July 25, 2025 – The wait is over for hop-heads in Clovis! Yesterday, Thursday, July 24th, marked the highly anticipated kickoff of the 16th Annual IPA Fest at BC’s Pizza & Beer. For the next two to three weeks, this beloved local establishment is transforming into a veritable mecca for craft beer enthusiasts, promising an unparalleled journey through the diverse and exciting world of India Pale Ales.
BC’s Pizza & Beer, a cornerstone of the Clovis community since 1994, was founded by owner Kirk Sommers, a man driven by a simple yet profound love for exceptional pizza and world-class beers. Sommers’ dedication to seeking out “the next great brew” has clearly set the standard for BC’s, making it a true destination for those who appreciate quality and variety. With over 80 specialty bottles and 35 drafts regularly available, BC’s has long prided itself on offering one of the Central Valley’s most extensive and exciting beer selections, constantly staying ahead of the curve with weekly rotating taps that feature new, rare, and exciting releases from top breweries worldwide.
Jenifer King, a business partner at BC’s Pizza & Beer, shared her excitement about this year’s festival. “Today is the start of our 16th annual IPA beer fest, and it is all about IPAs,” King explained. “We have 35 tap handles, and we like to max out our efforts in tapping in most of the handles. So we have dedicated today 26 of our handles to all IPAs.”
The festival boasts an impressive range of IPA styles, ensuring there’s something for every palate. King highlighted the diversity, noting, “Whether they’re fruited hazy IPAs, West Coast style imperials, we even have an IPA that is 100% fermented with Brettanomyces, so it brings that funk and a little bit of sourness to it, and it’s a black IPA. A beautiful one to try from 8 Wired Brewing in New Zealand.” She added, “We kind of go around the world as best we can with what we have available to us, but otherwise some awesome breweries from East Coast to West Coast. So yeah, a lot of fun.”
When asked about popular brands, King emphasized the variety. “It’s really all about what the drinker likes,” she said. “If they tend to like that West Coast style, then the MC Squared from Equilibrium is amazing. We’ve got some amazing hazys too. So really just everything for everybody.” She specifically mentioned Gigantic Brewing’s Pipewrench Gin Barrel Aged IPA, describing it as “aged in old gin barrels for three months. It’s just a perfect meld of the botanicals from the gin with the citrus hops, and it brings that subtle flavor that comes through. It’s kind of like your dessert beer, your sipper. It’s just really delicious.”
The festival promises a dynamic experience, with kegs rotating every few days as “hoppy keg after hoppy keg” are blown through. King confirmed, “About every three to four days we will have all new offerings and tapping them in. So we always say come out, come often, so you can try the selection because we will have anywhere between probably 50 to 60 different IPAs throughout the fest.”
And what’s a beer festival without the perfect pairing? Alongside the extensive beer offerings, attendees can indulge in the much-awaited return of BC’s famous Spicy Thai Chicken Pizza. King detailed this customer favorite: “It’s one of those where it’s like Thanksgiving, you’re looking forward to that turkey and all the fixings, and most of our customers have asked us to make it a year-round availability, but you know what, if you had it year-round, it wouldn’t be as special.”
She described the pizza’s ingredients: “It’s our most famous pizza. It has a thin crust style, and we brush it with olive oil and garlic, top it with mozzarella, grilled chicken, green onions, red and green bells. We drizzle on some honey garlic sauce and then we bake it. After we cook it, then we drizzle it with spicy Thai peanut sauce. We add a light layer of bean sprouts, shoestring carrots, and cabbage, and then some cilantro and chopped peanuts. And then on top of that, what makes it spicy is we finish it with a drizzle of the creamy, spicy Sriracha Thai chili sauce. It is so addictive. It’s so good, so you’ve got to come try it. It’s a limited time. That pizza is available for about a month.”
For opening day yesterday, the doors swung open at 11:30 AM to an eager crowd, ready to explore an impressive initial draft lineup that included:
- Pizza Port Coastin Tropical IPA
- Morgan Territory Moon Time
- Altamont Hella Does Exist collab
- Bike Dog Send in the Clouds
- Karl Strauss Squawk Box
- Smog City Solar Winds
- Faction Summer IPA
- Modern Times Booming Rollers
- Roadhouse The Walrus
But that’s just the beginning! A sneak peek into the barrels and cold rooms reveals many more exciting brews slated to join the festival in the coming days, including:
- 8 Wired’s Barrel-Aged Wireless Black IPA with Brettanomyces
- Gigantic’s Pipewrench Gin Barrel Aged IPA
- Equilibrium MC² Double IPA
- Cellarmaker’s Far Out collab with HPA, and their Pacific Dopeness IPA
- Beachwood’s Amalgamator
- Brasserie de la Senne Brussels Calling Belgian IPA
- The Drowned Lands Thistle IPA
- Gold Dot Beer Co Slim Digs IPA
- Von Ebert collab with ISM Dynamic Essence
- Little Beast’s Maiden West IPA
- Insurgente La Lupulosa IPA
- Urban Roots Galaxy Tactics DIPA collab with Smokehouse
King expressed her personal excitement about the festival’s evolution. “What I’m most excited about is seeing the change, seeing craft beer is constantly changing and evolving,” she said. She appreciates how breweries are taking their craft to the “next level,” and particularly enjoys “seeing some really crisp classic West Coast IPAs like we did back in the beginning when we first started with our first annual.”
For those who have yet to experience BC’s, King assures a welcoming environment. “Here at BC’s, it’s not intimidating,” she explained. “We’re going to walk you through the menu. We’re going to get you familiar, get you trying something that you’ve never had based on what you like.” Whether you prefer something “tropical, balanced, light, a light mouth feel” or “a punch in the mouth, pine, danky resin,” BC’s has an IPA for you.
King concluded by emphasizing the staff’s dedication: “Our staff is really educated. They’re a lot of fun. We’re very welcoming. And you know, there’s no shaming, no too geeky, no nothing pretentious. It’s just a laid back, fun, good time.”
Whether you’re a seasoned connoisseur with a palate for complex hop profiles or simply looking for a lively atmosphere to enjoy great food and discover new brews, the 16th Annual IPA Fest at BC’s Pizza & Beer is the place to be. As the team at BC’s guarantees, “If you love pizza and beer then you really need to check us out, you won’t be disappointed!” Don’t miss out on this “hop-elicious event” that celebrates the best of craft beer right here in our community.