IDES OF FEBRUARY (THE HENDERSON CUP) ~ HENDERSON BREWING

7% from Toronto, Ontario 60 IBU

The ides series are a one-off brews. This one is named the Henderson Cup because the brewery put out a contest to home brewers. The winner of the best beer would win $1000 dollars and an opportunity to brew it on a large scale for release. This black IPA with raspberries, made by Ed Hitchcock, took home the cup this year. Ed’s winning beer was a raspberry lambic, but in the name of time, a black IPA was created to incapsulate the spirit if his beer, that wouldn’t take as long to ferment. The beer pours an opaque very dark brown - almost black with a generous beige-khaki head. Lots of dark roasted malts, some raspberry and a variety of hops on the nose. The flavours had notes of chocolate, coffee, and raspberry - kind of like a bitter Black Forest Cake. The taste starts off semi sweet and finishes on with a bitter end. I really liked this, it works.

DARK MATTER BLACK IPA ~ JUNCTION CRAFT BREWING

This type of beer is a relatively new style, first recognized by the American Brewers Association in 2010. It has several monikers: India Black Ale, American Black Ale, or Cascadian Dark Ale. The name, Cascadian, is from the Republic of Cascadia a fantasy country that would include parts of Oregon, Washington State and British Columbia. It is dark like a porter but hoppy like an IPA. Sampled from a tin, this brew poured a dark brown with a beige head. The aroma has lots of roasted malts, a little nuttiness, and a piny hop. The beer itself was bitter but not overly so; there were lots of hops on the tail end and aftertaste. The beer starts with lots of roasted dark malts, with a touch of dark chocolate and toasted nuts. Piny hoppiness finishes it off. It took seven different types of barley and four hops to make this brew – Chinook, Cascade, Palisade and Tetnager) This brew was not as heavy as some other Black IPAs I have had, it had a medium body and soft carbonation. I would definitely revisit this one.

7% from Toronto, Ontario 70 IBU

MALEVOLENT ~ NICKEL BROOK

Malevolent is an Imperial Black IPA. Sampled from a tin the beer poured almost black with deep burgundy highlights. It had a large creamy dark mocha head, which lasted quite a while and left a good amount of lacing on the glass. Aromas contain coffee, piny resinous and citrus hops (Simcoe, Columbus and Centennial hops were used), roast malts, molasses, and perhaps there are some subtle fruits in there too. The taste is a wallop of piny and citrus hops followed by dark roasted malts. Notes of chocolate, dark roasted malts, coffee, chocolate and earth also are found in this brew. The finish is bitter and slightly drying. The alcohol is well hidden. The carbonation is average and the beer is full bodied and creamy. This is a bold but refined brew, there is lots going on, but the tastes don’t compete with each other. Most excellent.

9.5% from Burlington, Ontario 8o IBU

BLACK FOREST IPA ~ BEAU'S

I am lucky enough to have several local bars & cafes that have rotating taps. My 'regular' has a live draught list on line of their 25 microbrewery taps, and I often peruse it before going out. I was so excited about tasting this beer. I am fond of almost everything this brewery does, but this one stumped me. I tried to like it; I suffered through a pint, but was disappointed by this brew. I have read others reviews and didn’t quite taste what they had tasted; since this was sampled on draught, I hope it wasn’t an off-keg. Black Forest IPA is a dark IPA, and is No.49 in Beau’s Wild Oats series. The black IPA is a newer beer style, originating in the West coast of the US. The name is a nod to Black forest cake, a German sweet with cherries and chocolate, chocolate is somewhere buried in this beer, and cherries are yet to be found.   
The beer poured a dark unfiltered brown, with deep coppery highlights. There was a little beige head, which left some lacing. The first thing that I found off-putting was the smell of this beer. I found there to be a VERY odd smell, a mixture of wet cardboard, slightly burnt rubber bike tire, lots of hops and trash. I should have just asked for something new, but thought if I could get over the nose it may grow on me. My first impression of this beer is ashes, and bitterness. I have tried other Black IPA’s with much higher IBU’s and did not find the same level of bitter dryness that I did with this beer. I found the ashy bitterness overpowering; the cascade and Simcoe hops were bitter, the roasted dark German malts seemed bitter and the dried sweet cherries were nowhere to be found. There was also an earthy peatiness, unsweetened cocoa powder and floral hops. I could not find the any sort of sweetness to balance this beer until I detected a subtle sweetness in the aftertaste.

I will not be venturing another sip of this, sorry Beau’s.

7% from Vankleek Hills. Ontario 50 IBU

Ingredients: Local spring water, organic barley malts, organic cherries, organic hops, brewer’s yeast.
Malts: Vienna, cararoma, acidulated, chocolate (all organic)
Hops: Opal, simcoe, pacific gem (all organic)
Yeast: German Ale

BITTER WAITRESS ~ SHILLOW BREWERY

Shillow Brewery is a very new start-up brewery owned and operated by the Shillow Brothers.   They began by brewing a beer exclusively for the Beer Bistro (Sass on the Side); “Bitter Waitress” is their second release and will be their flagship beer.  Bitter Waitress is a Black IPA.   It pours a deep chestnut brown, with a foamy beige head.  The nose has a melange of grapefruit, pine, and dark roasted malts.   The taste has intense dark roasted malts, burnt caramel and subtle hints of black liquorice dryness.  The 86 IBU bitterness is well hidden behind the alcohol content, but still gives a hop kick at the end.  (German Magnum, Willamette and Ahtanum hops were used) A really well balanced beer with complex and intense flavour. 

7.1% from Oakville, Toronto, Ontario   86 IBU

(Shillow is a nano-brewery based in Toronto, brewing out of Cameron’s in Oakville)

NOSBEERATU ~ RAINHARD BREWING

Nosbeeratu is the newest beer offered by new start up Rainhard Brewing.  Their beers have been consistently great thus far.   The beer is seasonally brewed and is a Black IPA in the west coast style.  It is only available in growlers and on tap thus far.  The beer pours a very dark brown, almost black.  The nose has a beautiful roasted malt aroma with a little hint of smoke.   Great dark maltiness on the pallet too, with a medium bodied creamy mouth feel and balanced hop bitterness.  The hops (quite a complex array of hops – both wet and dry) give it a citrusy-pine taste and a dry finish.  Very drinkable!

Malt: 2-row, pale ale, carafa III, Munich, carawheat, rye
Hops: Galaxy & Centennial
Dry Hop: Galaxy, Citra, Centennial

6% from York (Toronto) Ontario     IBU 66