Plague Doctor
Trap Door Brewing

2026-05-10
16oz can served in a curvy Monhegan pint glass. Can is not dated, as far as I can see. Bought it a week ago at Chuck's Hop Shop.

Pours dark brown at the thin parts and near black at thick parts. Smallish head, tan in color, fairly coarse. Lots of carbonation. Smell is roast coffee and pine, some toffee.

Taste is similar, seems surprisingly malty and rich, bitterness is a strong compound of burnt coffee, singed toffee, and pine resin.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied, surprisingly smooth despite the apparent carbonation. Overall, pretty good.

a style i adore but seems to have become harder and harder to find in recent years, even in the northwest where it belongs, so i was stoked to see this on tap, been loving the hoppy stuff from these guys pretty much across the board. this is a somewhat lighter take on a style that can easily run into the imperial range or darn near it more often than not, and its not just the alcohol being a little more chill, its also the bitterness in this one. sometimes the hops and roast together can create a sort of bitterness double jeopardy, but this is lower ibu than just about any black ipa i can recall, plenty hoppy in aroma and flavor, but it doesnt finish so intensely, which gives it a perceived smoothness and ease that i think is uncommon in these, nice recipe choice there. the whole recipe is in fact quite interesting, munich malt and some flaked rye in this, a little different, i dont taste a ton of rye but i do get some nice earthy nuance and a little balancing middle malt sweetness, and it has layers and depth without being heavy, so fantastic, light smoke, soil, chocolate, char. the hops are a crazy mix, i mean we usually see the high alpha stuff in them, less of the fruit bombs, but here we are with superdelic and nelson also in play with more familiar agents of the style like simcoe and chinook as well as cryo columbus which pops this whole thing off too. i did not get as much of the fruity character as i would expect from this mix in the taste, but i love the freshness and the complexity, strong citrus, juniper and rosemary and that wintery botanical family, some brighter lemony and even white wine notes, but not all thiol driven or anything, still recognizable as what it is, but to me distinct enough to really be quite original, love the softness and dryness, love the lack of bitter burn, and the space this leaves for the grain. lovely specimen.