Trout Hop Black IPA
Grand Teton Brewing Co.

 

 

 

Bottle from Boise Co-op. Decent but not memorable black IPA, decent aroma and taste, but no specific character rises above. Good, but not outstanding.

 

Very beautiful beer. Billowing light brown head contrasting a deep warm brown body.

It is very busy. The malts and hops fighting for attention. First smooth maltiness then spicy hop bombs followed by malt and lingering pine. Not the most pleasant of transitions certainly.

 

 

L: jet black, with a lacing tan head
S: roasted malt, light resin
T: pretty much follows the nose
F: slightly bitter finish to compliment the malts
O: reminds me of a porter, just a little hopped up

 

 

Gives a black pour, not used oil black, but you know, nighttime like black. Aroma really impressive. Whereas 90% of black ales just drop substantial roast this one actually hits the pine and fruit notes in a major way. When I think of elite 1st tier ipas, this one, O'Dells and Lagunitas really are top dogs.

Taste still drops a little bit of chocolate malt, and it hits with the orange. Pine and juniper notes come off almost minty, that's the type of levity, non heavy not a malt or roast bomb that this is.

Seriously, this is Grand Teton's best beer. They do it better than 98% of other examples of style out there.

another good one from these guys. i always enjoy their beer, and this is a wonderful example of the style. strong and insanely hoppy, but also really rich and soft in the feel, sturdy in its base, and layered on the grain side. just a really great brew that sort of merges the stout and strong ipa categories. looks great in the glass, bright but short of shiny and perfectly black, with a short but thick mocha colored head like an espresso crema with great retention. it smells like pine to me, none of the northwestern citrus aromatics on this one, more of a wet forest and a christmas tree. the dark grains are remarkably expressive as well. coffee and ashy roasted bitterness abound, and they are there in the flavor providing one heck of a launching pad for these piney hops. oily and bitter on the hops, really woodsy and dense, but lively too. hints of sweeter grain in the middle give it depth, and it finishes roasty and warming, with just a little of the alcohol peaking through and a dash of milk chocolate. impressive beer overall, sort of a style definer for me. i dont see this around all that much, which is a shame. i am thirsty for more of this, a real beauty!

Traded with my man @sixthring. Poured into a tulip.

Looks like a Porter or stout, really chocolaty and dark, with a decent head and plenty of lacing.

Nose is roasted coffee and nuts, perfect for a stout lover.

Tastes like a roasted and malty brew with plenty of hops and backbone. Black IPAs usually disapoint, but this is a solid offering. Very complex and full of flavor.

Mouth feel is smooth considering the nose and looks. Great after taste that hangs around.

Overall this is one of my favorite black iPAs. Right behind wookie, beer III, and stone lastest drink by balck ipa. A solid brew that people should start drinking and considering if you like this style.

Appearance: A bubble show creates a nice beige head over the fudge brown liquid; tawny highlights appear at the edges; splashes of lacing linger

Smell: Burnt black bread, ashy and smoky, with piney resin tones intermingling

Taste: The 117 IBUs don't give the malts a second to establish themselves and bring a resinous and piney character that adds a minty element; underneath, the malts edge forward, ashy and smoky, with a burnt black bread character; after the the swallow, both flavor elements battle it out to a draw

Mouthfeel: Medium to full body with moderate carbonation; some warmth in the gullet

Overall: Nothing subtle about this beer and it has a brashness that reminds me of a certain Presidential candidate whose name sounds strikingly similar to trout; I can see why this beer has high scores but it just is not what I am looking for in this style

 

On tap; poured into a pint glass.
Apperance - blackish brown, with just a touch of red against the light. Medium, butterscotch colored head that recedes quickly, but leaves nice, thick lacing!
Smell - roasted coffee and malts dominate, though I do pick up some floral and piney hops; just not enough.
Taste - far more malt flavors here, as opposed to hops, which is fine, however I prefer the hops to win out in a black IPA.
Feel - rough and robust up front, a bitter kick to finish; this is how a black IPA should feel!
Overall - this is a good beer, but it needs the hops to stand out in the nose and taste like it does in feel.

