Okay, campers, rise and shine!  What?  You didn’t think I could pass up such a perfect opportunity to quote an amazing movie did you?  A movie I may or may not have already watched today?  Well, let me first take this opportunity to remind you that we’re heading quickly to the end of Round 1, which wraps up on Friday.  As such, the first poll of Round 2 opened for voting yesterday, and is available on the Current Matches page.  Keep an eye on the second round schedule and shopping list, which will be updated throughout the remainder of the week, and which we first told you about here.  Now, on to the match on hand!

During the last tournament, I will admit that I was somewhat disheartened when the 90 Minute IPA lost a heavily contested Final 8 match.  So, I figured I would give its little brother first shot today, and began with the Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA.  It pours a clear, copper-amber coloring with a slight red tint, which I find very inviting.  A large, white head accompanied the pour for quite some time, leaving an excellent lacing around the glass as it dropped.  The aroma is everything I’ve come to expect from a quality IPA – and a quality Dogfish IPA at that – citrus, pine, and an all-around awesome serving of hops.  The taste is more of the same, but even better than the aroma let on.  Drinkability and memorability is very high with this quality IPA, and the mouthfeel only helps in those departments.  I’ll admit that this is my first Dogfish IPA since the 90 Minute lost, and after having this one again I can truly see the relationship.  Furthermore, it may just be possible that this is a slightly better overall IPA, as the 90 Minute seems almost barleywine-esque after returning to this beer.  Of course, I realize that last sentence may be blasphemy to the 90 Minute faithful.

Now, onward to the Harpoon Leviathan Imperial IPA.  (Note: not to be confused with the Leviathan Imperial Red, which was in the previous tournament and eventually lost to a Fermented 4 brew).  This imperial IPA presents with an impressively similar visual display, with an equally clear copper coloring and a slight red tint.  In fact, these beers look almost identical.  The aroma is similar in composition, but is slightly more herbal with noticeably more grapefruit.  At the very trailing end of the aroma, I picked up on what could either be described as a very minor alcohol scent, or a very minor spicy character – it was very mild, and very difficult to place, and somewhat intriguing.  The taste is powerful from the start, with a clear cut pine and grapefruit hoppiness.  But, the malts in this beer aren’t to be outdone, and a wonderful sort of semi-balance ensues.  The taste of this beer truly is delightful, and leads to an impressive memorability factor.  But, the drinkability isn’t left far behind, as even though this is one powerful brew (both in all around presence and especially ABV), it still finds a way to go down smooth.

This match is a tough decision for certain in my book, and I can’t wait to hear what Brad has to say later on today, as well as any of your thoughts!  Make sure to cast your last vote over in the Current Matches page, and stay tuned!

UPDATE: Click Here for Match Results!