Paste blind taste test of DIPAs

Awesome article.

I have had 4-5 of the top 50 and heady topper was definitely the best for me. Bodhi is overrated and I love TBK but el lupolo libre didn't strike me as special.

Happy to see the Maharaja on here as I find it to be a highly underrated DIPA.

 

Although I take these blind tastings with a grain of salt, I have to assume that Toppling Goliath was excludud from the testing for some reason. I mean, really.

 

I knew about the Veil and the Answer but never heard of Triple Crossing until reading this article and they cracked 2 in the top 5 blind DIPAs. I need to check hotels in Richmond area and get there soon. This place is blowing up (and its only 3hrs drive away from my house and I haven't even been there yet). Oh and lunch or dinner at Mekongs, you kidding me? This town has quickly moved up the beer mecca destination list in US into the top 10/possibly top 5 with those outstanding breweries.

 

read the beginning of the article:

 

<just fine-focusing the above>

"As in most of our blind tastings at Paste, the vast majority of these DIPAs were sent directly to the office by the breweries that choose to participate...We always do our best to reach out to breweries we’re aware of that make exemplary versions of particular styles, but things always do slip through the cracks....There will never be a “perfect” tasting lineup, much as we continue to try."

 

You're serious? Richmond. Top 5?

 

Generally okay with the list, but agreed with sentiments here. Maharaja should probably be one of the worst of the unranked.

 

Looking overall at this list - I've had 22 from the field, abut only Heady Topper, Maharaja, Double Duckpin, and Melvin 2x4 from the top 50. I would put some of the field beers above Heady Topper, but only because I like DIPA's with more malt flavor in the mix.

I kinda laughed that they included DFH 120 minute in a blind tasting. Unless the recent batches have been a lot mellower than the one I've had in years past, the booziness and harshness would stand way out.

 

Keep in mind this is a blind test, so no one should be getting all riled up unless he/she has also done a blind taste test of this field. Also, keep in mind that even in a blind test, taste remains extremely subjective, and Paste is not the BJCP (though they purport to have respectable people on board as judges).

Most people thus far seem to have an issue with Maharaja's placement, but they state in the article that this is somewhat "like buying a ticket to the museum of DIPA." I would have likened it to a time capsule, but museum works too. Regardless, they state that the results were reflective of the many different substyles of DIPA, and so it makes sense that a very old-school take on DIPA made the cut with Maharaja (the even mention this in Maharaja's entry). I'm playing devil's advocate here, since that likely wouldn't have made my personal list even with the older style of DIPA deserving some respect, but I also didn't take part in a blind tasting of this field, so who am I to judge?

Also, I know it's been mentioned, but for emphasis they don't decide who participates, the beer is sent to them by the breweries if they choose to participate, so if your favorite local brewery with the best DIPA didn't make the grade, blame your local brewery, not Paste.

 

That's probably a bit high, but there's so many great beers coming out of that area. It's definately on the upswing though. But that my opinion, like most if your not local there's always breweries that are completely off the radar producing great beer.

 

Good for triple crossing! The Richmond scene is blowing up as of late, and they're not getting the hype due to being in the shadow of Veil, Answer, and Hardywood. I will say TC has stepped their game up recently, as they were not nearly this good back in the summer of 16 when I first visited.

 

Really interesting results. Not a fantastic result for Colorado, but good to see such strong competition. Also interesting to see SoS and Heady Topper behind Crooked Stave's brand new DIPA.

 

I see that twice now Knee Deep's Tahoe Deep has been banished to the unranked list. It is terrible. Not quite the aftershave/toothpaste finish of a Boom Sauce, but decidedly something non-edible.

 

I think the argument can be made that Hoptronix is objectively worse than almost every IPA that precedes it.

 

I'll take Lush over Prospect and Cloud Drop over both. Nice to see love for the new wave of VT IPAs.

Related: Frost did first canning run last weekend! Can't wait for cans to be a regular thing....

"Lush Double IPA and RS Double IPA Friday 12-7 and Saturday 12-7. Limits start at 4x 4-packs per person and are subject to change. Pints, tasters and growler fills may require a wait. Keep Chilled. Drink Fresh!"

 

AKA 45 beers 95% of us will never try.

 

Any ranking of DIPAs that does not include DRIPA is not a valid test.

 

The problem with these lists are if you did the taste test over 10 times with the same beers you would most likely have many different beers in the 10 each time and a wide variation of results overall. And this is even more so with hoppy beers that destroy your palate like the DIPA's they tested..

 

Man, I love lists!!! I've only had a handful of the top 50

 

I somehow omitted Heady Topper from the list of Top 50 DIPAs I've had.
So that doubles my total to...two.