Black IPAs fresh?

That's Gus! He keeps me company while drinking!

 

Based on some homebrewing experiments, I've found that black IPAs hold their hoppiness longer than IPAs. From what I understand, black malts have antioxidant properties and prevent the oxidation that causes hops to degrade. I'm not entirely sure of all of this, but it has played out in practice for me.

 

That beer was/is great. I've had it half a dozen times this year and it's insanely good. Drank my last bottle though it was so good

 

I have been working on a 4 pack of Blakkr that is 3+ months old. It is a truly glorious beer. Never had it fresh, but if it lost anything then damn.

 

There's nothing like that fresh hop aroma in a beer to leave a strong impression and keep you coming back for more. Black IPA's are no exception. I find myself chasing "that one bottle" that had extremely fresh hop aroma. When it delivers it is a beautiful thing.

 

In my opinion - fresh. I love that fresh citrus flavor that comes with some of my favorites fresh. After a fade its still a tasty beer, but not what I bought it for.

 

Best example I have currently in my fridge is Uranus - I bought enough of those so I could have some fresh but leave some in the fridge until the mood strikes to have it with some chocolate (which really isn't often). To this point I haven't noticed a huge change but it's been about a month since I had one. At that point I think they were maybe 2 months old which probably isn't enough time for a huge hop falloff since it's been in the fridge.

tl;dr if it's changing it's subtle and I haven't minded at all.

 

I've had Uranus. Wasn't worth the effort.

I don't need a Black IPA to be as fresh as an IPA, but as for Cascadian Dark Ale...

 

Sublimely is about the only Black IPA I'd ever say I loved. I had Wookie, but it wasn't all that fresh, would like to find one under 30 days vs 4 months.

 

I had Maine Beer Company's Weez on Tap....it was worthy. Yet I'm usually not a fan of Black IPAs. I don't really feel Dark Malts help to accent Hop Oils. Weez though was good on tap, the bottle versions aren't bad but not like it was on Tap. The only "Black IPA" I age is Storm King.

 

Not a huge fan of the style. The market is saturated with many mediocre ones.
Wookey, and Sublimely are both delicious fresh though. As with any IPA, the hop character will diminish.
I would neglect to buy ones that have been sitting around for awhile.

 

Boneyard's Armored Fist will make you a fan of the CDA!

 

Ouch!

 

Personally, I think they should be very balanced, so depends on the ale. If it is Dark Penance? No

 

Best Black IPA I have ever tried.....Jukebox Hero - Revolution Brewing - Chicago!!!

 

Huh? I must be missing something here.

 

Those two are by far the most damaging to the style - they set the bar too highly!

I generally love Cascadians, and my drinking experience will go one of two ways depending on the age. If it's noticeably fresh, they make me crave a crisp IPA. If they are older, they make me crave an RIS with slight hop notes along with a rich chocolate and / or licorice thing happening, like Old Raspy for instance. I personally don't feel like I can go wrong with one!

 

Marshall El Cucuy is good fresh or aged. The only difference I can tell is that when its fresh it has this citrus tinge to it which is gone in a few months. That's okay with me because I have to be in the right mood for a black IPA. I don't drink them often, but I won't let El Cucuy to get away so I buy it when I see it.

 

I just bought some Nighttime directly from the source at the brewery in Petuluma. I wrongly assumed that pulling it directly from their fridge meant fresh beer. Turned out to be 6 months old. Definitely lost some of the aroma I was hoping for. Not a bad beer by any means, but certainly a diminished beer.

 

Otter creek BIPA was my go to when fresh, was never easy to find it less than 2 months and most was 8+. It's not made anymore so back in black is my new go to. Wookey is way too expensive. It's actually the only large format that cost more in 12oz bottles I can think of.

Enjoy