Society & Solitude #2
Hill Farmstead Brewery

Society & Solitude #2Society & Solitude #2
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From:
Hill Farmstead Brewery
 
Vermont, United States
Style:
Black IPA
Ranked #1
ABV:
9.5%
Score:
96
Ranked #1,141
Avg:
4.32 | pDev: 7.18%
Reviews:
69
Ratings:
400
Status:
Active
Rated:
Friday at 09:21 PM
Added:
Jan 12, 2012
Wants:
  90
Gots:
  20
SCORE
96
World-Class
Society & Solitude #2Society & Solitude #2
Notes: Imperial Black IPA
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 4.16 by CraftFan5 from New Jersey

Friday at 09:21 PM
Photo of jngls
Reviewed by jngls from Germany

4.75/5  rDev +10%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
2 months old. Can to wine glass.

L: Pours a very dark brown, almost black. The foam is fluffy and leaves a good amount of lacing. No floaters.

S: Hoppy and malty at the same time. Lemon and fresh orange cutting into roasty notes of dark chocolate.

T: Malty, roasty and bitter up front followed by fruity hop notes. Lemon and orange again, but rather candied than fresh. Grapefruit‘s also there. So are piney and resiny notes.

F: Full and smooth with a medium carbonation.

O: Not a big fan of the style, but this has to be the best Black IPA I‘ve had so far. Great balance, very complex and clearly distinguishable HF. Very good beer.
May 23, 2023
 
Rated: 4.02 by Cpmitchno1 from Virginia

Apr 24, 2023
Photo of jrc1093
Reviewed by jrc1093 from Connecticut

4.3/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Canned on 1/11/23; consumed on 2/27/23

Pours a stark, jet-mahogany body topped with just under two fingers of rich, tan foam; good head retention leaves a finger of cap, moderate, frothy collar, and chunky rings accompanying a generous spatter of spotty lacing coating the walls of the glass.

Aromas of milk chocolate intertwine with grapefruit peel as nutty malt interludes see earthy cacao nibs pronounced through subtle grassiness while accents of coffee meet a touch of spruce.

Taste offers distant tones of peach pith easing to fresh coffee and a subtle, malty char upfront: a chocolatey prickle through residual grapefruit over the mid-palate finds wisps of boggy spice and wet moss on the back end as a dank kiss of dark cocoa finishes.

Mouthfeel brings a medium-light body and a rounded, moderate carbonation; a creamy silk, almost nitrogenated texturing supersedes a subdued, prickly char, drying steadily with a backing, resinous sensation through the finish.

The eclectic embrace is delicate yet extensive, cleanly displaying a quirky, even interplay of both malt and hop character; a healthy marriage of contrast at peak attenuation for a typically polarizing style.
Feb 28, 2023
 
Rated: 4.44 by mattmarka1 from Minnesota

Jan 27, 2023
 
Rated: 4.21 by timmy2b from New York

Jan 19, 2023
 
Rated: 4.25 by Holderness from Massachusetts

Jan 19, 2022
 
Rated: 4 by Bhubbard34 from Pennsylvania

Jan 11, 2022
 
Rated: 4.07 by DaveCash from New York

Dec 24, 2021
 
Rated: 4 by pepesylvia from Pennsylvania

May 14, 2020
 
Rated: 4.19 by Chuckdiesel24 from Illinois

Mar 19, 2020
 
Rated: 4.25 by Jdells09 from New Jersey

Mar 05, 2020
 
Rated: 4.71 by lovindahops from New York

Mar 04, 2020
 
Rated: 4.25 by jbarletto from Massachusetts

Apr 14, 2019
 
Rated: 4.07 by user785335 from Florida

Apr 10, 2019
 
Rated: 4.25 by hughesm12 from Massachusetts

Feb 08, 2019
 
Rated: 4.44 by Luscious_Malfoy from Illinois

Jan 23, 2019
 
Rated: 4.25 by rpjterp from Virginia

Jan 09, 2019
 
Rated: 4.1 by AD17 from New Jersey

Jan 05, 2019
 
Rated: 4.24 by Rub_This_BBQ from Massachusetts

Dec 31, 2018
Photo of ScaryEd
Reviewed by ScaryEd from New Hampshire

3.64/5  rDev -15.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.5
Poured from a growler into a tulip glass.

Pours a dark brown color with 2 fingers of effervescent tan head. Leaves a ton of lacing before settling into a thin sheet.

The aroma brings notes of charred leather, chocolate, and piney hops.

The flavor follows the nose. Very charred and smokey without notes of roasted chocolate, caramel, and pine.

The feel is medium-full bodied with moderate carbonation. Very soft, smooth and creamy.

Overall, a solid black ale. It's definitely less of a black IPA and more true to the style. It's very roasted and smokey. Not blown away by anything here but it's still well-made.
Dec 20, 2018
 
Rated: 3.5 by Phurley2 from Massachusetts

Nov 26, 2018
 
Rated: 4.28 by hopley from Massachusetts

Aug 19, 2018
 
Rated: 4.01 by Scottsbeer from Florida

Jun 29, 2018
 
Rated: 4.59 by smutty33 from Connecticut

May 03, 2018
 
Rated: 4.25 by thoglund from New York

Apr 26, 2018
 
Rated: 4 by Jhfinn from New York

Apr 18, 2018
 
Rated: 4.5 by lupercmda from North Carolina

Apr 11, 2018
 
Rated: 4.54 by DCHritz from Pennsylvania

Apr 11, 2018
 
Rated: 4.25 by Rizzy17 from Pennsylvania

Apr 11, 2018
 
Rated: 4.5 by jkrug5 from Maryland

Apr 10, 2018
Photo of EmperorBevis
Reviewed by EmperorBevis from England

4.44/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
Pours a jet black body with rich thick chocolate milkshake foam head that stays around more than the foo fighters
black jack chew aroma
flavourtreacle, dark fruit and whoa
Apr 02, 2018
 
Rated: 4.25 by Zekenyce from New Jersey

Feb 17, 2018
Photo of NolaHopHead
Rated by NolaHopHead from Louisiana

4.21/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
750 ml growler
Feb 13, 2018
 
Rated: 4.25 by peterpunk15 from Massachusetts

Feb 07, 2018
 
Rated: 4.44 by 7irondave from Massachusetts

Feb 04, 2018
 
Rated: 4.25 by paulish from New York

Jan 31, 2018
 
Rated: 4.5 by TomMorris from Connecticut

Jan 29, 2018
 
Rated: 3.98 by vfgccp from New York

Jan 27, 2018
Photo of GreesyFizeek
Reviewed by GreesyFizeek from New York

4.72/5  rDev +9.3%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75
Growler procured from the source.

This one pours a thick looking dark black, with a big fluffy head, and lots of lacing.

This smells more black than IPA, which works for me, as it get a deep chocolately aroma, some smoke, charred pine, and floral hops.

Leave it to Hill Farmstead to make a great version of a mostly flawed style. It's not quite as hoppy as I expected- the orange and charred pine flavors are more subtle background characters. The base black ale is excellent- creamy, lightly smoky, and very chocolatey.

This is surprisingly thick and viscous, with a killer creamy feel to it, and a very slight lingering bitterness.

This works on all levels for me. It's probably the best black IPA I've ever had.
Jan 23, 2018
Society & Solitude #2 from Hill Farmstead Brewery
Beer rating: 96 out of 100 with 400 ratings