Pliny vs Lunch

Having a Lunch right now- tastes like club soda and hops. Worlds greatest lawn mower beer.

 

I have had only one bottle of Lunch, and it was fresh... wasn't too good. Would like to try it again.

 

Either your Hoptimum was old as fuck or your taste buds suck. Will you choose one for me?

To the topic, Pliny lives up to the gold standard of what IPA's were before assholes wanted their shit over-hopped and ruined the scene. Lunch is mediocre. Just like Peeper and Mo. Maine Brewing creates beers that are too thin.

 

Lunch is an IPA and Pliny is a Double IPA - so not really comparable. I've had Pliny on tap and thought it was fantastic. In the bottle, Pliny is very good but not fantastic IMHO. I've had Lunch on tap and while it was not at the level of Pliny on tap as a beer experience, it was still world class and very enjoyable. In the bottle (05/21/13), the bottle I had yesterday was very good but not as good as on tap. Very happy to have Maine beers in Western NY now. I've been impressed by their brews and they deserve a shout out for the clarity of their bottled on dates - wish all breweries were as clear.

 

I know that one is an IPA and the other a double, but in all honesty—how much of a difference can there be? Unless I'm missing something, the difference between D/IPA is nothing but size. So, Lunch is 7% ABV and Elder is 8% ABV. Yes, there is a difference of size, but does that difference make them different enough to make comparison invalid?

p.s., definitely agree with you re: MBC's bottle dating. Nobody does it better, that I've seen.

 

Though I love King Titus.

 

King Titus...Top 5 porter I have ever had
Mean old Tom...World class stout
Lunch....Top 5 IPA/DIPA
Peeper...extremely average

3 out of the 4 beers I have had of theirs are outstanding. Although I only buy one or two because of price.

 

Sorry to hear you had a bad batch. I genuinely love Lunch. If I had to compare it to Pliny I'd say...

it is like a really good baseball team playing another really good baseball team. Meaning...no matter what the outcome, I am going to be drunk by the bottom of the 8th and will need to be reminded who won.

 

Huge fan of Lunch. Maybe my all time favorite beer.

 

1) IPA vs DIPA
2) Fantastic vs fantastic
3) Why not just drink them and tell us? You have them both in your hands.
4) I had them here and enjoyed them both very much - 5 stars out of 5 for each - http://www.flickr.com/photos/actiong/8569876552/

 

spolied by too much pliny.

hey, too much of anything is too much.

i will join in, HOPTIMUM. it is just a notched up torpedo. of all SN give me pale ale in a can.

SN is such a model... doesn't all the east coast IPA taste sweeter and more pine, sn is their model... we get such nice dry crisp ipas on the west coast -- the east cannot compete.

it seems SAN DIEGO is the epicenter of the new clean IPAs of the last 7-10 years...

go pads!

 

I have had them both and enjoy them equally. Pliny, like Lunch, is very easy to drink. Living here on the east coast, I have very easy access to Lunch (have 2 bottles in the fridge for this weekend) and do get Pliny yearly when I go the west coast. I hate pitting great beers against one another, as they all should just be enjoyed. Both are exceptional in their own right!

 

This wasn't English. Like you said braj, too much of anything is too much. Maybe lay off the pot and/or mushrooms before posting next time

 

Lunch, hands down. Recently had Pliny, Heady Topper, and Lunch. 1st goes to HT, 2nd was Lunch, and 3rd was Pliny. This sentiment was echoed by those who also tasted them. All three were relatively fresh at the time of tasting (+/- 5 weeks), but not so different from one another that it would be noticeable--it was very clear which we liked best.
If you want to drink a beer that has been intentionally withheld from particular distribution networks in order to make it seem more popular and thus 'better,' drink Pliny. If you want to drink an IPA from a company of about ten hard-working Mainers that are simply trying to make good beer, drink Lunch. Then decide.

 

For a non imperial/barrel aged stout i thought it was really good. Maybe world class was an exaggeration, but it was really good. I gave it a 4.25. It was a bad comment on my part. I had a couple beers before that post. What I was trying to say was in general MBC makes tremendous beers for the most part. Although the price is a joke (why I only by 1 or 2).

 

The "variation" part is questionable. More recent batches seem to be less of a direct copy of Pliny, but when I first had Lunch I thought it was a dead ringer for both fresh Pliny and a homebrewed version of the publicly available Pliny recipe.

To me having Lunch around is a good thing - it's a way to get the taste of Pliny without having to trade for it or brew it yourself. Do What's Right. Yay.

 

Lunch is great, but I feel that it is overrated due to its lack of availability. I think the Double Jack or Enjoy By are better beers in the same class and more available.

While Pliny's availability is a factor in its high ratings, I think it delivers on the hype a little bit more. But being here in the NorEast, I don't get access to it as much as the Lunch.

I like Portland's Mean Old Tom, MO and the Li'l One waaaayyy better than the Lunch

 

Never had Pliny, but Lunch is World Class!

 

I just had a botle last week that was only 10 days old and it was fantastic.