styles. Last night’s first round event showcased both of these strengths as the popular IPA took on one of the brewery’s lesser known, but very interesting brews.

The Location: Bullitt, 2209 Polk St., San Francisco

The Brewery: Lagunitas Brewing Company, Petaluma, California

The Beer: IPA and Little Sumpin’ Wild Ale

The Method of Dispense: Generous half pints on draft from Bullitt’s fabulous mustachioed bartender.

How They Fared: The Lagunitas IPA is a beloved beer in San Francisco with many devout fans, and rightfully so. Lagunitas has been brewing it since well before the recent surge in popularity of extra (some might say overly) hopped IPAs, and consequently it is a more balanced, classic IPA. Last night, compliments for the IPA were flying and many of the tasters came back to buy a full pint. As one taster put it, it’s “perfectly hopped with just a hint of roasted malt.”

So it was a surprise when a little known contender, subbed in to the competition at the last possible minute as the Lagunitas guys called an audible, came out on top. By a lot. The Little Sumpin’ Wild came out of nowhere to steal the win and advance to the next round. This beer is as unexpected as its win. It’s an interesting meld of malted wheat and belgian yeast with a very pale color. What appealed to me, and ultimately made me change my vote, was the way it recalls a more typical belgian beer without overdoing it or overwhelming the other flavors.

Though the outcome of this match up was a bit of an upset, it fits with one of two trends we’ve noticed so far in the first round: Darker beers are edging out paler competitors, and higher alcohol-content is proving an advantage as well. The Little Sumpin’ Wild packs 7.8 percent ABV, while the IPA weighs in at 5.7 percent.

Coming up: The next October Madness event will be New Belgium beers Wednesday Oct. 6 at Shotwell’s (3349 20th St.) in San Francisco from 6-8 pm. Join us on Friday Oct. 8 at Devil’s Canyon Brewing Company in Belmont and Wednesday Oct. 13 with Ninkasi Brewing Company beers at The Hotel Utah in San Francisco.

Image: Dave Mosher/Wired.com

Stay tuned to @wiredplaybook and @beerrobot for updates on attending future October Madness events in the Bay Area. Follow us on Twitter at @betsymason and @wiredplaybook and on Facebook.

See Also:

• October Madness Kicks Off at Modern-Day Speakeasy
• Eye of the Hawk Ale Swoops In for Early Win
• Beer Battle at Twitter HQ Goes Black Butte’s Way
• Hopeful Giants Fans Score One For Ironwood Dark

Authors: Betsy Mason

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