Someone commented after yesterday’s Elite Eight round that they felt like a traitor voting against any of the remaining beers. But voters steeled themselves and made the hard choices, and we have our Final Four Lineup:
Maine Beer Company Peeper (2) vs. Allagash Curieux (9)
Maine Beer Company Lunch (1) vs. Rising Tide Brewing Maine Island Trail Ale (1)
Good luck parsing out your loyalties between these monster brews!
(Click here to view full bracket.)
In a breakdown of yesterday’s match-ups, Bissell Brothers The Substance gave a mighty fight against Lunch. Though the Brothers Bissell have only been open for a few months now, they have overtaken Maine with their well-balanced American Ale. Kudos to them for being aggressive getting The Substance on a number of taps in Portland, making a buzz by doing a limited run of cans, and zeroing in on one beer and killing it. I have a feeling they will be a denizen of the Maine Madness Beer Tournament for years to come.
The Daymark/Peeper showdown was another brew battle that was fun to watch in real time. Peeper took an early lead that it never relinquished, but Daymark kept getting within a few votes, close enough to brush the crisp hops of Peeper. But, alas, Peeper was too dominate among voters. Rising Tide still has Maine Island Trail Ale in the competition, and they should be proud, having the most brews in the Elite Eight.
Time to admit a mistake. Making Allagash Curieux a 9 seed was a colossal oversight. This beer has been a juggernaut in the tournament and deserved a much higher seed from us here at MMBT. However, despite our ranking snafu, Curiuex has barreled its way into today’s Final Four. Next year, Curieux, expect a higher ranking!
Thanks for making this tournament such a beautiful celebration of Maine beer. Here’s our new slogan (so new it still has that new slogan smell): To Drink ME Is To Love ME.
Cheers!
DAVE PATTERSON 