Had this the other day. Big ups to yeahitsRUST on the variety.
Terrapin Pumpkinfest
I'm not too keen on how many pumpkin beers are brewed. They really try to test bitterness with what should be a sweet belgium like nectar.. This one had the pumpkin/all spice smell to it, and was quite easy to drink. Almost no bitterness.. A solid 8 out of 10 with no off flavors. This may be as high as pumpkin beers go for me.
Also had some local stuff.
Marble Pilsner 4.7% ABV.
This one tastes a bit hoppier than it should for its style. It almost has the finish/mouthfeel of a standard APA. So be forewarned of that.. After a few drinks though, the hop taste isn't as strong, and the other light characteristics come out.. This one won a Bronze at the GABF in 2012. The malt doesn't make this one too sweet. So it's a very easy to drink session beer. (canning of it just started back in April-May). I may be off with it being the hops that is making things a bit tense in the initial tasting. It could be how the carbonation is setup making it a bit on the high end. Overall, 8.5 out of 10. I could drink this everyday and be happy
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Now onto a challenge some 6 months in the making.... If you back to around March, I made a mention of some family going out of town and being able to pick up some DFH (it's not as readily available as you may think). After some 60 minute IPA purchases, 90 minute IPA, and some other brands not available here, I made it a point of sorts to put one bottle/can aside for this big bonanza tasting.
With IPAs as many are aware, they don't tend to age that well. So there may have been some skewed tastings going on. But the good news is that, all of my purchases were bought near or around March into mid May. Nothing else is completely fresh giving away which one is better in that regard.
These beers ranged in review scores from I believe 85 to 97, with a good majority sitting above 90. I kind of went a not available in my state EAST COAST challenge vs. LOCAL products vs. a few WEST COAST/SW beers to even things out.
We have
Ipswitch IPA (out of Ipswitch, MA)
Dogfigh Head 60 Minute IPA (Delaware)
Odell's IPA (Colorado)
Sierra Nevada Torpedo (California)
La Cumbre Elevated IPA (New Mexico)
Santa Fe Happy Camper IPA (New Mexico)
Marble IPA (New Mexico)
We went with a complete blind pouring with a 1 through 7 designation.
NOTE:
I have had Marble IPA before countless times, and La Cumbre is had weekly. So I went with the route of smelling each one first.. I pretty much knew which one was LC right away. The smell that I'm aware of is present right away. I'm not sure if familiarity won out here but it was fun to try. SF happy camper I have occasionally, along with both Odell and Torpedo. I've had Ipswitch just once prior, along with just a six pack of 60 min, 6 months back. Having had Marble IPA before, I really couldn't pinpoint which one it was just by smell. I had to wait for the taste portion.
I ended up tasting each one, giving little notes to remind me of things. I then ranked them by numbers, waiting for the reveal..
Rank wise, I ended up loving La Cumbre, noting it having a very strong hop bite. I then had a three way tie for 2nd, with Marble, Odell, and Torpedo. 5th was Dogfish head 60 who most realize has a meh type hop presence, and is seen more as a intro to IPAs type beer. 6th was a two way tie with SF happy camper, and Ipswitch IPA. Both of those beers ended up having two of the lowest BA review scores, 85 and 86 respectively.
The 4-6 month time swing IMHO did not hamper this experience one bit. All beers may have suffered a slight 10 IBU drop. but the hop bombs stayed as such, and it all balanced out.
My father actually chose La Cumbre as his least favorite beer, citing the hop bomb presence only happening with that beer. That the others happened to have balanced profiles. So I found that bit interesting. One was not like the others. And for me, that made it the best. And for him, the worst.
In closing, I'm not sure I accomplished much here. I love LC's beer, and it happened to be the highest rated. So maybe my senses were geared towards quality that translated directly with the review scores? I think I've come close to knowing what is good beer. but who knows.
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90 minute IPA, Hop Wallop, lagunitas sucks, and a double trouble from Founders is up next in a DOUBLE IPA blind challenge.. The big boys are coming out to play here this weekend
