Blue Pants Tuxedo Black IPA

Brewed by Blue Pants Brewery LLC
Style: Black IPA
Madison, Alabama USA

Serve in Shaker, Tulip

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Bomber. A huge burst of carbonation exited the bottle upon opening, and after dumping half the beer down the drain to try to alleviate the gushing (unsuccessful) I got a glass of 100% head. Fizzy, rocky, tan. The beer itself is dark brown and murky. Aroma of roasted malts, chocolate, nutty notes, herbal hops, faint green apple. The taste is chocolate, roasted malts, herbal hops, bitter finish. Medium bodied, slight lingering bitterness. All in all, quite an adventure.

22oz bomber. Pours dark brown almost black color, with a decent sized foamy tan head. Aroma is caramel, a little bit of coffee, citrus, pine, and slightly earthy hops. Flavor is slightly roasted, coffee, a hint of cocoa, pine and grassy hops.

Bottle. Pours dark brown/black with medium tan head. Aroma of toasted malt and resin hops. Medium body with coffee notes and a hop bitterness finish.

Had on tap at Mellow Mushroom in Johnson City, TN. Arrived with no head whatsoever along with no lacing. Not really a good start. The aroma had some lightly toasted grain along with just a small amount of piny hops. Some caramel in there too. Not extremely impressive but no real flaws either. The flavor had licorice and roasted malt up front with caramel and piny hops coming in midway through. There was quite a bit of astringency towards the finish along with a chalky bitterness. Some stickyness on the lips even though the mouthfeel as a whole is quite watery. Overall, there is quite a bit that could be improved on with this beer. Increased hopping along with a little less attenuation could do wonders for this beer. Right now it is a little all over the place.

Foam. So...so much foam. I poured this, had another beer while I was waiting for the foam to subside, then drank it. So, yeah, a lot of foam. Smells citrusy, piney, with a little bit of coffee in the background taste is citrus forward, with piney, woody notes in the back. Very dry. Not bad, actually. Lots of foam, though. Did I mention that?

Blue Pants Brewery Tuxedo Black India Pale Ale. Madison, Alabama. "Pairs well with a bow tie," they say. Their slogan: "unreasonably good beer." If it’s a joke, I’m not sure I get it, but they’re trying to be clever, so, points for that. Let’s open ’er up and try ’er out. Whoa, incredible carbonation! I had to pour very slowly once it starts coming into the glass in full force. I have to wait for the immense volume of foam to die down in order to get some actual beer in the glass, for the purposes of the photograph. Enormous full-flowering of cream-colored, lacy, prodigious foam. Dark brown, nearly black coloration. Aroma: mild grassy hop aromatics float just above rich dark malt flavors. Mocha notes, rum, molasses, all kept in check with hops. Nice balance. Taste: A return on the tongue of the flavors listed above. Tasty array of dark malts, some cocoa, matched with grassy, piney hop flavors coasting above. The carbonation, however is still not for me. Too much gushes out on each pour, before the liquid emerges, and there’s a bit more rushing on the palate for my taste. Aside from that, again, I have to acknowledge and compliment the fine balancing act, everything is well-integrated, nothing stands out too much. On the other hand, nothing quite stands out enough to make it really excellent. It would be nice to see what else they can do, out there in Madison, AL. What do they say on the label? "Tuxedo Black IPA is a celebration of the invention of the Cascadian Dark Ale style. It’s got a smooth, mellow roastiness that pairs perfectly with all manner of Northwest American hops. Our Black is not over the top, but balanced, allowing those who go crazy for hops and those who just like a good dark beer alike to enjoy in an unreasonably good experience." It was a good experience, but not unreasonably so. What’s the connection between this concept and "blue pants"? Is there one? I have to know.

Bottle from fresh spirits - pours pitch with a tan head, great lacing on the glass. Aroma is piney with notes of malt. Taste leans bitter, but not aggressively so. Finishes lingeringly dry. Overall, not my favorite style, but quite good.

Bottle from Fresh Spirits. Pours black with a thin khaki head. a bit of pine on the nose. certainly it’s fairly hop forward on the tongue. finishes pretty clean. Solid even if it isn’t my favorite style.

Thanks to uncle jedI for thinking of me. This brew was a good black IPA from an local Alabama brewery. And I got to try it all the way up here in Maine. Great graphics on the bottle and great beer in it. Recommend you give it a try