The more things change, the more they stay the same. Well, at least as far as IPAs go, as Boxing Bear Brewing won its fourth New Mexico IPA Challenge trophy in the past six years. A clear, West Coast-style IPA was triumphant, which was impressive considering 11 of the 16 finalists were of the hazy…
Category: IPA Challenge 2021
The great haze vs. clear debate will be settled at NM IPA Challenge final round
After two wildly different results from the first two rounds of the 2021 New Mexico IPA Challenge, everything will be decided Saturday afternoon from 1 to 4 at Boxing Bear’s Firestone Taproom. Normally, we would include a ticket link, but the final round has sold out online as of Friday morning. Huzzah to that news!…
The West Coast-style IPAs roar back in 2nd round of NMIPAC at Beer Creek
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…
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…
NM IPA Challenge preliminary round field of 37 entries is all set for judging
UPDATE: A brewery was left off the list of participants. Lots of edits to follow. Thirty-seven breweries enter. Only 16 will leave. OK, it is not exactly the quote from Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, but the preliminary round field for the 2021 New Mexico IPA Challenge is set for Saturday’s pro judging round at the…
DARK SIDE BREW CREW 