The Alchemist / Ninkasi / Stone More Brown than Black IPA

Brewed by Stone Brewing Co.
Style: Black IPA
Escondido, California USA

Serve in Shaker, Tulip

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bottle. Deep brown ale w/ hoppy citrus nose. Pineapple tongue battles w/ dark malt eyes; the execution is tastes beautifully. F’n almost perfect.

Nice beer. Dark like cowboy coffee with aromas of spicy hop pine needles and malted meat. Medium nectar with excellent carbonation. A beautifully balanced beer from malt to hop, aroma to the bitter finish. A huge play on the fresh hop essence. Only mildly sweet with some roasted coffee bean and cocoa. This beer is very drinkable and I’m diggin’ it.

12 zo bottle from bev4less. Pours a slightly cloudy dark brown color with a medium beige head that has fair retention. The aroma is strong with citrus hops (mostly oranges) and way in the back some roasted grains. The taste also features robust citrus; bitter grapefruit, oranges, limes and papaya. The malt base is lightly roasted grains, walnuts, pecans and is fairly neutral. The palate is full, thick and creamy with lively carbonation. Finishes long and dry with lingering bitter hops. Overall: This is one outstanding IPA irrespective of color.

12 oz. bottle from SoHo Organic Market in Elizabeth City, NC. The name does not lie as the pour closely resembles a brown ale albeit a tad darker. A huge amount of grapefruit can be found on the nose with a slight amount of dark chocolate in the background. Citrus and piney hops are the dominant flavor with only a touch of smoke and chocolate on the finish. The bitter hops linger on the tongue long after each swallow yet the subtle smoke and chocolate let you know this is not an ordinary IPA. With everyone rushing to make a great black IPA many brewers miss the mark. It’s no surprise that with Stone in the mix this one gets it right. Outstanding.

12oz bottle from grape & gourmet. pours cola-brown and sits in the glass with dark russet edges topped by a smooth, creamy eggshell head that leaves sticky rings of lace on the glass. aroma is absolutely fantastic with huge fresh, citrus notes of pink grapefruit, orange juice, and tangerine backed by amazingly fresh notes of peaches, nectarines, and pineapple with subtle notes of cinnamon, toasted pie crusts (really smells like mom’s peach pie!) and dry pine esters. flavor is delicious as well with the sweet peach, vanilla, and cinnamon notes from the aroma carrying through beautifully and are accompanied by pink grapefruit, orange marmalade, dry grass, and zesty pine with just a hint of cocoa powder and coffee as it warms. palate is medium bodied with crisp carbonation and a dry, fruity finish that leaves me salivating for another sip. overall, this is definitely one of the best black ipa’s i’ve had. right up there with Stone 11th and 15th. great beer.

Location/Date:Bottle on April 4th, 2012.

Appearance:Pours a dark brown, and it looks like something is lightly floating around the sides.
Aroma: Aroma has some faint pine hops, a lot of roasty sweetness, caramel.
Taste: Medium to medium heavy bitterness, caramel malt roastiness, sweet finish.
Palate:Slick, medium body, really smooth, lingering aftertaste.

Summary: I really enjoyed this beer, more than Stone 15th Anniversary which technically also a Black IPA - yes I realize this is more brown than black. But that is what does this for me, it’s like the roasty cousin of imperial reds(my favorite style). This should be made all the time.

This one pours a dark, murky brown color. Small amount of tan head is poured and whatever is there pretty much disappears. The aroma is evident as soon as the bottle is opened. I just stuck my nose in the bottle and marveled at it’s hoppy as hell smell. Total West Coast IPA here. Grapefruit is the biggest aroma here with citrus and a small amount of roasted malt. But this is a hop monster. Lovely. Taste matches the aroma here. Huge amount of hops. This is not a balanced beer but that’s OK. It’s so flavorful it doesn’t matter. Huge grapefruit and citrus. Malt backbone of roasted malt and caramel. Awesome awesome stuff here. I could enjoy a ton of this stuff. Mouthfeel is medium bodied and chewy. Coats the mouth slightly. I just fell in love with this beer. My fiance loved it too. I need to snag some more of this before it’s all gone good. Maybe you guys should release this again.

it is more brown than black and it has an amazing hoppy nose...hugely aromatic and resiny. Palate is perfectly balanced with some roasted malt, a little chocolate and a ton of hops. Finish is quick and crisp. Awesome.

Wow. Does this smell amazing. If you want to know what a dank beer smells like here it is. Smells amazing. The pine and hemp form a wave of hoppy goodness. Pours a dark brown bordering on black with a billowing off white foam. Hop flavor is nice a piney. Unlike some black ipas, the malt character does come through somewhat on this one, and I get some definite brown ale malt characteristics that peek out, but are quickly overwhelmed by the hops. Palate is smooth and velvety. Overall a damn fine beer for a good cause, and I intend to buy several more. Great job to all three breweries!

Pour is definitely more brown than black, mahogany with a creamy off-white head. A wonderful smelling beer. Hop forward with loads of citrus and pine. Not much malt to speak of. The taste is completely dominated by the hops. Lots of juicy citrus and resin, massively bitter with a slight amount of malt. A totally unbalanced hop bomb, which is exactly what I love.