Javelin Ale
JW Dover Beer & Wine Makers Supplies / Black Box Brewing Co.

 

 

 

poured out of a 12 oz. bottle into one of my pint glasses, this beer pours a cloudy, hazy, dark amber/copper color. The fluffy off white head is well over an inch thick when first poured and eventually settles to a nice thick ring lining the inside of the glass with some nice clusters of a film layers of foam here and there on the beer's surface. Pretty decent lacing too. Aromas of caramel malt and dark fruit such as raisins and plums are certainly present along with a bit of spice. Flavor wise it is pretty much the same with some nice malty caramel sweetness upfront that gives way to the aforementioned dark fruit flavors followed by some spicey notes of hints of clove, cinnamon, peppercorn and a slight touch of rye before being rounded out with a bit of citrus, earthy hops. Perfect balance of the sweetness, the spiceyness, and the hops on the back end. Has a crisp and smooth, medium to full bodied mouthfeel with moderate carbonation and a dry aftertaste. An interesting beer here for sure and certainly worth a try. One I'd also happily go out of my way to drink again!

Eric

 

 

As of right now, Black Box only kegs their beers and you can only get a growler of one of their three beers. I grabbed a growler at Black Box on 9/25/2009. The label they put on the growler has a figure of a man ready to throw a large spear that looks like a very large toothpick. To the left of the picture is all the mandatory US information with the ABV% and the best serving temperature. To the right of the picture is a description of the beer and the Black Box symbol of a black diamond. The label states that this beer is a an American Amber Rye with an ABV of 6.5%.

When poured into a German Pilsener glass, this Amber Rye beer appeared to look like it was a dark brown color, but a closer inspection lead me to believe that it was more of a dark amber that had some brown and cranberry coloring mixed into the dark amber. Let's just say that it was a unique color. On top of this beer was 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch creamy head of foam. The head of foam wasn't tan or white in color. It was more of an off white color. This head of foam had pretty good retention that left behind a big foamy string of off white colored rings and a few small blots of lace around the glass.

I was surprised to find out that Javelin was extremely fruity in the nose. The biggest fruit in the aroma was the raspberry. Behind the strong scent of raspberry was a hint of grape and a gentle touch of malted rye. If it's swirled around, a whiff of green apple will emerge from the background.

There wasn't all that much going on in the taste. It was as fruity as the aroma suggested, but there was however a little more malted rye in the taste than there was in the aroma. It started off with some dry malted rye and then after about 2 seconds, in comes the fruits. My taste buds were able to pick out a little raspberry and grapes. After the fruits pass, this beer then finishes up with a subtle bitterness. It was pretty much a standard Ale taste except that it was made with malted rye.

This was a light bodied Ale that had more than enough carbonation and a subtle fruity aftertaste of raspberries, grapes, and a hint of malted rye. This fruity aftertaste will linger on for about 5 seconds and then it go on its way.

I know some Ales con be a little fruity, but this non-fruit beer took the cake. It's really noting all that special, but it can make for an easy drinking standard Rye Ale. This is one of Black Box's first beers and this proves that they are going in the right direction with their beers.