'Big IPA' Tourney

Discussion in 'Beer Talk' started by glass_house, Apr 3, 2014.

Tags:
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. glass_house

    glass_house Maven (1,325) Jan 10, 2014 Ohio

    I know there was a similar post recently, but here is our take on a tournament of hoppy IPA goodness. Myself and two buddies played out one region at a time over the past few months, with the final 4 showdown this past weekend. We took great care to make sure all contestants were as fresh as possible.

    No whalezz here. We wanted to focus on some of the best and [for the most part] readily available big IPA's we had easy access to. We kept everything American, in the 7.5 to 10 abv range, and no "variants" (oak-aged, black ipa, rye ipa, etc.)

    My friends tasted blind. I did not, as I was doing the pouring. Asterisks denote a split decision win in the previous round. Seeding was based on BA avg. ratings. The thing I found most interesting is that not a single 1-seed made it to the final 4.

    In no way was this meant to be scientific, comprehensive, or definitive. However it was a lot of fun and generated some heated debates. I highly recommend it. Feel free to tell me where we got it wrong. :wink: I'm guessing that Maximus over Hop Ranch will spark the most outrage.





    [​IMG]
     
    #1 glass_house, Apr 3, 2014
    utopiajane, ONovoMexicano, 3letters3numbers and 1 other person like this.
  2. StoutSnob40

    StoutSnob40 Grand Pooh-Bah (4,611) Jan 4, 2013 California
    Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    I like it. Sucks is some good shit..
     
    #2 StoutSnob40, Apr 3, 2014
    ONovoMexicano likes this.
  3. rozzom

    rozzom Pooh-Bah (2,620) Jan 22, 2011 New York
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    90 min must have been playing well to make the final 4. All sounds like good fun man!
     
    #3 rozzom, Apr 3, 2014
  4. beepthebot

    beepthebot Initiate (0) Nov 12, 2011 Indiana

    Looks fun, I'll have to try to set one of these up myself!
     
    #4 beepthebot, Apr 3, 2014
  5. LambicPentameter

    LambicPentameter Initiate (0) Aug 29, 2012 Nebraska

    Just like the NCAA tournament, seeding takes on a huge level of importance. And there is only one champion. Everyone else is just a different version of second/last place.

    And honestly, I can't really argue with the champ here. I personally *loved* Hop Ranch, but I'm not sure I would have picked it over Sucks. And that's really the only one listed that I would have even considered over Sucks, so...
     
    #5 LambicPentameter, Apr 3, 2014
  6. Treyliff

    Treyliff Grand Pooh-Bah (5,025) Aug 10, 2010 West Virginia
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Looks pretty close to how I imagine mine would turn out, especially the championship matchup.
     
    #6 Treyliff, Apr 3, 2014
  7. DWheeler379

    DWheeler379 Zealot (747) Jun 15, 2012 Colorado

    Awesome! Sounds like fun. Surprised on the performance of 90 Min (over HopSlam) and Maximus.
    And I would totally have Dirtwolf vs. Sucks - those are my two favorite DIPAs. Though I wonder if it'd be different blind. Thanks for sharing.
     
    #7 DWheeler379, Apr 3, 2014
  8. ODYSEYY

    ODYSEYY Initiate (0) Jul 30, 2013 Ohio

    If only you could account for batch differences...Lagunitas is incredibly consistent, which may account for the upsets.

    One of these days I'd like to do the same, but I think my palate might be too in tune with what beer I'm drinking.
     
    #8 ODYSEYY, Apr 3, 2014
  9. glass_house

    glass_house Maven (1,325) Jan 10, 2014 Ohio

    Hop JuJu got a tough draw being in the same region as Sucks. That was the toughest decision for me.
     
    #9 glass_house, Apr 3, 2014
  10. Shandycan

    Shandycan Initiate (0) Jan 15, 2014 Pennsylvania

    I'm actually a bit surprised at Maximus over HeadHunter as well!
     
    #10 Shandycan, Apr 3, 2014
    miketd likes this.
  11. alldogsgotohell

    alldogsgotohell Initiate (0) Aug 9, 2013 Virginia

    i'm gonna go check the local giants for some lingering sucks
     
    #11 alldogsgotohell, Apr 3, 2014
  12. AlcahueteJ

    AlcahueteJ Grand Pooh-Bah (3,242) Dec 4, 2004 Massachusetts
    Society Pooh-Bah

    Wow, awesome job. This was very well done. Can't argue with the results. I'd put those two at the top of that particular list as well.
     
    #12 AlcahueteJ, Apr 3, 2014
  13. miketd

    miketd Initiate (0) Mar 2, 2006 Ohio

    My bracket would look much different, blind or no.
     
    #13 miketd, Apr 3, 2014
  14. DWheeler379

    DWheeler379 Zealot (747) Jun 15, 2012 Colorado

    On a similar note, I plan on doing a "final four" imperial stout tasting next fall with 1-year old beers( aged in my wine cooler):
    Bell's Expedition
    FIS
    Yeti
    ?

    Need a 4th. Have a BCBS but that's barrel aged and totally different.
    Any suggestions? Was thinking Ten Fidy.
     
    #14 DWheeler379, Apr 3, 2014
  15. Jho3325

    Jho3325 Pundit (904) Nov 19, 2013 Indiana
    Trader

    Ten Fidy is a solid choice. Stone's IRS is another option or an the classic Old Raspy for non-barrel aged options. I assume you could find those pretty much anywhere around you.
     
    #15 Jho3325, Apr 3, 2014
    DWheeler379 likes this.
  16. glass_house

    glass_house Maven (1,325) Jan 10, 2014 Ohio

    Ten Fidy or Old Rasputin would probably be my choice.
     
    #16 glass_house, Apr 3, 2014
    DWheeler379 likes this.
  17. tommyguz

    tommyguz Pooh-Bah (2,534) May 14, 2008 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    I always wanted to do something like this, since I saw it in a Delaware newspaper with 64 different beers...

    How many people did the tasting and how many bottles of each did you buy? Obviously you would need the same amount of each beer, because you don't know which will move on....just curious to some of the behinds the scenes things.
     
    #17 tommyguz, Apr 3, 2014
  18. VitoFerrante

    VitoFerrante Initiate (0) Sep 11, 2012 Pennsylvania

    The Head Hunter and JuJu brackets are especially disturbing!
     
    #18 VitoFerrante, Apr 3, 2014
    JohnnyHopps likes this.
  19. glass_house

    glass_house Maven (1,325) Jan 10, 2014 Ohio

    There were 3 of us. We only worried about one region at a time (2 bottles of each beer). We knew we wouldn't be able to get together every week, so we didn't want bottles sitting around for 45-60 days waiting for the finals. That being said, we may have been in trouble if Hop Ranch had made the final 4. That was the first region we did. I'm not sure exactly when Victory stopped bottling it for the season, but I don't think we would have been able to find it fresh for the finals.
     
    #19 glass_house, Apr 3, 2014
    tommyguz likes this.
  20. tjensen3618

    tjensen3618 Maven (1,391) Mar 23, 2008 California

    Pleased with the Final Four performance of Maximus, @ $9 a six pack it's definitely my go to DIPA,.
     
    #20 tjensen3618, Apr 3, 2014
    TongoRad likes this.
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.