The West Wind Black IPA
Lake of Bays Brewing Company

 

 

Can - puts a dark brown clear ale with ruby highlights in the glass and a small off white cap which laces the glass walls well. Aroma is pungent with roastiness and floral-citrus hopping, some light burnt treacle notes. Flavor is intense with a good blast of roasty malts balanced with piney hop bittering and just a hint of licorice sweetness ...goes to a long dry bittering finish. Very decent Cascadian ale and from an unexpected source too, I have never cared for much of this brewer's out put but this really is worth a second taste.

Tallboy can from the LCBO; dated Sept 22 2017 and served barely chilled.

Deep brown in colour with crimson red highlights, this attractive-looking brew comes equipped with more than an inch of foamy, fluffy, khaki-toned head that gradually erodes over the next five minutes or so. Tons of sticky, webby, similarly hued lacing is splattered about in the process, with a decent-sized cap of creamy froth surviving in its place. Looks great to me. Citrusy aromas of grapefruit are discernible beneath a torrent of roasted malts, baker's chocolate and coffee. Resiny pine is also highly prominent, with kind of an earthy, herbal undertone to the nose.

A bold-flavoured brew, if nothing else - quite bitter as expected, but the malts hardly shy away from the spotlight. Molasses sweetness and rich dark chocolate come through at first, as does a touch of coffee grounds but the Centennial, Cascade and Idaho 7 hops pick up steam quickly from thereon in. A very earthy, resiny bitterness begins to take hold on the back end, obscuring hints of grapefruit and muddled orange citrus. Finishes with a dirty, herbal root-like note that is followed up by a long, astringent aftertaste. Medium-full bodied, with restrained carbonation and a smooth, slick, somewhat oily mouthfeel. An easy enough tipple at 7%, but the unrelenting bitterness builds upon itself, limiting its overall drinkability.

Final Grade: 3.78, a B+. Lake of Bays went out on a limb with The West Wind Black IPA, and while I applaud their continuing effort to extend beyond their old comfort zone - in this case, with an intensely bitter beer that may very well not be everyone's cup of tea - I'm not sure this one came together as well as it could've. I'll likely revisit this a few more times - after all, there still aren't all that many black IPAs to select from in these parts, and the fact that some of this one's proceeds are supporting the Art Gallery of Ontario is an added point in its favour.

Looks tasty enough. Big head, laces as it goes. Walnut coloured. Hoppy nose, sweet malt, coffee, dark chocolate lurking in the background. Tastes like a hoppy stout, tasty enough. Thin bodied, lingering bitterness. Drinkable without being too exciting. One of the better offerings from this outfit.

 

 

 

From a 473ml can served almost straight from the fridge at 10 degrees Celsius into a white wine glass. Packaged on date: 21.09.2017.

Look: The beer pours a clear (yet opaque) very dark brown with red highlights and 3cm of dense, deep tan head that dissipates into a craggy cap in 4+ minutes. Good lacing and overall head.

Smell: Moderate strength and sharp. American hops at the front followed by roasted malts. Notes of resinous pine, citrus & tropical fruit, as well as roasty coffee. I'm also getting notes of musky rubber but I wonder if it's only the combination of herbal/vegetal hops and the roasted malts acting as a trigger. In any case, even though I mostly enjoy the aroma, I don't find the balance harmonious – some tweaking is required to prevent the clashing ingredients.

Taste: Follows the aroma with moderate strength and bitter balance. Again, hops at the front reminiscent of pine, mango, and grapefruit. The malts follow with roasted – borderline charred – coffee. Overall not bad however the ingredients definitely clash with the malts possibly being too extreme in their roastiness. The finish is lengthy, of moderate strength, and bitter with an excessive minerality. I'm noticing a pattern of high minerality with LB, is it their water?

Feel: Medium body with moderate carbonation. Somewhat creamy and drying with smooth and balanced alcohol warming. An assertive bitterness that contributes to a degree of astringency.

Overall: I think this beer has potential, however the recipe needs to be tweaked to prevent the clashing ingredients. Overall the brew has a few flaws with some complexity and a low-ish drinkability due to the high bitterness and borderline ashy malts. Maybe it doesn't sound like it, but I think the beer is possibly worth a try for someone who likes an assertive bitterness and a strong, roasty character in their brew.

473 ml can served cold into a pint glass. Purchased for about $3.25 CDN from the LCBO. Probably looking forward to this Lake of Bays beer more than any other in recent memory. Canning date appears to be September 18, 2017. Cool can inspired by some Group of Seven artwork. Expecting big time bitterness with 90 IBU's.

Appearance - Dark cola brown, eliminates virtually all light. Close to two fingers of pillowy light tan colored head. Frothy looking could be the top of a cappuccino. Good head retention and some streaks of lacing cling to the glass to the last sip.

Smell - Quite roasty with some charred malt and tropical notes. Some starfruit and papaya with overripe melon. A little bit vegetative initially when cold.

Taste - Very roasty with charred malt, very bitter and some ashy qualities. Tropical fruits on the nose don't really show in the flavor. Quite a bit of pine mixed in as well. A little too bitter for the sake of being bitter.

Mouthfeel - Reasonably carbonated, but has a soft feel to it, medium dry finish and good heft to the body, on the heavier side of medium. Initially prickly on the tongue.

Overall - The West Wind is a bit of a let down and while I appreciate the intent for a big, bold and bitter ale, if the flavor profile was a little more nuanced and could incorporate some of the tropical notes on the nose, this would be a big winner. Instead, I may revisit, but also might not.

 

 

 

 

 

Can from the brewery: it is called a black IPA - Pours dark brown, almost black, some readish elements. Creamy head with generous lacing. Aroma, deep dark coffee. An element of funk? Flavour chocolate, coffee, licorice, huge roastiness but not much hop bitterness as I would expect.