Stone-The Alchemist-Ninkasi More Brown Than Black IPA

While I was in New York at DiCicco’s, I picked up a bottle of the Stone/The Alchemist/Ninkasi collaboration More Brown Than Black IPA. The beer pours a dark brown color (implied in the name!) with a lofty and frothy beige colored head that leaves speckled lacing on the glass. There are lots of floating materials in this glass, and they settle together on the bottom. The aroma consists of lemon, tangerine, grapefruit, caramel, roasted malts, and caramel. The taste is lightly chocolaty with bitter lemon, grapefruit, and tangerine. As the beer finishes on the back of the tongue, a nice coffee accent comes out to play. Toasted malts are left behind with a mix of bitter grapefruit. The alcohol content is 7.4% ABV. This was quite a delectable beer with a great chocolate based that balances bitter citrus flavors well. The best part of it was the slight coffee flavor on the finish, which blew my socks off and completely impressed me.

Alchemist Heady Topper

I have to give big ups for my buddy Deuane for providing me with a can of Alchemist Heady Topper. The beer pours an orange-copper color with a frothy white head that leaves some speckles on the glass. The aroma consists of orange, tangerine, marijuana, and caramel. The taste is bitter and pungent with orange, tangerine, marijuana, candy, and caramel. On the finish, a dank flavor takes over the mouth with pepper and pine accents. The alcohol content is 8.0% ABV. So I didn’t drink this beer from the can as directed as I was splitting it with three people, but I completely loved how dank and bitter this beer was. It really takes over the mouth with bitterness, and was completely enjoyable.