Peaks & Pints 2025 Tournament of Beer: Northwest IPAs Winner and Recap

It’s a simple equation: Water plus grain, hops, and yeast. But hidden within this simple formula is a universe of variety. Session or imperial? Clear or hazy? Tropical or dank? West Coast or Northwest? Pacific Northwest brewers who brew the classic India Pale Ale have choices. And in those choices lies the path to greatness.

In February 2025, we asked Oregon and Washington residents to nominate their favorite Northwest-style IPA. Peaks & Pints defines Northwest IPA as a subset of the West Coast IPA; most importantly, it is brewed in the Pacific Northwest — specifically Washington and Oregon, for this tournament — with more malt than West Coast IPAs but still crafted as a tribute to the region’s majestic evergreen forests. Second, the style highlights the unique hop varieties grown in the Pacific Northwest, including Cascade, Centennial, Chinook, Columbus, CTZ, Nugget, Amarillo, Mosaic, Simcoe, and Citra, to name a few. While there are many interpretations of the aroma and flavor notes, for the Tournament of Beer: Northwest IPAs, the nominated IPAs should be a clean, single IPA offering significant pine, citrus, and herbal aromas and flavors with a beautifully clear, light copper color and plenty of caramel sweetness to balance the hop flavors. Lastly, a few Northwest IPAs have had their recipes brightened toward a West Coast style, such as Georgetown Lucille and Fort George Vortex, both number one seeds, that we allowed to remain in the Tournament due to their Northwest-style ingredients and history among voters.

Then, April 4-26, 2025, Peaks and Pints bottle shop, taproom, and restaurant in Tacoma’s Proctor District pitted the top 64 nominated IPAs against one another in the mother of all craft beer brackets. You saw the carnage: A number one seeds fell, powerhouses butted heads, and surprise IPAs made a run at the prize. Here’s a recap of the 2025 Tournament of Beer: Northwest IPAs. Yes, we are burying the lead. …

The Early Rounds

The first two weeks saw the bracket shaking off the flagships and one-offs as early matches cut the field from 64 to the Sweet Wort 16. Top seeds didn’t cut, including three-seed Old Stove Two-Pronged Crown in the Northern Washington Region, number-one seed 7 Seas IPA in the Southern Washington Region, and number-four seed Ninkasi Total Domination in the Southern Oregon Region.

The serious work began in Week three, with the heaviest hitting Final Four in nine years of the Tournament of Beer.

In the Northern Washington Region, Georgetown Brewing Lucille, a number one seed, took down Valholl Poulsbo Viking IPA, Machine House Northwest IPA, Boundary Bay Northwest Original IPA (formerly Inside Passage IPA), and Stoup Citra IPA but lost to E9 Brewing Realize Real Lies in the Final Four. Hellbent House IPA played well until meeting Stoup in the Hot Break Eight.

In the Southern Washington Region, number two seed E9 Brewing Realize Real Lies eased past Walking Man IPA and Everybody’s Brewing Illuminated NW IPA. At the same time, South Sound breweries Camp Colvos Buckhorn, Odd Otter Optimus Pine, and Wet Coast Moving Day dominated the same region, ending up in the Sweet Wort 16, but E9 knocked off Odd Otter in the Hot Break Eight. The Cinderella story played out in this region. Sixteen seed Camp Colvos Buckhorn IPA beat number one seed 7 Seas IPA, Talking Cedar Pacific Northwest IPA, and barely lost to Odd Otter in the Sweet Wort 16.

Fort George’s Vortex IPA was a tornado through the bracket in the Northern Oregon Region, taking out McMenamins 33rd State, Barley Brown’s Pallet Jack, Double Mountain Hop Lava, and pFriem IPA in the Hot Break Eight. Tournament Officials have declared Vortex had the most impressive Tournament, although pFriem IPA gave them a challenging game. Buoy IPA had an impressive Northern Oregon showing, too. It beat Breakside India Pale Ale in the Second Round. That’s enough to call the Tournament a success. pFriem IPA sunk Buoy in the Sweet Wort 16.

In Southern Oregon for the third year, Boneyard Beer dominated the region, beating Oblivion Backside IPA, Rogue Pacific Northwest IPA, and Silver Moon IPA 97 to reach the Sweet Wort 16. Number seven seed Bend Brewing Tropic Pines IPA can hold its head high after bending Terminal Gravity Eagle Cap IPA, GoodLife Descender IPA, and Oakshire Watershed IPA, but lost to Boneyard RPM IPA in the Hot Break Eight.

