E9 Brewing and Matchless Brewing were always going to make this ugly in the best possible way, and the Peaks & Pints Tournament of Beer: Best PNW Breweries Second Round proved it — a three-vote margin that felt less like a result and more like a standoff finally exhaling. On one side, Tacoma’s first craft brewery, born in a firehouse in 1995 and sharpened over decades into the modern, quietly confident E9. On the other, Matchless out of Tumwater, 10 years deep and glowing with anniversary momentum, pouring fresh releases like a brewery fully aware of its stride. Legacy versus lift. Roots versus rise. Of course, it tightened to a whisper.
What made it so close is right here in the glass. Matchless came in swinging with its 10th Anniversary Hazy, all citrus glow and tropical ease, the kind of beer that earns votes from across the room — welcoming, polished, impossible to argue with. Dank Wizard followed with resin and fruit in equal measure, catching the hop heads who want a little grit with their brightness. Meanwhile, E9 answered with nuance and movement: American Tango opening soft and expressive, Vertigo drifting into that coconut-tangerine haze lane, each one quietly stacking support rather than demanding it. No landslides, just accumulation — sip by sip, preference by preference, the kind of vote that shifts slowly while you’re still talking.
And then E9’s Swords and Sorcery stepped in — that bright flash of lime, white grape, and clean structure — and tipped it. Not louder, not heavier, just sharper, more defined, the kind of beer that lands with clarity after a run of good ones and suddenly feels like the answer. That was the edge. Not dominance, not overwhelm, just precision at the right moment. Three votes. A finish that feels exactly as close as it should. E9 advances to the Sweet 16, where they’ll face the winner of today’s Narrows vs. Single Hill matchup — another collision waiting to happen. This flight is that moment held in place, five beers that explain, better than any bracket ever could, how it happened.
Peaks & Pints Tournament of Beer E9 vs. Matchless Flight
E9 Brewing American Tango
6.3% ABV | IPA – White / Wheat | Tacoma, Washington
A light-footed swirl of citrus and soft tropical fruit opens the dance, Citra sketching bright arcs of orange and mango while a gentle wheat tang slips in at the finish, adding just enough texture to keep things interesting, more glide than stomp, a quiet little rhythm that lingers.
Matchless Brewing 10th Anniversary Hazy IPA
6.8% ABV | Hazy IPA | Tumwater, Washington
A bright, celebratory swirl of orange peel and lemon-lime sparkle leads the way, followed by waves of pineapple and mango that roll through with easy, sunlit confidence, the haze soft but not sleepy, the finish clean enough to invite another round, a proper tenth-birthday toast without the syrupy party hat.
E9 Brewing Vertigo
6.9% ABV | Hazy IPA
A soft tropical drift pulls you in first — coconut cream, tangerine peel, and ripe stone fruit swirling together in a hazy glow — before a gentle citrus lift steadies the ride, keeping everything buoyant and just shy of indulgent, like a slow spin that never quite lets go.
Matchless Dank Wizard
6.5% ABV | IPA – American
Resin and citrus come stalking out of the glass first, followed by passion fruit and pineapple in a haze of green, sticky mischief, the bitterness firm but well-behaved, like some forest sorcerer who absolutely owns a smoke machine but still knows when to dim the lights.
E9 Brewing Swords and Sorcery
7.1% ABV | IPA – American
A flash of lime zest and white grape arcs through first, followed by soft stone fruit and a hint of resin that keeps the spell from drifting too far into sweetness, the whole thing balanced on a bright, modern edge, like magic with a steady hand.
LINK: Peaks & Pints beer and cider cooler inventory
