Since Deschutes Brewery sent me brand-new cans of their beers recently, I’ve had it in the back of my mind to do a taste-off against the bottled versions. I’ve done this in the past: in 2009, with Moose Drool; in 2010 with Black Star Beer (also, interestingly enough, from Montana); and again in 2012 with Kona Longboard Lager. So when my wife initially suggested a taste-off, it’d been percolating.

As it happens, I had a bottle of Fresh Squeezed IPA on hand, so tonight I paired up that bottle with the can of Fresh Squeezed that Deschutes sent me to see how they stacked up. In this case I wasn’t looking for a “winner” as much as just a comparison between the two.

It’s important to note, as well, that this wasn’t strictly an apples-to-apples tasting. From what I can tell, the bottle was about a month older than the can; it had a “best by” date of 4/18/18, whereas the can’s “best by” was 5/26/18. Since the can has a longer shelf life by just over a month, I’m assuming that means it was a month or so fresher. (Which also means different batches.)

As for the beer itself: it’s brewed with pale, crystal, and Munich malts, with Citra, Mosaic, and Nugget hops. It’s 6.4% alcohol by volume with 60 IBUs.

Here’s my breakdown:

Appearance: The color betweent the two is identical. The bottle pour is a bit hazy, while the can is nicely clear. I poured the can a bit more vigorously, resulting in a thick, dense clotted cream head that persisted. The bottle pour wasn’t as vigorous but not gentle either, but even so, the head started strong but fell to a lacy ring with a few fish eye bubbles in the center.

Smell: The bottle exhibits tropical fruit, citrus aromas, and is brightly fruity. The can has similar tropical notes but they are not as prominent, with a caramelly malt note pushing forward. The bottle is a bit more hoppy-pungent, with some bready malts coming in towards the end. The can aroma is more resiny with citrus zest.

Taste: A prickly-juicy hop bite greets the front of the palate out of the can, it’s lightly bitter, with a spicy herbal flavor towards the back, both savory and lightly juicy. From the bottle, I get bread crust malt and papaya-suggesting hops, mellower up front with a softer bitterness profile. The can’s hop flavor lingers, herbal and minty and slightly citrus-zest-oily. It’s got clean malts with some graininess and breadiness with a light sweet toffee finish. The bottled version, meanwhile, is a touch sweet and at the back the hop flavor is more floral/herbal with some orange marmalade and a touch of menthol. The malts continue into the finish with bread crust and softly sweet toastiness.

Mouthfeel: The can is medium-bodied, with good carbonation, and an enjoyable lingering hop aftertaste. The bottle is medium-bodied with soft carbonation, and a mellow and pleasant herbal finish.

Overall, I think the canned version exhibits more Mosaic hops flavors to my palate—meaning, the garlic and/or green onion flavors that some folks (like me) detect in the hop variety. But, I don’t have a pick as to which of these is “better” because each had high points in different areas. The can had the better appearance and probably overall prefereable flavor profile, but the bottle had a more desirable fruit-forward aroma. I’d be quite happy with either (or both).

In fact, I finished with both—blended. That was honestly probably the best version!