The two beers competing are:

• S.O.B Hill, 6.5%
• Tent Zipper Hazy IPA, 6.5%

After spending a solid 3+ hours clearing brush/trees and getting myself genuinely exhausted. After a much needed shower I sat back and cracked open one of the S.O.B Hill IPAs which is described as an American IPA brewed with a mixture of Pilsner malt, Light Caramel malts, and Wheats. Heavy handedly hopped with a mixture of newer American varietals as well as some “old standbys”. This IPA is meant to bridge a gap between the West Coast body/ bitterness and East Coast aromatic craze.

S.O.B Hill IPA

Appearance: A nice bright green can with yellow and black accents helps make this one stand out. The New Trail logo is huge and is flanked by a subtle topographic map. Once poured

Aroma: Fairly aromatic with heavy hops, nothing too special.

Taste: Semi-Citrus with notes of a tart peach, tropical fruits/hops and a decent sweetness from the malts.

Experience: This has a medium body with a bitter after taste. There is some sugar left on the lips, but overall it goes down easy. Drinks like most IPAs.

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Next on deck was the Tent Zipper Hazy IPA, which is described as a Hazy IPA brewed with Germanic malts, wheat, and oats. Heavy handedly hopped with some of our old favorites Cascade, Centennial, and Crystal. Then hopped again with some of our new favorites Mosaic and Citra. Expect lush orange, deep piney resin, and a blend of your favorite tropical fruits.

Tent Zipper Hazy IPA

Appearance: A distinct dark green can with blue and black accents that cover a nice picture of a lake. The New Trail logo is a bit more subtle this time, which I prefer. This beer pours super hazy with a khaki brown body and a light white head.

Aroma: The aroma is strong with pine, lemon and orange. It smells pretty damn good.

Taste: Alot of citrus in this one, as you would expect from any Hazy IPA. I mostly notice grapefruit, papaya and oranges. There is a distinct sweetness that mixes well with the citrus.

Experience: From the first sip to the last this beer goes down very smooth. The body feels creamy and light with a dry finish. Not too heavy or sweet and definitely not too bitter.

Overall both are solid IPAs that I would easily recommend, but you are here for a winner. I think that the Tent Zipper IPA offers more in terms of taste and is not quite as bitter as the S.O.B Hill. It was not a clear cut decision but after having 2-3 of each I tended to enjoy my time with the Hazy IPA a little more. If you want to learn any more about the New Trail Beers be sure to check out their website here.

Welcome to Beer Battle #6, this time it’s going down between two big barleywines.
– Wander Brewing 3 Ton, 12.3% – Click here for our review.
– Elevation Beer Company Arete, 12.5% – Click here for our review.

First up is Arete. The label is simple but looks good, and apparently this bottle is from Oct of 2014, prob from when I was a member of the rare beer of the month club. Hopefully it’s still good. Usually I don’t like text heavy labels but something tells me this is a special brew.

The aroma is quite strong and mostly has a dark fruit and malt scent. The flavor is really sweet, prob due to the aging I get almost no hop or bitterness. Raisins, caramel and malts are the main flavors. There is a fair amount of booziness, which is what I would expect.

This beer really is delicious and maybe the aging helped it but I love how smooth it is considering it’s so strong. When it comes to game pairing I gotta go with God of War 3, inspired by the name which is of Greek origin I wanted to pick a beer that Kratos himself would enjoy.

@WanderBrewing 3 ton at 12.3%. Once again it’s a very simple label. The colors are very simple and for some reason remind me of a granola bar. Either way this was a brew that my buddy got me for my bday so let’s start sipping.

So right off the bat I get little to no aroma, which is odd for a barley wine that aged in bourbon barrels. The flavor has me shocked too. A little bit hoppy, slight malt and some vanilla, but there’s not a ton here. I’m gonna let it warm a bit before I give a score.

The beer gets much better as it warms but still it doesn’t quite measure to what you would expect from a barley wine. So I gave it a 3.25/5, when it comes to game pairing I chose the forest on PS4 it matches the label for subtleness.

And the winner is the @ElevationBeerCo Arete, although the 3 Ton did get better the Arete had a better taste and felt smoother. Sorry for the delay I got a bit too drunk last night, cheers

Welcome to the 1st Beer Battle, a live beer vs beer comparing the look, aroma, taste and drinkability of two random brews. You can witness the live results on our twitter every Friday night.

The 1st two beers are a couple of great Double IPAs.
– Flying Monkeys Killer Cupcake Panda click here for our review.
– Evil Twin Brewing I Don’t Know How To Put This But This IPA Is Kind Of A Big Deal click here for our review.

First Beer up is Flying Monkeys Killer Cupcake Panda. Great label love the art work. The aroma is crazy because it smells like a vanilla cupcake or an orange creamsicle with minimal hop notes.

The flavor mimics the aroma, a ton of vanilla, citrus (either orange or grapefruit), white cake, with a slight hop finish. Easily one of the more complex double IPAs I have tried. It’s also incredibly smooth and easy to drink. The aftertaste is dry and semi bitter.

Overall this is an excellent beer and one of the more unique double IPAs I’ve tried. 4.75/5 from me…next beer is up

Now time to try the Evil Twin Brewing I don’t know how to it this it this IPA is kind of a big deal. I love the name and the humor, but the can design is a bit too minimalist for me. There is a ton of sediment and a very strong aroma dominated by hops with some citrus and wildflower.

The flavor is a nice mix between the hops and honey. There is a creamy mouthfeel, mostly due to the malts. Very smooth with a touch of booziness.

Another great double IPA, the 10% hits you quick by the time you finish the can, and the honey leaves a nice sugar finish on the lips. Highly recommend.

My choice for tonight’s Beer Battle is the Killer Cupcake Panda from Flying Monkeys, overall it had more complex flavors and a more unique taste for a double IPA. Still I would highly recommend either beer. Cheers everyone!