Maxxis Tires with the EXO casing have proven to be the most durable for our terrain. As you can pretty much gather from the Data on this tread there are a lot of choices and opinions on what works. Everyone is different. We don't always have the luxury to demo different tires due to the high cost.
I think I go against the grain in liking narrower 2.2 Maxxis Ikon tires and I sort of have the ability to demo lots of different tires.