3.6 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 15/20
Bottle., 11C. Black with a finger of beige head that lasts OK. Aroma of chocolate, licorice, gentle grapefruit. Silky texture with low carbonation. Taste is roasty and ashy with chocolate, coffee, grapefruit, pine. A little astringent. Quite a lot of bitterness, but it doesn’t leap out. Peppery at the end, too. Good.
4 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
[cask at the Hanging Bat, Edinburgh] Pours black, with a pretty large off-white head. Mocha and lemony grapefruit on the aroma, really inviting nose. Hugely comforting roasted malt flavours at first – toasted bread, dark chocolate – before the hops start to build and leave the finish dry and citrussy. More lemon and lime, grapefruit, mingling with the roasted bitterness. Lovely [18112012]
4.4 AROMA 9/10 APPEARANCE 5/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 18/20
Awesome aroma, hops, coffee roasted malts and chocolate all mingle into one to produce a nice sweet aroma. Bitter sweet and smooth. Finnish has a nutty component just slightly. Very sessionable.
4.1 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 9/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
One of the better Black IPAs I have tried.
Aroma: Combination of hops and chocolate on the nose, Taste & Palate: Goes down very easily, Chocolate/coffee malts dominate with a hint of citrus hops, which ones again begs the question should this style of beer be called a black IPA or something on the lines of a Hoppy Porter/stout.
3.9 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
Aroma: Hoppy aroma. Chocolate and roasted malt.
Appearance: Black body with a medium grey/tan head. Great lacing.
Taste: Very strong porter-like flavours of chocolate ice-cream, coffee, smoke and roasted malt. Subtle citrus notes. Nice bitterness.
Palate: Medium body with a sticky mouthfeel. Lively carbonation.
Overall: An excellent Black IPA, one of the best I’ve tasted. There’s so much flavour, yet it’s only 4.5% ABV. It’s more like an ultra hoppy porter than a porter-like IPA. Wonderful stuff.
3.4 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 14/20
Pours black with ruby highlights and a small head.
Nose shows lots of roasted malt with some chocolate notes alongside some softer piny and spicy hops.
Pretty aggressively roasty flavours too, more spicy and piny hops as well.
Could use more carbonation.
Could use more malt to balance the roasted grains and hops.
3.5 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 14/20
Cask at Dean Swift with Sarah. Pours a clear near black with a grayish brown head that dissipates to the edges and laces slightly. Aroma has a good amount of roast with dark grain and a slight earthy pine and grass underlying. Flavor has a good amount of dark grains with roast and a bit of pine and dryness coming out in the finish.
3.8 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 15/20
Cask at Birmingham Beer Festival 2012. Black: yes. Strong fruity aroma. Very floral. Some gravy in there. Not literally, hopefully. Strong bitter licquorice, slightly smoked, dry yet drinkable. Very well balanced.
3.4 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 13/20
Cask at Birmingham Beer Fest 2012; Pours dark brown, quite strong coffee aroma, roasted malt taste only a slight amount of hop bitterness.
3.6 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 14/20
Bottle @ Liva, Kolding. Pours nearly black with a small creamy head. Grapefruit, pine and vague roast. Chocolate, caramel and a bit of dry ash. Crisp and dry. Fine stuff.
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