We saw some awfully close races in Round 2 of the Vermont Brew Bracket presented by Three Penny Taproom — and the choices only get tougher from here.

The big upset of Round 2 was the rise of 14th Star Valor, which defeated last year's debutante Fiddlehead IPA by a 58 percent to 42 percent margin. Somewhat curiously, this matchup had about twice as many votes as the other polls — 2880 total votes, while the others had between 1321 and 1692. I'm sure our dear readers wouldn't do anything untoward and stuff the ballot box ... right?

Several other matchups saw close results, as well, especially in the all-Middlebury matchup in which Otter Creek Copper Ale and Drop-In Heart of Lothian traded the lead multiple times, only for Copper Ale to prevail in the end. And a late push from Switchback Ale pushed that beer over Zero Gravity's TLA IPA. 

Other winners were the Alchemist Heady Topper, Hill Farmstead Edward, Long Trail Ale, Lawson's Finest Liquids Double Sunshine IPA, and Wolaver's Oatmeal Stout. (See full results at the end of this post.)

Now we're down to the last eight brews, and the matchups are expected to be closer than ever. Long Trail Ale and Lawson's Double Sunshine face off in a rematch of one of last year's Final Pour faceoffs, while plucky 14th Star Valor faces its toughest challenge yet in reigning champion Heady Topper. This round lasts until Monday night — good luck to all!

Click here to vote in Round 3.

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Full Round 2 Results:

The Alchemist Heady Topper (63.71%)
Lawson's Fayston Maple Imperial Stout (36.29%)

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14th Star Valor (58.16%)
Fiddlehead IPA (41.84%)

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Hill Farmstead Edward (69.8%)
Trapp Vienna Amber Lager (30.2%)

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Otter Creek Copper Ale (55.35%)
Drop-In Heart of Lothian (44.65%)

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Long Trail Ale (54.8%)
Hill Farmstead Twilight of the Idols (45.2%)

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Lawson's Double Sunshine IPA (54.76%)
Shed Mountain Ale (45.24%)

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Switchback Ale (59.76%)
Zero Gravity TLA IPA (40.24%)

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Rock Art Ridge Runner (45.8%)
Wolaver's Oatmeal Stout (54.2%)