7.5

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

Bottle 0,33ltr: Black/brown colored brew with an dry bitter taste and hints of grapefruit and chocolate. Very nice Black I.P.A. from Belgium.

7

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7

Bottle. Deep dark brown color. Peach, mango, citrus and a hint of caramel in the aoma and hopbitter flavor. Just a bit oily, pineapple. Not an abundance of hops, but well balance, fairly tasty and fruity.

6

--- Beer merged from original tick of eXcalibur Black IPA on 08 Nov 2015 at 13:18 - Score: 6

8

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 8

Commissioned BIPA brewed at Anders. Very dark burgundy colour, not entirely black, hazy, under a cream lacing, regular, fairly thick, yellow beige head. Clearly ’Belgian’ but original, attractive and pleasant aroma of nettles and other garden weeds, red apple, beef stock, salmiac, Belgian chocolates but lightly so, green peppercorns, honey, candi syrup, rose hip tea, eucalyptus, bananas with brown sugar, treacle, cinnamon, hints of coffee grounds and peppermint. Crisp onset, brambleberries, red apple, pineapple, good balance of sweetish and sourish with spritzy carbo; smooth and fairly light (not to say thinnish) malt character with Belgian ’yeasty spiciness’ on top, caramelly, bit nutty, with a bitter roasted accent in the end, almost becoming a bit coffeeish but then - as is the intention in a black IPA - stopped by hops, which assume a weedy, leafy, lightly peppery and earthy character, bittering but only gently so, allowing a lot of the caramel malt sweetness to flow through into the throat; a dash of warming, ’jenever’-like alcohol is there but does not burn or become astringent at any point. Very ’European’ interpretation of the style, lacking the ’citrusness’ and agressive hoppiness of many American examples and remaining sweet and malty, so one could argue this needs more hoppiness; still, the aroma is hugely enjoyable, sweetly perfumed and of the type I could sniff for hours - and to me, this makes up for the rather soft hop character. Not considering truth to style, this is a lovely beer without any obvious flaws, delicate and carefully made, and so far the best black IPA from Belgium in my opinion. But then, there aren’t many examples around here of course, I can only hope this kind of beers inspire other brewers to get to work with this fascinating beer style. Well done, Bieradviseur!

7.4

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

Bottle @ Voldby tasting. Pours dark brown with a tan head. Aroma of roasted malt, light coffee, citrusly hops. Flavor is malts, light coffee, dark chocolate, citrus, light pine. Medium body, average carbonation, light bitter finish. 260914

6.9

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7.5

Botella de 75 cl via brujas. Black ipa bastante dulce y con sabores quemados y tostados algo mas apreciables al final, después de coger temperatura. No esta mal.

7

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7

Bottle split at Bruce’s pad, thanks to the king of Croydon, 27/03/14. Light black with a moderate faded tan swirl. Nose is jammy berry fruits, Ribena berry, subtle hop bill, pine, light roast. Taste comprises light roast, Ribena berry tang, earthy hops, pinch of spice, light smoke and roast. Medium bodied, fine carbonation, semi drying close. Decent enough CDA..

6.4

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7.5

Bottle shared in London - thanks to Paul. Pours dark brown with a creamy, khaki head. Burnt leaves and pine in the nose, a bit of toasted bread, grapes. Medium sweet flavor with gummy candies, grapes, bread, subtle roast and chocolate. Medium bodied with fine carbonation. Sweet finish with more ripe, dark fruits, berries, grapes, light cocoa. Fairly tasty though a bit one-dimensional.

6.1

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6.5

Bottle shared at Bruce’s. It pours darkest brown with a small beige head. The nose is roast, toast, earth, lemon peel, chocolate, charred wood, berry and yoghurt. The taste is bitter, acidic, dark fruit, raisin, cherry, charcoal, toast and coffee grinds with a dry, roasty finish. Medium body and fine carbonation. Not a whole lot of depth to it. So-so black IPA.

7.8

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7

Bottle @ Willems Grobbendonk, Belgium. Pours black with a creamy head. Pine, grapefruit, chocolate and mild roast. Smooth, dry and hoppy.