Nothing better than getting piss ass drunk and watching a little NCAA basketball in March. To go along with March Madness this season the Washington Post has its own Beer Madness.
I mention this because my favorite brewery, Leinenkugel’s, has an entry among the field of 32 in the Specialty bracket. Leine’s Sunset Wheat was up against Magic Hat out of Vermont and its Circus Boy brew. Leine’s won the first round by 80/20 vote.
Of course I cast my vote for the Leine’s in the first round but the second round presents me with somewhat of a dilemma. The opponent in this case is Brewery Ommegang out of Cooperstown, NY and its Hennepin ale.
Ironically, my top three craft breweries are: Leinenkugel’s, Victory and Ommegang. Additionally, in this case, I prefer the Hennepin to the Sunset Wheat.
Thus, my vote will likely be self-serving given the ample availability of Ommegang in this area. As of yet the only Leine’s I have been able to come across has been the Sunset Wheat and the Honeyweis. While both are enjoyable neither is steadily available and much better lines are available.
In a hope to bring Leine’s east it gets my vote in the Sweet 16.
Across the rest of the bracket -
The Juniper Pale Ale from Rogue Ales in Orgeon gets my vote over the Rasberry Wheat from Clipper City Brewing out of Baltimore. The juniper taste from Rogue is similar to the flavors you would find in gin while the Rasberry Wheat will have you puking Chiclets the next morning.
Two porters go head-to-head in the next matchup as Sam Adams takes his Honey version against the Turbodog from Abita Brewing in Louisiana. Porter is perfect already, why add honey Mr. Adams?
I have never add either of the two beers in the next matchup yet the choice is easy. The owner of Hook & Ladder brewing donates a portion of profits to aiding burn victims.
Over to the Lager bracket where defending Beer Madness champ Brooklyn Brewery takes on another personal favorite: Flying Dog Old Scratch out of Colorado. Going with Old Scratch as I find the Brooklyn to be almost muddy for my taste.
The Pilsner from from Penn Brewing in Pittsburgh in next but loses my vote to the Poe-inspired Raven Lager from Baltimore-Washington Beerworks.
I give the nod to the Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA simply because I have never had the challenging Stone’s Pale Ale from California.
In the first round Harpoon’s IPA from Beantown beat a local favorite, Saranac, and its version of the pale.
So head over to Beer Madness, vote for your favorite and see how it matches up against the choices of the Post’s panelists.
