Tiger Tail
Pressure Drop Brewing

440ml can.
L: Black with a mahogany core. Some grains of suspended yeast. Creamy, ochre head leaves many arcs of lacing.
S: Served cold, so the nose is more subdued than it might otherwise be, but the sweet, smokey malt still shines.
T: Treacle, woodsmoke & orange zest. Exactly as described in the blurb on the can.
F: Smooth & very dry. Long, long finish.
O: I would not have thought smoke & orange zest would be a comfortable match but this works amazingly well. Distinctive AIPA character given a rich & intense bbq rub. Fantastic.

 

an awesome black ipa, done in collaboration with track, and brewed with pecan wood smoked orange zest and coriander, which really makes this a unique specimen, unlike any other i have had in this style really, and a heck of a first impression from pressure drop! deep matte black tone with a crazy aroma, not as smoke forward as i thought, but i can almost appreciate it as pecan wood specifically, have done quite a bit of cooking with it over the years, its distinct and decidedly not the cherrywood smoked malt or whatever other more common ways we end up with smoked beers. this is all its own, and the citrus with the hops is crazy bright, even in front of all the dark grain, which ends up in the stout or porter range in terms of deep roast. the name of the beer makes awesome sense, like its orange for a second with the citrus and the hops, and then black again with the smoke and the roasted barley, back and forth through the whole drink. i love the hops selected for this, some juicy citrus to them too, but also bright melon and sweet herbal character, which the coriander sort of helps bring out of it. this is so thoughtful and complex, i love it. there is mixed bitterness here at the end, some from the roast like an italian espresso, some from the hops, classic higher alpha blast, while there is also a little acid from the orange zest keeping it from getting too heavy. its bold and frothy, almost creamy feeling, not real bubbly but it doesnt need to be. really neat layers of flavor here, and the smoked orange is obvious all the way through it, perfect with this grain base and these hops. really smart and well executed beer, and really the most exciting thing to happen to a black ipa in a long time. awesome job on this, wow! if you like some smoke in your beer, dont miss this one!