Peaks & Pints 2025 Tournament of Beer: Northwest IPAs April 17
Peaks & Pints had no idea how the Tournament of Beers: Northwest IPAs would go. Much like the actual NCAA bracket, the 64 breweries voted in are strikingly different. Some breweries have been around for a while and have massive fan bases. Others are mid-majors, mainly known to those living in the same city as the brewery. Some people have stood inside Peaks & Pints and passionately expressed dismay at the tournament seeding, even though the public seeded it—many confused West Coast IPAs for Northwest-style IPAs. What we do know is that hundreds of people are voting. Long, lively conversations occur daily beneath our giant brackets above our cooler. And head brewers are stopping by to sign autographs. People are talking about more malty IPAs and having a good time.
Here’s a recap of yesterday’s results and a look at today’s Tournament of Beer Second Round action. Nestle up to a Northwest-style IPA and get to voting. …
Wednesday, April 16, Second Round Northwest IPA Games Results
GAME 1: NORTHERN WASHINGTON REGION
Georgetown Brewing Lucille IPA (#1 seed) vs. Machine House Brewery Northwest IPA (#9 seed)
Georgetown Lucille IPA grabbed Machine House’s Northwest IPA by the barn jacket and gave it a duff up, grabbing 73 percent of the votes. Lucille moves on to the Sweet Wort 16.
GAME 2: SOUTHERN WASHINGTON REGION
Everybody’s Brewing Illuminated NW IPA (#7 seed) vs. E9 Brewing Realize Real Lies IPA (#2 seed)
The Tournament of Beer can be brutish and short. One cold brewing day can destroy the title dreams of even the best mash tun paddle person. So, when filling out your bracket, put value in experience. Those who have made it far in beer tournaments are more consistent and less prone to dropping a bucket of hops or dumping in old Chinook hops. E9 Brewing won two Tournament of Beer contests. It shows how Director of Brewing Shane Johns carries himself through the Tournament. We’re certain Everybody’s Brewing doesn’t give a crap about championships. The popular White Salmon brewery is chill, although it has advanced far in most Tournaments and recently opened a second taproom in Battle Ground, Washington. This all played out yesterday when Realize Real Lies was walking away with 70 percent of the vote and a date with Georgetown’s Lucille in the Sweet Wort 16.
GAME 3: NORTHERN OREGON REGION
Migration Brewing Straight Outta Portland IPA (#5 seed) vs. Double Mountain Brewery Hop Lava IPA (#4 seed)
If there’s one thing our beer tournaments have seen over the years, it’s that you don’t mess with Hood River. The community huddles around their own, more often than not with kiteboards on their e-bikes and “The Gorge is my gym” bumper stickers on their beat-up Jeeps. Double Mountain’s Hop Lava grabbed a respectable 58 percent of the votes yesterday in its win over the tough but sexy Migration Straight Outta Portland. That’s impressive. That’s Double Mountain.
GAME 4: SOUTHERN OREGON REGION
Bend Brewing Tropic Pines IPA (#7 seed) vs. GoodLife Brewing Descender IPA (#2 seed)
Bend Brewing’s Tropic Pines was the only distant beer in the morning that overtook its opponent in the afternoon. At 6 a.m., it had 38 percent of the vote. At 3 p.m., it had 57 percent. At the final buzzer, GoodLife Descender had descended to 42 percent of the votes, allowing Bend Brewing’s signature IPA with a balanced malt foundation, and a special blend of Simcoe and Mosaic hops that gives this beer its unique tropical and piney character, to move into the Second Round.
