The guide to what will be poured at WinterBrew

Well, the good news is WinterBrew is as popular as ever. The bad news is that means 800 tickets disappeared in the blink of an eye and the event is completely sold out. So for the lucky 800 of you who are going, we did our best to compile the list of what the 17…

2015 IPA Challenge: And the winner is …

We said it would be a battle to decide the best IPA of 2015. Some scoffed. Some were bewildered. Some guffawed, whatever that means. In the end, though, we were right. This was really, really hard to pick the best out of 15 samples. On a warm, crowded (but not too crowded) day at Boxing…

IPA Challenge: All the details on the final round

The decisive final round of the 2015 NM IPA Challenge is set to kick off this Saturday at noon at Boxing Bear. The first two rounds of the NMIPAC have seen strong showings by current leader Blue Corn (48 votes), second-place and defending champion Bosque (42 votes), and local heavyweight Marble (41 votes). Can anyone…

IPA Challenge: Blue Corn moves into first after two rounds

The second round of the NM IPA Challenge went down at Pecan Grill and Brewery on Wednesday night in Las Cruces and it featured a few surprises. First-round leader Marble scored just three votes after racking up 38 in Santa Fe last Saturday and now drops to third place. Everyone that was shocked at La…

Marble takes early lead in NM IPA Challenge

The results are in from Round One of the New Mexico IPA Challenge at Draft Station Santa Fe. A total of 188 beer lovers showed up, which very well might be a record for a non-Albuquerque round. As our headline says, Marble takes the lead with 38 votes. Tied for second were Blue Corn and…

V + IPA = You’re allowed to be judgey

“In the broader sense, I’m wondering how many medals New Mexico will score at Great American Beer Festival,” said New Mexico Brewers Guild director Christopher Goblet. “IPA is only one section within GABF, but let’s wave that ‘NMIPA’ flag proudly.” He’s right. I make a formal motion for all of us to turn that flag…

Blaze a trail to Las Cruces to kick off festival season

The third annual Blazin’ Brewfest will hit Las Cruces this Saturday from 4 to 9 p.m., officially kicking off festival season in New Mexico. The event will be held again on Main Street, with plenty of food trucks and live music to go with the offerings from 15 different breweries, including the event’s four host…

Spotting a new brewery down south

Recently I, Porter Pounder, was invited to an advance tasting at a new brewery under construction while working down south in Las Cruces. Spotted Dog Brewery is the name, and wheat beer is their very specific game. Jerry Grandle, owner and operator, was kind enough to let me in to watch them brew their first…