Today’s duel features a pair of stouts from two of my favorite Wisconsin brewers – Third Space Brewing’s Acres Edge Toasted Oatmeal Stout, and Central Waters Brewing’s Satin Solitude Imperial Stout.
I’ve always been a big fan of the Third Space can design. First off, there’s the eye-catching geometric shapes throughout the background, with a standout angled line of whitespace drawing your eye directly to the Third Space logo. The beer name, category, ABV, size, IBU, and a brief note on the ingredients are all present, and there’s even room for a short mission statement about the brewer. This is a lot of information to fit into a can without feeling like you’ve overwhelmed the reader, and this series of cans should be a model for other brewers to take note of.
HopDuel Survey
| Better label | Third Space Brewing Acres Edge |
| Better aroma | Central Waters Brewing Satin Solitude |
| Better taste | Central Waters Brewing Satin Solitude |
| Better finish | Central Waters Brewing Satin Solitude |
| Winner | Central Waters Brewing Satin Solitude |
Tell us about it
Despite my rave reviews in the opening about the can design, the Third Space Acres Edge couldn’t live up to Central Waters Satin Solitude in the categories that count most to me. It’s one thing to present an appealing design on the can, it’s another to present an appealing pairing of flavors inside it. I really enjoyed the Satin Solitude and predict it will do very well in this category going forward.
On a side note, this is our 50th post, which is a mini-milestone for a blog and I’m glad we’ve made it this far. Cheers to the next 50!
HopDuel 