As I mentioned in my last post, we were in Boulder, CO for work and found the nearest brewpub for dinner. After looking at the menu, nothing really stood out, so I thought I’d ask they waitress if they had any seasonals or anything that wasn’t on the beer menu. She said, with a bit of disgust, “We do have this black IPA, but it’s really bitter.” I said I’d have that, and then she asked, “Are you sure, it’s really bitter from a lot of hops.” I wanted to tell her, “Um, yeah, that’s what makes it an IPA, and what makes it good” but I didn’t want any saliva in it.
When it arrived it was deep black in color and it had almost no head – just a little ring around the top of the glass. There wasn’t much of an aroma to the beer at all, only a slight piney hop smell.
The body was fairly light, and the mouthfeel was smooth and crisp. There was a bit of a malty flavor up front, and then a pleasant piney Centennial-like hop flavor in the finish. The hop flavor was a bit less than I expected given the waitress’ reaction to my ordering this beer. I wouldn’t call it super hoppy or bitter, just a nice pleasant hop bitterness which faded in the aftertaste.
I think this beer would probably go well with their BBQ ribs, as the flavors of the BBQ might bring out the roastiness of the malt a bit. The lightness of the beer wouldn’t fill you up as the ribs might.
Overall, I thought this was a decent beer. Despite the waitress’ remarks, it could have easily contained more hops and been an even better beer. It was nice and drinkable.
My Rating: 
Reader Ratings[five-star-rating]