The Final Four

Georgetown Brewing Lucille IPA. E9 Brewing Realize Real Lies. Fort George Vortex IPA. Boneyard Beer RPM IPA. Each brewery has a different IPA philosophy; Georgetown Head Brewer Matt Edwards seeks balance in his Northwest IPA, combining floral and citrusy notes with a refreshing bitterness and malty caramel undertones. E9 Director of Brewing Operations Shane Johns adds late additions of Columbus and Citra hops, followed by a double dry hopping with Columbus, Mosaic, and Simcoe hops for Realize Real Lies to reach dank, green, and fruity aroma notes. Fort George Head Brewer Michal “Polish” Frankowicz has taken his Vortex Northwest-style IPA and brightened it up, offering a mix of fruity, piney, and citrus notes. Brewmaster Tony Lawrence focuses on a “not-so-bitter” approach to RPM IPA with a huge hoppy flavor and aroma. It has a slightly sweet maltiness balanced with a distinct composition of Pacific Northwest hops, resulting in a well-balanced IPA with a floral aroma and crisp finish. These Northwest-style IPAs became the Tournament of Beer: Northwest IPAs Final Four. E9 Realize Real Lies and Fort George Vortex IPA emerged victorious, and the Championship Game was set.

E9 Realize Real Lies had no close calls until they ran into Georgetown in the Final Four. Up to the final buzzer, it was a back-and-forth affair all day when E9 walked away with a seven-vote victory. E9 beat Georgetown Brewing by seven votes in the Final Four. Would Realize Real Lies be exhausted for the Championship Game? That’s a good question.

Fort George Brewery first brewed Vortex IPA in 2006. The brewery was named after a tornado that almost scattered their equipment on a cross-country trip in 2006. They opened in March 2007 and began distributing Vortex IPA in cans in 2011. Vortex IPA is widely considered a top-tier IPA in Oregon due to its consistent quality, strong hop character, and long-standing popularity. Fort George’s closest game this year happened in the Final Four when it beat Boneyard RPM IPA by 15 votes. Could it take advantage of E9’s exhaustion? Or was the wind taken out of Vortex, too?

Championship Game

Saturday, April 26, 2025, the Tournament of Beer: Northwest IPAs Championship Game began with E9 Realize Real Lies gobbling up online votes for an early lead. Vortex kept the game within a hop leaf’s length for 10 hours. Then, Fort George remembered its Fort George. Bam! It shot ahead around lunchtime and held the lead, ending up with 58 percent of the votes when the online voting ended at 5 p.m.

When the 5 o’clock bell and the online voting closed, Vortex had a 38-vote lead.

At 6 p.m., the Tournament of Beer moved into the live vote portion of the Championship Game, initiating a ballot vote and a bunch of craft beers, including both competing IPAs, at Peaks & Pints in Tacoma’s Proctor District. The Fort George contingent, led by their sales executive Kyle Vormestrand, arrived a half-hour early. Mr. E9, Shane Johns, made his way down Proctor Street. Representatives from the other two Final Four breweries were also in the house — brewer Kendo from Georgetown and sales executive Ryan from Boneyard. Northwest Beverages, representing Fort George, also took a table.

As promised, Peaks & Pints tallied the on-location votes around 8 p.m. of the IPA showdown, which E9 Brewing managed to own. After the raffle prizes found homes, and the weird “sports-themed” soundtrack was switched off, we stumbled through a long explanation of this year’s Tournament action, Fort George Vortex IPA was crowning the Tournament of Beers: Northwest IPAs champion by a 41-vote margin.

Then, an IPA love fest broke out. Both breweries congratulated each other, tossing out compliments and posing for pictures. An hour after Fort George Vortex won, both breweries and their peeps still held court at Peaks & Pints, signing autographs and telling stories of early bracket victories.

Fort George will receive the Tournament of Beer trophy after the engraving is completed, along with a permanent handle at Peaks & Pints through the summer.

So, it’s official: Fort George Vortex IPA is the winner of the Peaks & Pints Tournament of Beer: Northwest IPAs. Drink it up, Pacific Northwest.

Thank you!

Peaks & Pints would like to thank its staff. They held their composure and trademark smiles during all the Tournament explanations, the giant bracket, and the endless handouts and ballots. But, most of all, thanks to all the awesome folks who voted. You rock!

Check out the Tournament of Beer Championship Party People below!

LINK: Tournament of Beer: Northwest IPAs explained

LINK: Tournament of Beer Headquarters

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