Let’s weed through the malts. The following are advancing to the Second Round:
Georgetown Lucille
E9 Brewing Realize Real Lies
Double Mountain Hop Lava
Bend Brewing Tropic Pines
All right! Let’s dive into the next four games of the Second Round. Please vote for one IPA per game on Peaks & Pints’ Instagram Stories. Voting for today’s battles ends at midnight. We’ll announce the winners tomorrow morning around 9 a.m., but today’s games are live on Peaks & Pints’ Instagram Stories. Take a deep whiff and get to voting. …
Thursday, April 17, Second Round Northwest IPAs Games
GAME 1, NORTHWEST WASHINGTON REGION
Wander Brewing Shoe Toss IPA (#5 seed) vs. Boundary Bay Brewery Northwest Original IPA (#13 Seed)
Wander vs. Boundary Bay. No other incomplete sentences in our Tournament of Beer generate more buzz. Wander adds 50 pounds of Washington-grown Citra, Centennial, and Summit hops, plus rye, which adds complexity to the flavor and a crisp spiciness on the palate. Boundary Bay adds a big malt backbone and a heavy dose of Amarillo hops to lead the way for their Northwest Original IPA (formerly Inside Passage IPA), a true Northwest-style IPA. Time to vote!
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GAME 2, SOUTHERN WASHINGTON REGION
Heathen Brewing Transcend IPA (#6 seed) vs. Wet Coast Brewing Moving Day IPA (#3 seed)
Your olfactory is the most essential tool when tasting beer. Most taste is aroma, and because of the pathways in the brain that smell takes, your sense of smell can trigger memories and connections with past experiences in a way other senses can’t. Hops, particularly American varieties, add huge aromas of citrus, fruit, and floral, often with a piney or resinous undertone, originating from their inherent chemical compounds rather than from additional fruits or spices. Heathen Transcend IPA bursts with citrus and grapefruit aroma, while Wet Coast Moving Day IPA smells like tropical fruit, citrus, and resinous. Follow your nose on this game.
VOTE ON PEAKS & PINTS’ INSTAGRAM STORIES >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
GAME 3, NORTHERN OREGON REGION
Fort George Brewery Vortex IPA (#1 seed) vs. Barley Brown’s Beer Pallet Jack IPA (#9 seed)
Even with multiple dimensions and infinite permutations that factor in every variable you could imagine — strength of schedule, hops per barrel, clarity, tradition, number of brewers, size of mascot, name of mascot, college grade point average for sales rep — this game is anyone’s guess? These two breweries are friends; Barley Brown’s Beer was part of Fort George’s 2016 3-Way IPA collaboration. Yes, these two IPAs would be the beers each brewery would pour at each brewery owner’s birthday parties. You must shut all that out and concentrate on the IPA. Vortex is brewed with generous additions of Comet, Chinook, and Simcoe hops throughout the brewing, fermentation, and conditioning phases for notes of pine needles, citrus, melon, and resin with light malty notes. Pallet Jack, a multiple GABF medal winner, offers citrus, tropical fruit, and pine hops meet a balanced malt background. You must search your soul.
GAME 4, SOUTHERN OREGON REGION
Game 4: Worthy Brewing NW IPA (#6 seed) vs. Oakshire Brewing Watershed IPA (#3 seed)
Pairing delicious IPAs with an observatory in Bend, Oregon, is a business genius, which is probably why Worthy Brewing does it. However, name recognition also goes a long way — and Oakshire Brewing has been fueling the heart of Eugene’s arts and counterculture Whiteaker neighborhood since 2006. These IPAs strive to be the Pacific Northwest. Vote now.
VOTE ON PEAKS & PINTS’ INSTAGRAM STORIES >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Friday, April 18 Tournament of Beer: Northwest IPAs Second Round action
Game 1: Hellbent Brewing House IPA (#7 seed) vs. Rainy Daze Brewing Pourhouse IPA (#2 seed)
Game 2: Camp Colvos Brewing Buckhorn IPA (#16 seed) vs. Talking Cedar Brewery Pacific NW IPA (#9 seed)
Game 3: Ferment Brewing Take Me To The River IPA (#11 seed) vs. pFriem Family Brewers IPA (#3 seed)
Game 4: Silver Moon Brewing IPA 97 (#5 seed) vs. Crux Fermentation Project Grade A (#13 seed)
LINK: Tournament of Beer: Northwest IPAs explained
LINK: Tournament of Beer Headquarters
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