Pulling out a pair of pale ales from the fridge leads me to this interesting duel between a Goose Island, a craft brewer from Chicago, IL, and Deschutes, a craft brewer from Bend, OR. According to the Deschutes site, the Mirror Pond promises “A crisp, single-hop pale ale with floral and citrus notes from 100% Cascade hops and a smooth caramel malt character.” While the Old Man Grumpy sets up as “a lighter-bodied ale, dry hopped with Huell Melon and Mosaic hops, giving the beer a tropical, pineapple profile, followed by piney hop characteristics; all balanced with a subtle malt sweetness and clean finish.” The flavor profiles here sound very similar, so it’ll be cool to see which brewer made the most of the ingredients.
HopDuel Survey
| Better label | Deschutes Mirror Pond |
| Better aroma | Goose Island Old Man Grumpy |
| Better taste | Deschutes Mirror Pond |
| Better finish | Deschutes Mirror Pond |
| Winner | Deschutes Mirror Pond |
Tell us about it
A near sweep from Deschutes’ Mirror Pond comes as a bit of a surprise in this one. From the pond setting and the Cascade mountains in the background of the can, to the crisp taste and smooth, sweet finish, this is a beer you need to add to your arsenal. Nearly all categories were just a tad better than the competitor. The Goose Island Old Man Grumpy was tasty as well, and really stood out in the aroma category. It fell in this duel due to some stiff competition, but it’s certainly a worthy beer. Each of these were very solid, sessionable beers that pair well together.
HopDuel 