If the first round of the 2021 New Mexico IPA Challenge seemed to indicate that the first hazy champion was inevitable, the second round told a very different story. The 16 finalists competed again with a new crop of customers at Beer Creek Brewing on Highway 14 south of Santa Fe on Saturday afternoon. This…
Month: November 2021
NM IPA Challenge heads to Beer Creek Brewing Co. for Round 2
The second round of the New Mexico IPA Challenge is heading out to Beer Creek Brewing Co. on Saturday afternoon, and despite the abundance of easy atmosphere and delicious pizza, this one’s going to be a nail-bitter for the participating breweries and IPA fans. In case you missed it, this past week the good people…
Nexus and Tumbleroot tied for 1st after opening round of NM IPA Challenge
The voters in Las Cruces had their say Wednesday night, and it was a close finish atop the standings as the first round of the 2021 New Mexico IPA Challenge was completed at Icebox Brewing. Nexus Brewery and Tumbleroot Brewery and Distillery tied atop the standings with 16 votes apiece, followed closely by host Icebox…
The Week Ahead In Beer: IPA Challenge 2021 Arrives
Greetings all, Franz Solo here, returned from adventures in Chicago and a week lost to a lingering cold. As the “hop head” of our fair group (I have been known to brew 300+ IBU IPAs and if you’ve ever asked if you could add more hops to a beer, the answer is yes), I’m always…
Analyzing the field ahead of the first public round of the NM IPA Challenge
The haze has overtaken the clear. After years of West Coast-style IPA dominance, this year’s final 16 entries in the New Mexico IPA Challenge are primarily of the hazy New England style. So can one of them become the first winner of an in-person NMIPAC? Rio Bravo’s hazy Dice Roll IPA won the take-home edition…
Breaking News: Brewers Guild forced to cancel 3rd round of NM IPA Challenge
The 2021 edition of the New Mexico IPA Challenge was reduced from four rounds to three on Monday night. Due to a combination of low ticket sales and a possible new COVID-related lockdown for San Juan County, the third round of the competition set for November 17 at Lauter Haus Brewing in Farmington has been…
Preliminary round of NM IPA Challenge produces some surprising finalists
The brewers had their say Saturday afternoon, narrowing down a field of 35 IPAs to a final 16 for the upcoming public rounds of the 2021 New Mexico IPA Challenge. As one might expect, there were some surprises in the breweries that advanced, and those that did not. Here are the 16 finalists. Boxing Bear…
Downtown breweries appreciate all that Artwalk brings to their taprooms
The weather is sure cooperating with the organizers of the monthly ABQ Artwalk in downtown this Friday. The festivities kick off at 5 p.m. and run through most of the night at multiple places on Central and adjacent streets. From today’s events to all those in past months, Artwalk has provided a major boost for…
Gravity Bound’s new canning line provides yet another way to enjoy their beers
In a relatively short period of time, Gravity Bound Brewing has established themselves as an impressive player in the Albuquerque beer scene. They are now taking their presence to the next level with the addition of a canning line to their downtown facility, which is a step in the right direction for multiple reasons, co-owner/brewer…
The Week Ahead in Beer: Embrace the darkness in its many forms
A smooth stout appears in cans, an epic imperial stout returns in bottles, we celebrate the dead, dance to a certain spooky family’s theme, and blast our souls into oblivion with local metal. Yeah, it’s our kind of week. New Draft: Boese Brothers also joins this darker setting with Soul Stealer Extra Stout. (UPDATE) Bombs…
DARK SIDE BREW CREW 