Ever since I had Wookey Jack I've been trying Black IPAs to compare. This is a good one. Not exactly WJ but still descent. Deep brown/ black in appearance, average mouthfeel and a roasty malt character that pairs well with the right amount of bitterness. I won't say black ipas are my favorite but they are definitely gaining steam. This one falls behind WJ and Mountain Standard but # 3 ain't bad

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

12 oz. bottle just purchased but with a bottled on date of 12-2014.

A: Pours black with a tan head. The head is thick, creamy , moderately durable, and leaves excellent lacing.

Aroma: has dark roasted grains with near equal hops (diminished by age?). Even with the relatively weak somewhat subdued hops (for style) there's a nice interplay between the two contrasting aromas.

The flavor is reversed, with more hop intensity than malts. Faint dark toast, smoke and coffee. A hint of chocolate. Plenty of roasted malt flavor plus moderately intense piney-woody-herbal hops. It finishes mildly bitter with some coffee.

O: a pleasing and tasty Black IPA with good balance for style and well hidden alcohol. Both aroma and flavor approach 4.

 

 

Poured from bottle into pint glass.

A really deep brown, in the dark restaurant it appeared entirely black until held up to a beam of light peaking through.

Good balance between dark malt aroma and American, piney hops.

The flavor is unfolds for a very long time and was extremely complex. Nutty, chocolate malt flavors followed by very pronounced grapefruit and pine-like hops. Not as bitter as I expected for my first 100plus IBU beer.

Quite a heavy mouthfeel. Dry finish.

This is a fantastic beer. Stands up to the strongest of flavors, had mine with cave aged blue cheese and bitterness of the beer stood up perfect to the rich cheese.

 

old chicago gets some good beers in

 

Great black ipa. Wish it wasn't seasonal.

 

 

Yum! Very good beer from a great brewery.

 

Poured from the bottle into a Spiegelau IPA glass.

Deep dark ruby red and brown body, from a distance looks like deep walnut brown. Head is creamy rich and billows four fingers tall. Light tan color, espresso cream looking and very thin swiss cheese bubbles. Lots of staying power with island puck retention and head. Excellent looking beer with copious amount of ringed lacing while drinking.

Aroma works nicely with a subtle citrus to tropical fruity hop bent. Indistinct and a little mushy, but also manages some sweet dark malts of chocolate in the mix as well. Pretty subdued, but also very good balance with the sweetness which gives some oomph to the hop aroma.

Palate comes quite surprising. Very simple and solid mid palate. Not quite juiced mouthfeel but light IPA like pleasantries give some tropical fruit bitter tones of lime and mango. Finish is a growing and very slow rise of hop bitterness that washes with lots of dry pine that grows exponentially but very slowly. Minimal use of sugar sweetness as the hop forward palate steers toward a tolerable bitterness, but getting to borderline hot.

Overall a nice simple Black ale that works alright.

Served on tap in a pint glass

Appearance – The beer is served deep-brown, almost black color with a one finger had of cream colored foam. The head has a moderate level of retention, slowly fading to leave a lighter level of foamy lace on the sides of the glass.

Smell – The aroma of the beer is quite heavy of a chocolate and caramel smell mixed with some other aromas of a pine and grapefruit smell. There are some lighter notes of tropical fruits and a little bit of grass thrown in the mix as well.

Taste – The taste begins with a chocolate malt flavor mixed with some caramel and a decent showing of roast. Along with these taste are some nice pine and grassy hop tastes, which start out light, but get stronger and stronger as the taste moves on. Other hop tastes of a citrus nature join in as the taste moves on all while some more pine and a woody like flavor develop later. With the caramel and chocolate fading a tad at the end, one is left with a balanced and moderately hopped roasted flavor to linger on the tongue.

Mouthfeel – The body of the beer is a tad thinner then I was anticipating all while the carbonation level was fairly standard. The lighter body did make for a nice medium as it keep it rather easy drinking and had enough robustness to uphold the hop flavors all while not making the roasted and sweet flavors from becoming the dominant flavor factor. Fairly well done.

Overall – A quite tasty black IPA. It is nice and balanced and has a good clean drinking taste which makes for one to try if you get the chance.