Next month it is time for the Ivory Cup VI (more info here), our yearly big tournament here in Stockholm. Usually it is a pretty back to basics tournament except for one thing, the beer. We are very fond of our beer and usually have a bar setup with a lot of nice carefully selected beverages. This will however be hard now when we are doing it all online on Tolaria.app. That’s why we have put together this beer list for all the players.
The idea is that you can go and buy/order these beers and drink one of them ever round for the complete Ivory Cup experience! Also, it gives you something to talk about with your opponent who hopefully is drinking the same beer as you. Do it as a small online beer tasting or something.
It is of course hard to choose beers that we know everyone can get a hold of but we’ve tried to find that middle ground between a good beer you may not have tried and beer that should be available in most countries. They are however all readily available here in Sweden. If one specific beer isn’t available for you, go for another one of the same type is our suggestion.
Any questions? Hit up Gordon on our Discord. And also if you want to play, it is open for anyone! More info here.
Without further ado, here they are:
Round 1 - Dale's Pale Ale
Brewery: Oskar Blues
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 6.5%
Let us start simple with one of the most classic American pale ales. Not too bitter and not too sweet. Not too strong?! If it's not available where you live, well that's simply wrong!
Round 2 - XX Bitter
Brewery: Brouwerij De Ranke
Style: Belgian Pale/Single
ABV: 6%
We continue the pale ale saga but travel to Belgium. Belgian beer is in general more sweet than bitter, but this one has a serious bitter note and will segue nicely into round 3. XX also reminds us of Recall. If you have too many of these you might not Recall it!
Round 3 - Sculpin IPA
Brewery: Ballast Point
Style: West Coast IPA
ABV: 7%
Time to take it up a notch, 1% to be exact. This is one of the most classic West Coast IPA:s with a 100/100 score on RateBeer. Unfortunately often lacking some freshness if you get it in Europe, but hopefully you will be able to find a decent batch. And yes, this one brings an even more bitter perspective on Old School Mtg. Also the perfect beer if you play Fish so sleeve up those Pearl Tridents!
Round 4 - Oude Geuze Mariage Parfait
Brewery: Boon
Style: Gueuze
ABV: 8%
This is the perfect round for something different. Something to reset your taste buds while still bringing you that cozy feeling, it is 8% after all. Geuze is the champagne of Belgium and yes, this beer is sour. And amazing. Try it! Or any other geuze if you can't find this one. Unless you play Parfait, then you should probably get two of the above.
Round 5 - Kentucky Breakfast Stout
Brewery: Founders
Style: Imperial Stout
ABV: 12.3%
Having cleansed our palate, we begin anew and what is a better way to start than with breakfast? This one packs a punch so be ready! Kentucky Breakfast Stout might be slightly challenging to find, but after four beers you can probably go for any imperial stout. This one is nevertheless rated 100/100 on RateBeer so should be worth the extra mile.
Round 6 or top 8 or whatever - Březňák Světlý Ležák 12°
Brewery: Pivovar Velké Březno - Březňák
Style: Czech Pilsener
ABV: 5.1%
Chances are that you are feeling a bit tipsy now, and will enjoy most beer that comes your way. Time to take it easy. Why Březňák? First of all, the brewery is owned by Heineken so it should be readily available in most places. Second, a friend of ours tried every dirt cheap lager in Sweden and this one was crowned the winner! By now it is a staple at his annual Magic Pool Party and it's actually quite good if we Recall things correctly.
HOWEVER… If you are still sober enough for something peculiar:
Quadruple Lingonberry Maple Pancake Lassi Gose
Brewery: Omnipollo
Style: Style? Yeah sure, it is a gose but with a big BUT
ABV: 6%
Omnipollo is a really good brewery. But they also brew some crazy S#€T sometimes, and this is one of those. Try it out, or any of the other Omnipollo experimental brews. Lingonberries do nevertheless match Swedish Old School the best. You can probably order it here if your local dealer fails you: https://omnipollo.com/