Battle of the (India) Pale Ales - Quarter Final 1

So I fell in love when I was working in Scotland, with India Pale Ales, oh and haggis. I've never had them together but it'd probably work.

I decided to buy eight (India) Pal Ales and pair them off in a knockout fashion until we have a winner.

Quarter Final 1 consists of:

Goose Island India Pale Ale 5.9% abv 35cl - €2-69
Porterhouse Hop Head 5.0% abv 33cl - €1-99

Before we start, I must admit that the Goose Island is one of my all time faves and the Hop head is something I have only had on draft in the Porterhouse itself, so I bought both to taste against each other.

First up the reigning champ; The Goose island is a pale golden colour in the glass and looks slightly cloudy with a nice white head. On the palate there's grapefruit, a little sweet maltiness and hops, lots of hops, but the best part is how smooth and integrated all the flavours are. If you have any interest in ales you really need to try this for some epic win.

Next  up, the Hop Head. For starters, the colour is a dark amber, almost red with an off white head. There are lots of bitter hops, not much on the malt side and not as much fruit. It's pretty decent, but it's not as smooth as the gosling - it's a bit more earthy and robust.

Winner -  Goose Island India Pale Ale

The Full Line up is as follows:

Quarter Final 2  - All American
Brooklyn East India Pale Ale 35.5cl 6.9% abv - €2.89
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale 35cl 5.6% abv - €2.59

Quarter Final 3 - Scotland Vs Germany
Brew Dog Punk IPA 33cl 5.6% abv - €2.69
Crew IPA  33cl 6.4% abv - €2.99

Quarter Final 4 - Dunnes Big Ones
O'Hara's Irish Pale Ale 50cl 5.2% abv - €2.89
Fuller's India Pale Ale 50cl 5.3% abv - €2.50