Tipples Beer Review #119 - Black IPAs for Australia and Britain

People often ask me by favorite beer, I always wave them away by saying it depends on what I feel like that day. The persistent will question on style grounds, lager versus IPA vs sours vs porter. If I’m feeling friendly I was eventually tell them Black IPA.

Black IPA was a style that was the NEIPA of it’s day – if that day was about five years ago, it seemed like everyone was putting out a limited release Black IPA, then, like all fads it faded away, but that’s a shame because a Black IPA is a wonderful thing.

If you have never had one, and the idea of a BLACK India PALE ale makes no sense to you, just know it has the hoppiness of an IPA, but the roasted black malts of a Porter, with a bit less body.

So here are two Black IPA’s to try.
Akasha Blacksmith

Akasha are a brewery from Sydney Australia – they are smallish volume but have made great IPA after great IPA and the blacksmith it no different it Pours mainly black, with just a little bit of dark brown where the light hits it. It has a big fluffy head.

The taste is the perfect balance between big fruity hop flavours and toffee from the malt. It's aggressive and sweet all at the same time – a bit like me really.

But I know most of you aren’t Australian so you won’t get the chance to try the Akasha so here is a second Black IPA from a British brewer- Buxton.

Buxton Black Rocks.
Big tan, dare I say it, rocky head. (Tan Rocks probably doesn’t have the ring of Black Rocks). It smells more stringent than the Akasha, the taste however is very complex, fruit, tangy citrus flavour then a sweet malt wave followed again on the aftertaste with a tangy bitterness which sits in the cheeks.

Gee I love a good black IPA I wish they would become the flavour of the month again.

This post will be in #beersaturday once @detlev announces the competition for this week – so keep an eye on him to see it.