Short's Brewing Bludgeon Yer Eye India Black Ale

I received a bottle of Short’s Brewing Bludgeon Yer Eye India Black Ale from HopHeadRed. The beer pours a black color with a frothy cream colored head that leaves plenty of lacing on the glass, like a milkshake. The aroma consists of lemon, caramel, pine, spruce, and toasted malts. The taste is bitter and dry with plenty of lemon, pine, and spruce flavors that come up front. There are hints of chocolate and toasted malts that linger in the background, and some vanilla peeks out in the finish. The alcohol content is not online, but I would estimate it to be about 6.5% ABV. This was wonderful beer with plenty of chocolate sitting in the base, with roasted accents, and a bitter hop accent. The lemon provides a nice citrus accent, and the pine really rounds out the flavor.

Jailhouse Brewing Midnight Special India-style Black Ale

As part of a beer trade with Lance Martin (Beers of the Night) and Alfred Hugh Leonard III, I received a bottle of Jailhouse Brewing Midnight Special India-style Black Ale. The beer pours a black color with a lofty and frothy tan head that leaves lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of lemon, pine, chocolate, toasted malts, and pepper. The taste is really smooth and chocolaty at first with a nice creamy mouth feel. There are some mocha, chocolate liquor accent, and bits of coffee. On the finish, pine, pepper, and lemon dry the mouth and the after taste is warming from the alcohol, which is 10.0% ABV. This is one of the finest Black IPAs /Black Ales/Cascadian Dark Ales that I have had. The mouth feel is so creamy and chocolaty with plenty of sweet and bitter flavors all wrapped into one.

Iron Hill India Black Ale on cask

Another beer I ordered from Iron Hill on my last visit was the India Black Ale on cask. Not that I needed persuaded to order a beer on cask, but the India Black Ale was $6.25 for a 16oz glass or $6.00 for a 20oz glass on cask. Hmmm...there really much time taken to make a decision on this one. The beer pours a black color with a bubbly off-white head. The aroma consists of caramel and pine hops. The taste is smooth and creamy with some caramel, bits of oak, and a pine hop finish. There is also a flower taste at the very end, mostly likely a pine flower. The alcohol content is 7.9% ABV. The excessive flower taste was a little weird in this beer, as it stuck in the mouth and was recurring when I burped. I feel that the casking of this beer really brought out the flower flavor and it may be a little more subdued on draft.