Most IPA recipes name their hops and stop there. When Elevation Beer Co. first brewed Turtles All the Way Up in 2019, the build was written as a sequence instead. Four varieties moved from the classic to the contemporary: Cascade first, then a high-alpha CTZ blend, then Mosaic, then Idaho 7. The physical form of the hop advanced alongside them, from whole-leaf cones to pellets to liquid extract to Cryo in the dry hop. So did the timing, from first wort through the early and late kettle and on into the tank.
The beer is back this week. Elevation is calling it a modern West Coast IPA, and the can lists 6.5 percent ABV. The brewery describes bright, expressive hop flavor with the finish the style is known for, and frames it as bold without being heavy - an easy choice for a late-summer afternoon.
The name comes from the beer's origins. Turtles All the Way Up began as a joint brew with Terrapin Beer Co. of Athens, Georgia, whose mascot is a turtle. "Turtles all the way down" is the punchline of a well-worn story about infinite regress, in which the world sits on a turtle standing on another turtle, and so on with no bottom in sight. Inverting it fit both a brewery named Elevation and a recipe designed to climb through its own ingredient list. The side of the can still describes the beer as an infinitely progressive homage to the hop flower.
Turtles All the Way Up is pouring on draft and packaged in 12 ounce cans, and the brewery says it will be around while it lasts.
Source & Editorial
JollyPint independently prepares release articles using information published by breweries through newsletters, websites, and other official public communications. Brewery-supplied descriptions and tasting notes are reported as provided, while editorial context is added by JollyPint.