Ready to pick your favorite IPA in the cozy confines of a movie theater? Well, if you bought a ticket to the final round of the 2023 New Mexico IPA Challenge, that is exactly what your Saturday will look like. (And if you didn’t yet, buy one ASAP).

Flix Brewhouse stepped up to host the three-session grand finale of the annual blind taste test of 16 hoppy ales. Theater 4, the first one on your left as you walk down the main hallway, will be cleared of movie patrons and instead filled with hopheads for the noon, 2 p.m., and 4 p.m. sessions.

There is one other notable change from years past. Since Flix has its own kitchen, outside food like bags of pretzels (or pretzel necklaces) are not allowed. You can order anything off the Flix menu to serve as a palate cleanser, but please, do not bring any little munchies from home.

A final decision on whether or not patrons will pick up their trays and carry them into the theater, or if Flix staff will bring them to you, was still to be determined as of our Friday midday deadline (if we hear from New Mexico Brewers Guild executive director Ebbie Edmonston, we will update this).

Otherwise, it will be business as usual. You get your tray, you smell and taste the randomly numbered beers, pick a favorite, get a pint, and await the results. If you are at one of the earlier sessions, heck, go get a ticket and see a movie to pass the time until the results are announced around 6 p.m.

The Crew will have members at the final session, so we will be live from Flix to provide you with the results as they are announced. Keep an eye on our social media sites (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or whatever they call it these days), and then check back here on the main page for an interview with the winning brewery.

After the first two rounds in Santa Fe and Anthony, Bosque leads the field with 30 votes, followed by Icebox (21) and Bow & Arrow (19). There were 220 votes cast in those first two rounds, but expect that total to be doubled (or more) on Saturday. Bosque won the trophy back in 2014 and 2015, so it has been a while since John Bullard got to have bragging rights over his fellow brewers.

Just remember, this is all for fun, and it remains the biggest fundraiser of the year for the Brewers Guild. There are no wrong answers when it comes to your opinion on what makes the best IPA. Since you get a full pint of your choice, just remember, it should be an IPA that you want to drink, rather than what you think the rest of the public would consider the top IPA.

So let us all have a nice, friendly debate before, during, and afterwards. Passions run high among beer lovers, but just take a glance at the nice, chill brewers hanging about. They don’t take the results personally, so neither should you. They just want to be able to engage in a little friendly smack talk with one another.

If you have any questions about the NMIPAC, please DM us on social media, or drop us a line at nmdarksidebrewcrew@gmail.com. If it’s something we cannot answer, we will pass it along to the Guild and/or Flix.

May the best IPA win, and may we all have a little fun after another long, hot week.

Cheers!

— Stoutmeister