Could you pick out Three Floyd's Zombie Dust in taste test?

Counterfeiting really is a darn good idea.

Yes, it's illegal, and I agree you should not be duping people into paying for fancy bottles refilled with cheap wine.

Counterfeiting works because most people can't tell the difference.

There has been a lot of research that indicates people think wine is better if they're told it's an expensive bottle, and that people may actually enjoy cheaper wine better if they don't know the cost.

I taste blind all the time. The other month, my regular wine tasting group favored a $12 2013 McManis Family Vineyards pinot over a bunch of wines costing three and four times as much. While I didn't pick it as my favorite, you should try it. Look for it at Mass Ave Wine, among other places.

I've written how I routinely drop Oliver's $20 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon into blind tastings with well-to-do wine friends. It always baffles them when they find that this wine tastes right at home with bottles costing three figures.

Expectations and realities are challenged by beer too.

Three Floyds' excellent Zombie Dust can be hard to buy because demand is higher than supply. Sometimes you can find it at McNiven's on Mass Ave. and Casler's Kitchen and Bar in the Geist area, among other places.

A few weeks ago, with help from our beverage reporter Amy Haneline, seven beer lovers gathered at Tomlinson Tap Room for a blind tasting. I wanted to see if we could pick Zombie Dust out of a lineup, and whether we favored it.

I wanted it to be a challenge to pick Zombie Dust so I found beers made with some citra hops, the kind used to make Zombie Dust.

I'm the only one who knew the beers in the lineup, and none of us knew the order, which was created by awesome bartender Michael Gomez. Because hoppy brews like this don't age well, all the beers were fresh.

In addition to Amy Haneline and myself, the tasters were fellow Star employee Amy Bartner; Amanda Wishin, president of Indy's Girls Pint Out chapter; Justin McIntosh, part of local beer enthusiasts The Dump Buckets; and Three Pints podcast hosts Dustin Graham and Jason Brewer.

We tried these bottled beers:

•Knee Deep Brewing Co., Citra Extra Pale Ale

•Three Floyds Brewing Co., Zombie Dust

•Victory Brewing Co., Dirt Wolf Double IPA

•Thirsty Dog Brewing Co., Citra Dog

•Deschutes Brewing, Fresh Squeezed IPA

And these from draft:

•Black Acre, Television Wolf

•450 North Brewing Co., Citrafest

None of us thought Zombie Dust was the best beer in this group. It finished in the middle of the pack. Victory's Dirt Wolf easily took home top honors with first- or second-place votes from all but two of the tasters. It was my top pick.

But of course the point was to see who could pick out the sought-after Three Floyds brew. Jason Brewer from Three Pints Podcast nailed it. I picked it out of the lineup, but I had the benefit of knowing the identities of the beers there, as I'd tasted four of them in the past.

The other five tasters guessed other things, including locally made Television Wolf from Black Acre brewing that I've fallen in love with.

Nobody's likely to counterfeit Zombie Dust just to save a few bucks off the $14 price of a six-pack. But, there are other brews on your local shelf you're likely to enjoy better.

Thanks for reading, and a note to fans, this is an occasional column. As always, feel free to reach out to me on email or Twitter.

Email: winedude@indystar.com.

Twitter: @winedude.