Italian Grape Ale: the beer style the world recognizes as Italian
Italy from the outside: a country of wine that invented a beer style
When the American magazine Beer & Brewing devotes an in-depth feature to Italian beer, the first thing that stands out is the amazement. Genuine amazement—the kind felt by someone discovering that in one of the world’s most revered countries for wine, craft brewers have found their own way of working with grapes—and have done it so well that they created an internationally recognized style.
Italian Grape Ale, or IGA, is not a compromise between beer and wine. It is something more precise: a beer fermented with grape must, bringing the agricultural and cultural identity of a region into the glass. It is a style born in Italy, codified by an Italian—Gianriccardo Corbo, the first BJCP-certified judge in our country—and added to the BJCP’s international guidelines in 2015.
“The name does not indicate the grape variety,” explains Corbo. “It indicates that the style was born in Italy and represents the way Italians make it.”
What makes an IGA truly Italian
From abroad, what fascinates people is not just the technique. It is the philosophy.
Italian brewers who work with grapes do not simply use them as an ingredient. They treat them as an expression of the land: the variety, the vineyard, the vintage, the processing method—fresh must, sapa, grape pomace, juice—all contribute to defining the beer’s character.
The percentage of must in the recipe can range from 20 to 50%. Hops remain in the background, often low-alpha varieties such as Saaz. The yeast may be neutral, wine yeast, or a mixed culture. The grape is the star, not a supporting player.
But what truly distinguishes Italian IGAs, according to those observing them from abroad, is their connection to the land. Breweries such as Sorio in Veneto grow their own grains and hops, and use Garganega and Tai Rossa must from the family vineyard. “If you brew beer with American hops, English barley, and German malt,” says brewer Mirko Boggian, “you can make that beer anywhere in the world.”
Us and IGA: a story of terroir
At Maltese, we are no strangers to this conversation.
Our Italian Grape Ales are born from the same principle: using what the land provides, with respect and intention. Every beer in our IGA range is a dialogue between Italian brewing and winemaking traditions—two cultures that have coexisted in this country for millennia and that find an unexpected synthesis in the glass.
👉 Discover our Italian Grape Ale collection—beers that tell the story of Italy to those looking at it from the outside.
Why the world is looking to Italian IGA
Corbo’s reflection is worth quoting: “If we produce with local ingredients, we can define a true Italian identity. We perhaps have the greatest agricultural variety in the entire world, and we are not taking advantage of it. There is still much to do.”
It is an invitation, not a criticism. And we accept it.
Because brewing beer in Italy today means having access to unique agricultural biodiversity—native grapes, ancient grains, and hops grown in unrepeatable microclimates. It means being able to put something in a glass that exists nowhere else.
This is what the world sees when it looks at Italian craft beer. This is what we want to continue sharing.
Explore our IGAs
Our Italian Grape Ales are available in 75cl format, designed to be shared at the table as wine is—because, in the end, that is where the inspiration comes from.
- 🍇 BB5, BB6, BB9—our historic IGA range
- 🍇 Fuori dal gregge 2—a contemporary interpretation of the style
- 🍇 Cuvée Convivium—for special occasions
