By Unseen Brewing Co. | Beer Guide | Reading time: ~5 min
The West Coast IPA was born on the US Pacific coast in the '90s — an IPA built around one simple principle: dry, bitter, crystal clear. No compromise, no roundness to soften the edges. Clear Cut, 6.9% ABV, Citra, Simcoe and Nelson Sauvin, is our direct answer to that tradition.
Born in the craft breweries of San Diego and San Francisco, the West Coast IPA became the benchmark style of the American craft revolution of the '90s and 2000s. Unlike its cousin the NEIPA, it isn't after roundness or juicy density — it's after definition.
Visually, it stands out for its clarity: golden to amber, bright, with a tight white head. No haze, no opacity. What you see is what you drink.
On the palate, the attack is bold. The bitterness arrives fast and clean, resinous or tropical depending on the hops. The body is dry, medium to light. The finish is long and lingering — a bitterness that stays without weighing down the palate.
West Coast IPA vs NEIPA: two philosophies
Mixing up West Coast IPA and NEIPA is understandable — two IPA styles built on modern American hops. But that's where the resemblance ends.
The NEIPA plays the density-and-fruit card: hazy, loaded with oats and wheat, juicy, with low bitterness. It wraps around you. The West Coast IPA cuts through. It prefers dryness to roundness, clarity to opacity, sharp bitterness to a blurry impression.
These aren't two levels of quality — they're two different intentions. The West Coast IPA is for those who want a beer that owns what it is.
The hops in Clear Cut: Citra, Simcoe, Nelson Sauvin
Citra is the hop of tropical precision: grapefruit, passion fruit, lychee. One of the most aromatically intense hops on the market, with a clean profile that doesn't stray. In Clear Cut, it lays the fruity foundation — sharp, never muddled.
Simcoe brings the resin. Pine, damp earth, dark citrus. It's the hop that anchors the beer and gives it its backbone. Without Simcoe, Citra would come across too light. Together, they create a tension between freshness and depth.
Nelson Sauvin is the third element — and the least expected. Hailing from New Zealand, it brings notes of Sauvignon Blanc and white grape, almost vinous. In a West Coast IPA, that's a deliberate choice: adding a dimension American hops alone can't reach.
These three hops don't pile up — they complement each other. The result is an aroma profile that evolves from nose to finish.
Dry hopping: why and how
Dry hopping — adding hops cold, after fermentation — is the technique that defines the aromatic intensity of a modern IPA. In a West Coast, its role is precise: amplify the aromas without adding extra bitterness.
Unlike hot-side hopping, which mainly extracts the alpha acids responsible for bitterness, dry hopping extracts the volatile essential oils — the ones that deliver fruity, resinous and floral aromas.
In Clear Cut, dry hopping takes place in a closed fermenter, at low temperature, to preserve the delicate oils of Citra and Nelson Sauvin. What you smell in the glass is the direct result of that control. The beer's clarity comes from careful post-fermentation filtration — a deliberate technical choice: we could have left some haze. We didn't.
Clear Cut: the West Coast IPA, Unseen style
The name isn't a vague metaphor. Clear Cut means a clean cut — a decision that leaves no room for interpretation. That's exactly what this beer does in the glass.
6.9% ABV: not so low that it lacks presence, not so high that it masks the hops. A deliberate balance that lets the aroma profile speak without being crushed by the alcohol.
On the nose: pink grapefruit, slightly musky white grape, a hint of pine resin. Citra and Nelson Sauvin share the spotlight. Simcoe waits in the background.
On the palate: the attack is dry and bold. The bitterness lands mid-palate — resinous, long, never aggressive. The body is medium, never heavy. The finish is dry and lingering, with a light return of citrus.
This is a beer for those who want an IPA that owns what it is — not watered down, not rounded off to please everyone. Precise, dry, direct. That's Unseen.
FAQ
What's the difference between a West Coast IPA and a NEIPA?
A West Coast IPA is clear, dry and assertively bitter; a NEIPA is hazy, round and juicy, with low bitterness. Both use lots of hops, but the former bets on definition and a lingering finish, the latter on density and fruit. Same family, two opposite intentions: Clear Cut cuts through, where our NEIPAs like Slow Focus wrap around you.
Why Nelson Sauvin in a West Coast IPA?
Citra brings the tropical fruit, Simcoe the resin that gives the beer its structure. Nelson Sauvin, a New Zealand hop, adds notes of Sauvignon Blanc and white grape that no American hop can give. It shifts the classic profile without betraying it: Clear Cut's nose opens on pink grapefruit and white grape before Simcoe's resin takes over.
Is a West Coast IPA too bitter?
The bitterness is assertive — that's the style's signature — but it isn't aggressive. In Clear Cut, it arrives mid-palate, resinous and long, carried by a dry body that keeps it from clinging to the palate. Dry hopping, done in a closed fermenter at low temperature, also delivers a very aromatic nose: you get the fruit before the bitterness.
Where can I buy Clear Cut?
Clear Cut is available on www.unseenbc.com and at our partner bars and beer shops in Belgium. Batches are limited: when one sells out, the product page says so. Follow #unseenbc to find out when the beer is back and where to find it near you.