Black Top
New Glarus Brewing Company

RB transfer

 

 

 

 

Pours brown with a modest amount of head. Aroma is lightly roasted malt with a hint of molasses. Taste is roasted malt with chocolate on that back of the tongue. The overall mouthfeel is quite smooth and smack dab in the middle of light and heavy. A nice black IPA, perhaps one of the best, that goes down smoothly.

 

 

L: Pours a deep brown to black color with no light coming through the glass. The pour produces 3 fingers of fine, pillowy khaki colored head. As the beer goes down it leaves a mass of webbed lacing on the glass.

S: Light notes of grainy roasted malt and chocolate, subtle grassiness, citrus, and earthy pine needles.

T: A big chocolate note that rides the palate interlacing with notes of roasted grains, bitter grapefruit pith, earthy pine resin, fresh cut grass, and hints of coffee and tobacco. This has a nice medium to medium-high bitterness.

F: Medium plus body with ample carbonation. The mouthfeel is smooth and clean with pleasant light drying on the finish.

O: This is a world class black ipa that is delightfully complex with an expertly crafted balance between the malt and hop bills. A clean drinking beer with a drying finish that keeps you coming back for another sip. At almost 7%ABV the alcohol is well hidden. Highly recommended!

This is a well made black IPA...nice notes of roasted malt, dark chocolate, milk chocolate, citrus, and very light char...

Body is medium....drinks and feels more like a black pale ale in my opinion....thinner in body than Alpha Claus which I drank side by side in a blind taster and selected Alpha Claus in the end in a pretty close call....hops lend oranges, tangerines and a touch of grapefruit...citrus all the way....

As always anything from New Glarus is going to shine...not sure I've ever had anything below average from this brewery...this is well above average but not as good as Alpha Claus in my opinion..

 

 

 

Picked up at a Woodman’s in WI late October 2024. NG seems like the kind of brewery that can’t make a bad beer so I grab whatever I could from them during my short time in the state. Haven’t had a Black IPA in a while. Seems more like a pale ale judging by the hop profile. Resinous and piney but not super strong. Tasty stuff and well balanced, plenty of roasted malt. A good example of the style.

12 oz bottle 6pk purchased 10/26/24 into a tulip glass.
L: SRM 30 pours a very dark brown color with a 1/4" light khaki creamy head that has VG retention, fine steady carbo bubbles, medium scattered random lacing.
S: Very distant floral hops, a light malt note, distant grain char.
T: Heavily caramelized chocolate malts, very light grain char, a suggestion of dark fruits, red grape, distant dry cocoa, Bright grapefruit zest that lingers alongside resin, it is gently sharp.
F: Lightly brisk then soft, creamy and plush medium-bodied feel with a semi-full flavored center and a long fairly drying finish that lingers.
O: A gorgeous tasting resinous Black IPA. Incredibly plush mouthfeel. For a dark beer it tastes bright. Toasty flavor with a long, dry finish. Well balanced and mildly exotic with well hidden ABV. It is outstanding in its style.

 

Appearance: Pours a nearly completely black color with a subtle deep bronze clarity hue. A massive light tan head that is thick and lingers. SRM of 22. (4.50)

Aroma: Moderate to strong aromas of earthy tangerine, orange, pine, with a smooth roasted malt underneath. (4.25)

Flavor: Strong flavors of orange, tangerine, resinous pine upfront. Then turns bitter in the middle followed by a smooth roasted dark black malt of orange and pine mixed with a balance of dark chocolate and coffee. Dry and clean off the finish. (4.25)

Feel: Medium-bodied, strong carbonation. Bitter, yet complex and clean off the finish. (4.00)

Overall: Not a style you come across too often. The Black IPA. This is ranked the #15 Black IPA on BeerAdvocate and my first try. Pours absolutely beautifully. Orange, pine like a West-Coast IPA up front. The lots of bitterness mixed with some subtle dark chocolate and coffee notes. Finishes dry, clean, and drinkable.
This IPA is shockingly impressive. Drinks resinous like Celebration upfront. Then some WC bitterness with a complex finish of citrus and dark flavors. This is an astounding IPA. (Rating: 4.29)

Clear mahogany with a lingering ivory head. Lots of lace. Crackers, stone fruit and a touch of pine in the aroma. Roasted malts dominate the hops, which are present mainly in the bittering. It's labeled a dark IPA, but don't expect a hops bomb.
Finish is long and malty. Medium mouthfeel.

Who said India Dark Ales were passé? Not New Glarus, which has brought its version of the style back into the rotation for a limited time. I bought a six pack, drank that faster than I anticipated, then bought another six pack yesterday and am down to two bottles at this time of writing. There must be something really special here. On to the beer:

I'd say it looks close enough to black, and the lacing it leaves still sticks around long after I poured the beer into the glass and gulped it down. Black Top has found a way to mix the malt with hops and allow both the chocolate-like flavors along with piney and vague citrus from the hops to emerge and create a show. Sometimes the India Dark Ale can get quite astringent, but in Black Top there's nothing that stops you from gulping down bottle after bottle except a sneaky ABV.

12oz bottle. Etched code on the bottle is '024194142273A'.
Clear, deep brown colored body. One finger of beige head settles back to a bubbly cap and high ring. Leaves behind partial wide horizontal lacing bands.
Aroma of roasted malts, citrus fruit, and pine.
Taste is molasses abrasive with a touch of smoke and peat, along with a heavy dose of pine resin, and a touch of orange citrus. Aftertaste mixes and swirls all of the flavors.
Medium mouthfeel. Crisp and clean finish. Noticeable tongue and sides of mouth numbing. Very good carbonation.
Gets cola sweeter farther into the glass, but the initial roasted bitterness remains throughout.