Heavy Seas Black Cannon

Reviewed 1/16/2013. 12 oz bottle into a Samuel Smith pint glass. A: Pours a ultra-dark red color with a good opacity. The head is kind of dinky - a half finger light khaki color. It doesn’t even retain what little it has well, but tries to leave whatever lacing it can down the side of the glass. S: Features a good mix of citrusy hops and bready dark malts. It seems to feature a good deal of Centennial and Cascade. Upon further whiffs, a bit of chocolate and coffee come through. The aroma is respectable but meek. T: Not much in the way of hops come through on the flavor, or maybe it’s just that well balanced? Whatever the case here, the hop profile is perhaps integrated too well into the brew’s dark malts - coming off as just a well-hopped stout instead of a black ale. Hazelnut, chocolate, and subtle citrusy hops initiate the flavors, before finishing with coffee, faint cream, and roasted barley. Grapefruit tones come through more expressively on exhales. I’d have to say Centennial hops were a good choice here - they give just enough of a hop bite and a balancing bitterness without killing the profile with acid and soapiness. M: Dry, dry, dry. There is just enough sweetness on the finish to neutralize some of the dryness after a few sips, but this will still cause the very back of the palate to be parched, even while the front has a bit of a syrupy linger. The medium-heavy body makes this more of a sipper than a chugger. O: This works MUCH better if you go into this expecting a well-hopped stout instead of a proper black ale. When looked at as the former, it’s really damn good. I’d buy it again, that’s for sure.