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Black IPA
I have recently heard this term used and it has intrigued me. At first I just assumed it was a standard IPA with black current malt. But after preliminary research, it seems to be some form of porter with mild roasted notes and high IBUs from many hop varieties. Can anyone shed some light on this beer style for me? I would also love to hear from brewers who have made these. Is it a real style? Is there such a thing as a black IIPA?
It's funny, this afternoon I saw a 6 pack of Guinness Black Lager, which is labeled as cold fermented with roasted barley, so I bought it to see what it was like...After I drank one I thought it tasted more like a Porter but a little milder, less flavorfull. Not the best, but the first guiness I've seen that wasn't a stout. It tasted more like a "black lagger" you'd expect Anheiser Busch to come out with, more like a cheap beer trying to be a classier beer...not up to par with the other imports...maybe Hineken...But it was no Old Speckled Hen...
I've never had a black IPA, but these are the ingredients from Lakefront Brewery's Black IPA from the kit that Northern Brewers sells. It will give you an idea of what their version has in it.
MASH INGREDIENTS
-- 11 lbs. Malteurop 2-row
--.75 lbs. Belgian Caramunich
--.5 lbs. Belgian Caravienne
--.5 lbs. Weyermann Dehusked Carafa III
--.12 lbs. English Chocolate Malt
MASH SCHEDULE: SINGLE INFUSION
Sacch’ Rest: 152° F for 60 minutes
Mashout: 170° F for 10 minutes
BOIL ADDITIONS & TIMES
1 oz. Columbus (60 min)
.66 oz. Cascade (20 min)
1.33 oz. Cascade (5 min)
.5 oz. Centennial (dry hop 7 days)
1 oz. Cascade (dry hop 7 days)
.5 oz. Columbus (dry hop 7 days)
YEAST
If you chose dry yeast:
SAFALE US-05.
Optimum temperature: 59-75°F
If you chose liquid yeast:
WYEAST #1056 AMERICAN ALE YEAST.
Optimum temperature: 60-72°F
NOTES
Lakefront recommends a 90-minute boil for this recipe, making
the first hop addition with 60 minutes remaining.
LAKEFRONT IBA (Pro Series All Grain)
BOIL ADDITIONS & TIMES
-- 1 oz. Columbus (60 min)
--.66 oz. Cascade (20 min)
-- 1.33 oz. Cascade (5 min)
--.5 oz. Centennial (dry hop 7 days)
-- 1 oz. Cascade (dry hop 7 days)
--.5 oz. Columbus (dry hop 7 days)
YEAST
-- If you chose dry yeast: -
SAFALE US-05.
Optimum temperature: 59-75°F
-- If you chose liquid yeast: -
WYEAST #1056 AMERICAN ALE YEAST.
Optimum temperature: 60-72°F
I cant see that recipe making a black beer. Maybe dark brown, but not black. I was thinking a very black color. basically an Imperial stout color. with regular stout flavor and either IPA or IIPA ibu and hop additions. After doing more researching today, I found that most brewers don't consider this a real style. I guess the general consensus is that it is either a IPA colored black or a stout with high IBUS and massive dry hopping.
Throw some black patent malt in there, and you have the black your looking for. .25 lbs should do it
I think it is mainly just marketing. Pretty much a standard IPA with some black malt.
As far as this beer being black or not, if half a pound of Carafa III and a little chocolate won't do it, I'm not sure what would.
Kind of a debate going on about this one. Whether to call it a Black IPA, Cascadian Dark Ale, American Black Ale...
Whatever you call it nearly everyone I have tried is damn good.
Yes there is a Black IIPA or two out there. In fact we have one right here in Utah:
http://www.uintabrewing.com/brews.php
I have made a few Black IPA’s or CDA’s (Cascadian Dark Ale’s) and tasted quite a few too. They can be anywhere from a standard IPA with Carafa III, which will have a slight roastiness to adding roasted malts and getting a pronounced roastiness.
One of my favorites is Stones Sublimely Self Righteous (aka 11th Anniversary ale).
90% Pale
5% 60°L Crystal
5% Carafa III
Chinook to bitter
Simcoe and Amarillo for flavor
Simcoe and Amarillo dry hop
1.082 O.G.
1.016 F.G.
120 IBU’s
I used PacMan yeast, but 1056 would be fine.
Mac n Jack's makes a nice one too.
I believe that the term was coined to describe beer that was similar to Stone's Arrogant Bastard. A very dark beer with roasted and dark crystal malts that features a shit load of citrussy hops(Most, if not all, Chinook, IIRC). If you never tried an Arrogant Bastard, try one and it will define the term, "Black IPA".
BBB
Whenever I have tasted a Black IPA I wasn't really tryin to pick it apart or critique it, however everyone that I have had seems to taste just like an IPA, with the appropriate mouth feel, but is black in color. Definitely the 40~ SRM range. So I always understood these beers to follow the guidelines of the IPA style, but with an untraditional color, and of course whatever else comes along with the use of those dark specialty grains. Seems like taking a standard IPA recipe and adding black patent is all a black IPA is.
I am thinking about using some combination of these malts:
Midnight wheat
Carafa III
Black Patent
Crystal Rye
Carmel 120
and of course pale malt as a base like any IPA.
Any suggestions as to ratios? I want it jet black with as little harsh roasted/burnt flavors as possible.
I have used Chinook hops in my winter porter, so I want to try something different.
This is definitely not a traditional category profile, however there has been such a craft brew explosion of IIPAs, that small variances have been made to impart even more flavor to hop monster. A true American stout is closer to the origianal poster's idea of just hopping up a nice dark roasty malt bill.
Just adding black patent for color however does not get quite the same affect. Because there are really no style guidelines really anything is allowable, however black patent can give a burnt acrid taste, and many dark malts will turn this into an impy porter or stout. So striking the IIPA qualities with color is actually a bit tricky, but those who have suggested the carafa III areon the right track. I actually have 12 gallons of some fermenting now I plan on having for the holidays, Tons of cascades, and I am going to add some orange peel too. Hoping to have a nice dry, well atenuated neutral beer, fermented with us-05.
The impy reds and browns are nice too, maximizing flavor on all aspects. Huge fan of the Clown Shoes eagle claw fist, and Bear Republic's red rocket ale. The original idea of a HUGE IIPA is all about the crazy ratio of IBUs to GUs, so when the GUs go up, why not put some backbone in it?
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