Dark Thoughts
Baerlic Brewing Company

Dark ThoughtsDark Thoughts
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From:
Baerlic Brewing Company
 
Oregon, United States
Style:
Black IPA
Ranked #56
ABV:
6.66%
Score:
89
Ranked #12,347
Avg:
4 | pDev: 5.5%
Reviews:
6
Ratings:
18
Status:
Active
Rated:
Oct 08, 2023
Added:
Apr 05, 2016
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  1
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by JamarcusMarinovich:
Photo of JamarcusMarinovich
Rated by JamarcusMarinovich from California

3.68/5  rDev -8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Apr 14, 2018
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.35 by The_Kriek_Freak from Pennsylvania

Oct 08, 2023
 
Rated: 4.05 by WillieThreebiers from Connecticut

Sep 03, 2023
Photo of LiquidAmber
Reviewed by LiquidAmber from Washington

4.09/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Poured into a Seattle Beer Week pint glass. Pours a very dark mahogany brown with little light transmission in the glass and a half finger light khaki head with good retention and light lacing. Aroma of mild dark toasted malt, citrus and piney hops, grapefruit, pine, mild mixed tropical fruit and a touch of coffee. Flavor is dark toasted malt, citrus and piney hops, grapefruit, lemon, pine, light mixed fruit and light cocoa and coffee. Nice piney and citrus bitterness in the finish. Medium bodied with light to moderate creaminess. Always looking for Cascadian IPAs, and this has the classic NW hop bill dominated by citrus and pine and a somewhat restrained dark toasted malt body. The hops are up to speed, but the malt is not as toasty and intense as many of these. A satisfactory black IPA, but could use a bit more char depth. With a little dialing in, this could be stellar.
Nov 25, 2021
 
Rated: 3.93 by shelby415 from Oregon

Jun 15, 2020
 
Rated: 3.96 by Beernoobie from California

Jan 01, 2020
Photo of snaotheus
Reviewed by snaotheus from Washington

3.83/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
2019-11-12
16oz can served in a big snifter. Canned on 9/30/2019.

Pours black with a medium sized, pale head. Medium carbonation. Smell is tropical and plums (dunno why). Somehow, also fresh smelling.

Taste a pretty good IPA (tropical juice and a little pine) with some roasty bitter characteristics.

Mouthfeel is fairly crisp. Overall, not the most successful black IPA I've ever had, but a pretty good one.
Nov 13, 2019
 
Rated: 3.73 by BirdsandHops from Oregon

Sep 10, 2019
 
Rated: 4.18 by Seantronz3030 from Washington

Mar 26, 2019
Photo of bret717
Reviewed by bret717 from Pennsylvania

4.13/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Canned 10/15/18, Reviewed 11/4/18

Look- Pours cola brown, but appears almost black in the glass. Foamy tan head that settles to a thin coating that leaves spotty lacing

Smell- Predominantly juicy citrus and tropical fruits with subtle roasted coffee in the background

Taste- follows the nose with a lot of juicy citrus and tropical fruit, along with roasted coffee beans and bakers chocolate with a nice bitterness. The malt notes are more prevalent in the flavor than they were in the nose.

Feel- medium-bodied w/moderate carbonation; finish is moderately bitter, and the bitterness lingers for a while.

Overall- I really liked this a lot. It’s basically a “juicy” black IPA, and the contrast between the juicy hop notes and roasty malt notes are working well for me. It’s kind of weird, because I don’t like to drink coffee and OJ together, and this is the beer equivalent of that. I think the key is that the malt flavors stay in the background. If they were more pronounced, I’m not sure I’d like it as much.
Nov 05, 2018
 
Rated: 4.5 by GrantBrennan from Pennsylvania

Oct 31, 2018
 
Rated: 4.25 by Sir_Goatman from Oregon

Oct 30, 2018
 
Rated: 3.76 by Grackos from Florida

Jul 01, 2018
 
Rated: 3.72 by DrIPA21 from Arizona

Mar 06, 2018
Photo of Lingenbrau
Reviewed by Lingenbrau from Oregon

4.04/5  rDev +1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
It is very dark, but not quite 'black'. More like an extremely deep walnut, Dark Thoughts looks clean, and is capped by a fine bubbled and foamy light tan head. It spackles the glass nicely.

Very interesting aromas creep up from the surface. Obviously, new house varietals we're used as tropical notes of mango and melon take lead. Underneath, toasted bread, licorice, and even a mild rubber band aromas cone through. I'm surprised to get very little pine and no earthy presence at all.

Aside from a mild roasted grain character and a hint of damp earth, this is unlike any Black IPA I've had. The fruity bursts mixed with the burnt rubber (a trait I commonly associate with Chinook hops) dominate over the former, which would easily fool me of this beers appearance.

Its body is smooth yet crisp enough to return for sip after sip. It is definitely bitter, but not face puckering as it would indicate on it's label. The bitterness seems to be equally contributed by the hops and the roasted grains.

I really enjoyed Dark Thoughts. It is a unique and perhaps modern twist on the style, but not as intense as I'd like. I want CDA/Black IPA's to be cheek stripping with bitterness and dominated by roasted flavors. This comes a bit short in both of those areas, yet is still a great beer that I will gladly revisit. Cheers.
Jan 16, 2018
Photo of jakecattleco
Reviewed by jakecattleco from California

3.79/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75
Bottle of unknown age into a tulip glass. Pours thin black, almost dark brown, with 2+ fingers of white variable density head that had moderate head retention and left ringed and scattered lacing. Nose is by far the most tropical I've ever smelled on a CDA, no malt character on the nose whatsoever. Taste mostly follows the nose, but with some smokiness. It's find of a strange mix of flavors for what I'm use to having on a CDA. Finishes fairly clean, a bit of lingering bitterness. Mouthfeel is thin, more like a brown ale, and carbonation medium. Strange take on a style I normally like, won't repeat.
Feb 21, 2017
Photo of StJamesGate
Reviewed by StJamesGate from New York

3.9/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
On tap at the brewery, Portland.
Speckling rimming tan over chocolate ruby. 3.75
Blood orange nose - no roast. 3.75
Brown bread, some orange peel, resin, and herb oil. 4
Close to medium, oily, snappy. 3.75

Columbus, Chinook, Nugget

Light - more an American Brown. No roast, and some pretty delicate hopping for 3 bittering varieties. (And Maris Otter, for some reason.) Curious what the brewer was thinking. Different. 4
Jun 24, 2016
 
Rated: 4.08 by kylehay2004 from Illinois

Apr 05, 2016
Dark Thoughts from Baerlic Brewing Company
Beer rating: 89 out of 100 with 18 ratings