUs than a typical beer, if you're not used to them you may want to start at a brewery by sharing the ultimate beer flight with a friend. That way, you can sample the intense bitterness and aromatics before committing to a full pour.