Code Black
Hardknott Brewery

Code BlackCode Black
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From:
Hardknott Brewery
 
England, United Kingdom
Style:
Black IPA
ABV:
5.6%
Score:
84
Avg:
3.63 | pDev: 10.19%
Reviews:
8
Ratings:
15
Status:
Active
Rated:
Apr 13, 2016
Added:
Nov 10, 2011
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  2
No description / notes.
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Ratings by jazzyjeff13:
Photo of jazzyjeff13
Reviewed by jazzyjeff13 from England

3.83/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
A 500ml bottle with a BB of Sept 2013. Picked up from a beer specialist in Leeds. The label acknowledges the contradiction in the naming of this beer style.

Poured into a straight pint glass. A dark reddish-brown with strong carbonation. Yields a massive head of creamy off-white foam with superb retention; this slowly subsides to a thick surface layer. Aroma of intense, spicy aromatic hops - plentiful notes of citrus and hints of pine. Underneath the hops, notes of dry, earthy yeast, dark malt, cocoa, dried fruit and a whiff of alcohol form the backbone.

Tastes of powerful aromatic hops with a roasted malt character and a deeply bitter finish. Notes of citrus and tropical fruit, especially pineapple, followed by hints of pine, burnt grain, molasses and earthy yeast. Extremely dry and bitter. Mouthfeel is thick and smooth, with a spicy, tingly sensation. Very astringent - dries the palate thoroughly. Aftertaste of intense aromatic hops and bitter roasted malt.

Impressive and flavoursome. The colour is not as dark as other black IPAs I've tried. My only quibble is that the flavour is almost too intense - the bitter, dry character overwhelms the palate and reduces the appreciation of the subtler notes. However, if you're a hophead who likes black IPAs, this is a beer for you.
Feb 18, 2012
More User Ratings:
Photo of Daniel_k_morgan
Rated by Daniel_k_morgan from Wales

2.51/5  rDev -30.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 1.75 | feel: 1.75 | overall: 1.5
A little bit harsh for my liking - took me longer than usual to finish bottle.
Apr 13, 2016
 
Rated: 3.74 by rulisekmartin from Czech Republic

Aug 15, 2015
 
Rated: 3.58 by hdtrice from England

Jun 21, 2015
Photo of vinicole
Rated by vinicole from England

3.82/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Big hops, big malt - big flavour.
May 14, 2015
Photo of EmperorBevis
Reviewed by EmperorBevis from England

3.72/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
bottled
And nice looking dark ale but it's always a big question the black IPA
wether tis nobler on the hops or the roast
but it does seem more the hoppier stout
May 08, 2015
 
Rated: 3.92 by windypete from England

May 03, 2015
Photo of chinchill
Reviewed by chinchill from South Carolina

3.4/5  rDev -6.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
330 ml bottle with a BB date stamp of 21 Sept. 2016 (very fresh).
Despite a dark and significant malt load, this is very hoppy for an English ale and deserves to be put n the same category as an American Black IPA.
Very dark mahogany body looks nearly black in my pint glass.
O: not a favored style of beer but this is a bit above average for style.
May 01, 2015
Photo of Malt_Man
Reviewed by Malt_Man from England

3.91/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 3.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Served cold from 330ml bottle into Brooklyn American pint glass.

L) Red-tinged very dark brown. Resolutely not black. Thin off-white film.

S) Slightly sweet piney hops. Actually, pretty good.

T) Bitter, slightly juicy American hops. Dry malt flavours in the aftertaste. To say I got this in Morrisons supermarket, I am impressed.

F) Fine muted carbonation, watery texture with long-lasting bitter aftertaste.

O) The British 'craft beers' available in big supermarkets are steadily getting better, and for me this is another move in the right direction. Really like it and will buy it again.
Apr 24, 2015
 
Rated: 4 by Rechac

Sep 10, 2014
Photo of StJamesGate
Reviewed by StJamesGate from New York

3.69/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
On draft at Brew Dock, Dublin.

Tan film over ruby chocolate – a bit pale.
Licorice, cherry, and smoke nose.
Liquid smoke, Jägermeister, powdery chocolate, dried raspberry, and subtle orange rind citrus to end.
Welch’s finish and chalky linger.
Light, fizzy, oily.

Lots of unconventional stout notes , though lots of cocoa nibs. But where are the hops? IBUs and resin but no aroma. That and the thin and pale body add up to a beer that doesn’t know what it wants to be.
Apr 29, 2014
Photo of wl0307
Reviewed by wl0307 from England

3.77/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Coming in a 330ml slim brown bottle, BB 07/2015, served lightly-chilled in Tripel Karmeliet’s long-stemmed tulip-shaped sniffer.

A: pours a very dark brown to black-ish colour, coming with a rocky, thick and well-lasting dark beige froth and relatively mild carbonation.
S: fulsome on the nose, the aroma is lemony hoppy rich coupled with lightly dairy-ish, salty-sweet yeasty hints, very mild toasty malts, and orangey chocolates (just like the hints on the back label!);
T: healthily carbonated, the swallow features flat-textured black malts buttressing the zingy citric fruitiness on the top, gradually giving way for the dry-ish bitter palate from the good amount of hops and roast malts to linger towards the end, slightly chewy with a mild acidity but not in the same way as a heavily roasty stout, aged potent ale, or a highly hoppy IPA. In each sip the lightly toasty hints provide more of an aroma than a real flavour as such in the background, complementing the otherwise fruity hoppy elements just as well.
M&O: lightly carbonated, decently executed and balanced Black IPA all round. Not too special in any other sense than being a good session type of American Black Ale, with full honesty.
Feb 25, 2014
Photo of CwrwAmByth
Reviewed by CwrwAmByth from England

3.7/5  rDev +1.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
Poured from a 330ml bottle into a Fullers snifter glass. BBD Jan '15 so bottled Jan '13 I'm guessing.

Pours a dark brown/black colour, with a creamy off white head.

Smells hoppy - pine, and of those dark malts - liquorice.

Taste pretty much reflects the smell, big US hops and big malts competing. Quite a creamy texture to it.

Overall quite a decent beer, more like a hoppy stout.
Apr 07, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by Todd from Finland

Mar 20, 2013
Photo of thepeter
Reviewed by thepeter from England

3.1/5  rDev -14.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3
Dark Brown Mahogany hue in the light and no head really just swirls of froth and a bit of lace.
Mild aroma that is a bit pungent woody, hops and some cocoa
Tastes very woody to me, quite dry and a tinge of sour coming through from somewhere. not as much of a malt profile as i would like and very bitter aftertaste
The palate is a bit thin but smooth as most beers off the cask are. Does go down really nice and smooth
Overall an OK Black IPA but no balance and not too much character.
Nov 10, 2011
Code Black from Hardknott Brewery
Beer rating: 84 out of 100 with 15 ratings