Founders Black IPA

Brewed by Founders Brewing Company
Style: Black IPA
Grand Rapids, Michigan USA

Serve in Shaker, Tulip

UPDATED: FEB 8, 2009 On tap at Founders. A very dark brown to almost black body with a nice frothy brown head that left some spotty lacing.Aroma of almost charred grain,pine,spicy hops,spicy rye grain type notes.Flavor is very balanced and in tune with the aroma just nice complex notes of smoke,licorice, resin, coffee, not too dry or bitter or sweet just balance, medium to light body crisp lingering finish, Very Drinkable very complex without going over the top anywhere and ultra good.

On tap at Black Party Ok ,I was expecting the nice fragrances of pine and sprtizy hops, but the distinct dark cake aroma of the dark malts was pleasantly surprising,Taste was agian all aspects of dark malts,with touchs of molaasses and licorice,lots of pine and spicey hops with a sweet and bitter finish, the malt is so unusual here and garners so much attention,it almost seems to balanced to be an IPA,more a dark version of a quality Pale Ale. Apparently this will soon be bottled. Recommended

Growler courtesy of a traveling friend. The beer pours dark brown with a medium and foamy tan head that recedes slowly. Stringy lacing on the glass. The aroma is hoppy with a significant roasted malt and wood character. Medium-bodied and moderately bitter with flavors of hops and coffee, plus roasted malt and oak. The finish is hoppy with a lingering bitter chocolate aftertaste. Solid all around.

On tap at founders harvest. Dark brown to opaque black with creamy tan head. Pine and floral hop aroma, dry but tropical, very nice. Flavor is pine, sweeter caramel, some roast, some hop astringency but not overwhelming, good ount of tropical fruit, resiny. Full to medium body with creaminess and light carbonation. Excelent. Light astringency but from the hops not the malt, excelent pine, pretty delicious.

UPDATED: APR 21, 2009 Dark black pour, a little thin in body. Aroma is hops and a little malt at the same time, neither are overwhelming. Taste is to be expected, almost could be thought of as a hoppy porter. A good kick back brew, can be enjoyed even after a few since all the flavors work together well. Please bottle this!

aroma requires time to allow every soft, feathery roast to come to life. appearance is dead opaque with quick reducing head. flavor is big balance; roast preponderant but bitterness comes later. fruit is tarnished but still provides some black raspberry and grape. filthy coffee filters abound. mouthfeel is filthy, clings, corrupts. delightful beer that leans far more towards ’black’ than ’ipa’ in the end.

Growler shared by Dogbrick. Black pour with a medium beige head. Hoppy aroma (Centennial?) with a nice roasty character. Bitter citrus hop flavor up front with a roasty coffee finish. Very good blend of an IPA and a porter.

On tap at Founders. Pours a dark black to brown, though not impenetrable. The nose has a nice bite to this. Fresh piney hops seem to be crowded out by, RYE! The nose is much bolder than black rye, with perhaps even a hint of smoke. The mouthfeel is about average, though not poorly done, making this a nice sipper. The flavors again suggest black rye, but really are much stronger in the hop character. This is what I think Stone XI was supposed to taste like! (But I think I may have had a bad bottle of that) The flavor again has a hint of smoke in it. Resinous hop bitterness lingers with a bit of that spice from some rye character that Is swear must be in this. A lovely beer, I hope this makes it into bottles! I refuse to believe this is an IPA, but who cares about labels anyway?