Brooklyn There Will Be Black

I went to Teresa’s Next Door in Wayne for dinner and ordered a glass of Brooklyn There Will Be Black. The beer beer pours a black color with a frothy tan colored head. The aroma consists of toasted malts, rich dark chocolate, caramel, and vanilla. The taste is spicy with lemon, pepper, pine, and tangerine. There is lots of roasted malt flavor with a chocolate backbone. The alcohol content is 7.5% ABV. This was a very delicious and robust hoppy beer that was, very hop forward and aggressive. I’d say it is worth coming back to or seeking out if you haven’t had it yet.

Horseheads Brewing Black Horse Ale

On my trip to the Finger Lakes, I picked up a bottle of Horseheads Brewing Black Horse Ale. The beer pours a black color with a very lofty and frothy beige colored that leaves a moderate lacing on the glass on its way down. The aroma consists of fresh piney hops, lemon, chocolate, spruce, and caramel. The taste is dry and bitter with a fresh hop profile on the front end. Lots of lemon, pine, and spruce hit the tongue before a large toasted malt and dark chocolate flavors take over the mouth. The finish has some pepper spices and a caramel sweetness with a very dry after taste. The alcohol content is 7.4% ABV. I really enjoyed this American Black Ale, as it had a great hop bitterness and a solid backing. It really left a bitter flavor lingering on the tongue making me want to drink more.

Rooster Fish Brewing Raven Black IPA

Another beer I ordered at Rooster Fish Brewing in Watkins Glen, NY was the Raven Black IPA. The beer pours a black color with a frothy tan head. The aroma consists of pine, lemon, chocolate, and smoked malt. The taste is bold and full of toasted malts, coffee, and chocolate. There is a bitter finish with lemon, pepper, and lemon. The alcohol content is not posted online, but I would guess it to be about 6.5% ABV. The Raven had a great overall flavor for a Black IPA and I would definitely order this beer again. I have decided that I am a fan of this brewpub and plan to visit again.

Troegs Scratch 63- Danny's IPA

I picked up a case of Troegs Scratch 63- Danny’s IPA from the brewery. The beer was brewed to honor Danny Glover, a former employee who passed away earlier this year. The Black IPA was modeled after Danny’s favorite beer, Nugget Nectar. The beer pours a black color with a lofty and frothy beige colored head that leaves a lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of dark chocolate, burnt malts, lemon, pine, caramel, and spruce. The taste is chocolaty and has a burnt malt flavor in the background which is quite tasty. Caramel peeks through before lemon, pine, spruce, and pepper take over the mouth and dry it out. There’s also a meaty after taste with this beer, which is interesting but delicious. The alcohol content is 7.0% ABV. I would say this was a home run as far as Black IPAs. I loved the burned flavor which took this beer over the top compared to the normal toasted flavor. Get this beer if you can!

Selin's Grove Black IPA

On the way home from Ithaca, my buddies and I decided to get dinner at Selin’s Grove Brewing Company. The first beer I ordered was the new Black IPA. The beer pours a dark brown color with a frothy tan head. The aroma consists of lemon, chocolate, pine, and caramel. The taste is smooth and chocolaty at first with some caramel and lemon accents. Pine and pepper spice up the finish and it is a little dry as roasted malts linger behind. The alcohol content is not available online, but I would estimate it to be about 7.0% ABV. This was a wonderful example of the Black IPA style with great balance, a hop forward profile, and a solid chocolate and toasted malt backbone.

Clown Shoes Hoppy Feet

I picked up a bottle of Clown Shoes Hoppy Feet, a Black IPA, from Al’s of Hampden. The beer pours a black color with a frothy tan colored head that leaves a remnant of a lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of toasted malts, caramel, coffee, chocolate, and pine. The taste is toasty and malty with plenty of caramel and roasted malt flavor. The finish has a dry lemon and pepper flavor. The alcohol content is 7.0% ABV. This beer hit the solid notes of a Black IPA that I like, and it definitely had a large roasted malt profile.

Penn Brewery B2 Black IPA

I ordered a glass of Penn Brewery B2 Black IPA from Bites and Brews in Pittsburgh. According to Bites and Brews' Facebook page, this beer will be the house beer at all B2 locations. The beer pours a dark brown color with a foamy off-white colored head. The aroma consists of caramel, toasted malts, lemon, cream, and pine. The taste is dry and roasty with lemon and pine. There are hints of caramel and chocolate in the background, but this beer really focuses on the toasted flavor. The alcohol content 6.0% ABV. If you are looking for a Black IPA that is more porter-like with roasted malt flavors, this is your type of beer. I typically have been shying towards the hoppier Black IPAs, so this wasn’t my favorite in the style, but it still was fairly easy to drink and had plenty of delicious flavors.

Otter Creek Alpine Black IPA

While out in downtown Harrisburg at Anthony’s Micro Pub, I ordered a glass of Otter Creek Alpine Black IPA. The beer pours a black color with a thin filmy beige colored head. The aroma consists of pine, chocolate, lemon, and spruce. The taste starts out with a heavy dose of spruce before chocolate and toasted malts come in to play. The finish is dry with lots of lemon citrus flavors trying to smooth out the toasted malt flavors. The alcohol content is 6.0% ABV. I’d say this was an enjoyable Black IPA with a healthy offering of evergreen flavoring, which makes the beer piny and bitter.

Crabtree Brewing Syzygy Barrel-Aged Black IPA

I received a bottle of Crabtree Brewing Syzygy Barrel-Aged Black IPA from Lee of Hoptopia in a beer trade. The beer pours a black color with a lofty and frothy tan head with a light amount of lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of chocolate, lemon, oak, and caramel. The taste has a solid toasted malt and chocolate base with a slight sour lemon pucker on the side of the mouth. There is some pine and pepper that comes out in the finish, and the after taste leaves some caramel and oak behind on the tongue. The alcohol content is 8.0% ABV. This was a solid Black IPA that definitely benefited from the barrel aging process, as the dry oakiness really added a nice complexity to the beer.

Appalachian Brewing Company Black IPA

After receiving the email announcing the Appalachian Brewing Company Black IPA, a limited one-off, I stopped in to give it a try. The beer pours a dark brown color with a foamy beige colored head. The aroma consists of lemon, chocolate, sugar candy, pine, spruce, and toast. The taste is smooth and very chocolaty, more so than expecting, with accents of caramel and grapefruit. Some lemon and pine bitterness come out in the finish and really dry out the mouth, and toasted malts linger in the after taste. The alcohol content is 6.5% ABV. There was much more chocolate (think chocolate stout) in this beer than expected, but is fairly delicious and still drinks like a standard Black IPA.

Blue Point Toxic Sludge Black IPA

My coworker Greg brought me a bottle of Blue Point Brewing Toxic Sludge Black IPA when he was home in Long Island. All of the proceeds from the sale of this beer benefit Tri-State Bird Rescue & Research's "Spreading Our Wings" campaign and their efforts to build a Wildlife Response Annex. The beer pours a black color with a lofty and frothy beige head. The aroma consists of lemon, pine, orange, toasted malts, and caramel. The taste is dry and with pine and lemon flavors. There is a base of toasted malts with some caramel and grassy notes. The alcohol content is 7.0% ABV. I really enjoyed the dryness, lemon, and pine flavors built on top of a toasted malt flavor. The black IPA is becoming one of my favorite styles of beers, and this beer certainly is a solid black IPA.