Blind IPA tasting - 2/22/14

Discussion in 'Beer Talk' started by TheeWalrusHunter, Feb 22, 2014.

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  1. JohnSnowNW

    JohnSnowNW Initiate (0) Feb 6, 2013 Minnesota

    As far as Sculpin is concerned, I found it to be a well balanced middle of the road IPA. It is nice to have, but it doesn't have a wow factor. I think this is pretty well shown in this blind taste test.
     
  2. imfatsowhat

    imfatsowhat Initiate (0) Aug 20, 2013 California

    Feel the same way about DirtWolf...Just a bunch of hype around it:grimacing:
     
    Knee_Deep_Fan and Ozzylizard like this.
  3. fredmugs

    fredmugs Initiate (0) Aug 11, 2012 Indiana

    Concur on the first released part and it definitely was not as good the second time around.
     
    jakecattleco likes this.
  4. beerindaglass

    beerindaglass Zealot (645) Feb 20, 2013 Florida
    Trader

    I woud have beer mailed you a few Jai Alai's just to see where it stacked up. Probably would have been at the top.....eventhough its not brewed in Oregon.
     
    #24 beerindaglass, Feb 22, 2014
    Last edited: Feb 22, 2014
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  5. TheeWalrusHunter

    TheeWalrusHunter Initiate (0) Aug 23, 2013 Oregon

    I think I just found a new business model:

    I will be doing blind taste testings every week until i die from liver disease. Please send me all of your best homer beers and Ill drink them to see if the stack up against the best in the country. It's a winner take all, and by that I mean I take all your beer.

    Please send your beer as soon as you can. Remember to package and well, and as always - Fresh is Best.
     
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  6. MNishCT77

    MNishCT77 Initiate (0) Jun 6, 2008 District of Columbia

    Garlic and onion hop aroma doesn't mean it's infected. It means they probably used CTZ and other "C" hops in their mix for Enjoy By, which they surely do.
     
  7. CassinoNorth

    CassinoNorth Initiate (0) Apr 5, 2013 New Jersey

    I hated Simtra when I had it a couple months back. Thought it was stupid boozy.
     
    laglocal likes this.
  8. Bshaw22

    Bshaw22 Initiate (0) Aug 29, 2013 Wisconsin
    Trader

    Sucks and 90 minute are so far apart in tastes, smell, body, and color. Your statement about those two beers makes me question the whole tasting.
     
  9. TheeWalrusHunter

    TheeWalrusHunter Initiate (0) Aug 23, 2013 Oregon

    By on par, I mean i enjoyed them equally, not that they were essentially the same beer.
     
  10. beerdedking

    beerdedking Grand Pooh-Bah (3,634) Oct 15, 2008 Pennsylvania
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Couldn't agree more. For example, a had a sixer of Two Hearted and mixed in a bottle here or there into my sessioning. It tasted different every time. Once it was very floral and the hops were exploding (two bottles). The other times it was just meh. It was very order dependent.

    Dirtwolf has been the same for me. If I have one first, right out of the gate it is excellent. If I put it in the middle after a few other IPAs or whatever, it is a different beer.

    All that said, there is no way DW deserves such a bad rap. DFH 90 (which I like) is the pretender here as it is my favorite barleywine, not DIPA.
     
  11. BreweryRun

    BreweryRun Initiate (0) Feb 22, 2013 California

    I think its awesome that you did this, it's a really great way to learn what your personal tastes are. However, I personally feel you can't mix styles (even close ones like IPA and DIPA) or serving styles (bottles and growlers) and expect to get a fair evaluation, especially when it's a style that relies highly on freshness. That being said, it sounds like you did a good job getting bottles that were comparably fresh, and most importantly to each their own in regard to how you want to do your event. I recently did a blind test with a few friends of fairly widely available (in Caifornia) but good IPAs. The order for us went:

    1. Sculpin
    2. Union Jack (these two were 1 and 2 for almost everyone)
    3. Torpedo
    4. Stone
    5. Racer 5
    6. Hop Highway from Belching Beaver (a smaller SD brewery that hasn't been bottling for long)
    7. White Hawk from Mendicino (Last by a good amount)

    I enjoyed this since it helped me to make decisions about which beer to drink when faced with fairly common but quality choices. That being said I gotta get me some Boneyard!

    Also I need to try fresh Simtra because the bottle I had a few months ago was a bit older and not great.
     
  12. fastenoughforphish

    fastenoughforphish Initiate (0) Nov 14, 2012 Illinois

    If you think 90 minute is a barleywine, your drinking the wrong barleywines broski.
     
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  13. TheeWalrusHunter

    TheeWalrusHunter Initiate (0) Aug 23, 2013 Oregon

    Agree with this. Now I know I am not going to spend $15 on a sixer of Sculpin, if I can get Laurelwood for $8.

    Also I will say, none of the beers were bad beers (save for Dirt Wolf, though I am pretty sure it was infected). Just because I ranked sculpin 7th, doesn't mean I wouldn't drink it. All of them are actually good beers. It's like watching the 100M finals in the Olympics. Somebody has to get last, but he's still faster than most people.

    Though I think rankings on here are somewhat bullshit, all these beers are ranked over 4.0.
     
  14. Pintofbrown

    Pintofbrown Initiate (0) Jun 25, 2011 Texas

    Read the list, not one of the IPA's in my distro. area, I shed a single tear and leave the thread.
     
  15. surfcaster

    surfcaster Initiate (0) Apr 20, 2013 North Carolina
    Trader

    Blind is always the way to go but combining the results for a few folks gives any ranking a little more credibility.

    I do now know what baby vomit tastes like (nor want to).
     
  16. Eamonn-Cummings3

    Eamonn-Cummings3 Initiate (0) Jan 23, 2014 New York

    Wasn't that impressed with Sculpin?
    And Dirtwolf tasted like baby vomit?
    Were you drinking beer?
     
    TheeWalrusHunter likes this.
  17. Casey3236

    Casey3236 Pooh-Bah (1,641) Sep 14, 2012 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    Being from Downingtown I have never had a bad dirtwolf. I find it to be an excellent east coast style ipa. The first time I had sculpin I didn't understand the high ratings. The second time I thought it was spectacular. I almost cried when I finished my six pack of sucks last month. That being said, there are days when I yearn for a jai alai or, lord help me, surly furious. Very different beers from the others but every bit as delicious. Yes, freshness and tasting order matter, but I think so does your mood. The moral of the story is there are plenty of delicious beers from all over for all of us to enjoy.
     
  18. Scaught

    Scaught Initiate (0) Dec 19, 2013 Rhode Island

    Really? I get a totally west coast vibe from that one.

    I'm going to have to agree and say that I had Dirt Wolf on tap here when it was just being released and it was fucking delicious. I picked up a four pack the other day and it just... didn't do it for me. Very curious as to why.
     
  19. Houser

    Houser Pooh-Bah (1,736) Sep 10, 2012 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    ive had two of boneyards ipa offerings and they were both fantastc.
     
  20. shredder83

    shredder83 Initiate (0) Feb 21, 2013 Illinois

    Methinks your friend has a sensitive palate, enjoy by uses summit hops and summit gives some people big tastes and aromas of garlic and onions, including myself. For me it wasn't a deterrent and I didn't think it was super strong. Taste is very subjective, but the flavor you friend was getting wasn't infection.
     
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