Ska Brewing Co. tonight releases this year's Snowdown beer, The One Eyed Monster Black IPA. The tapping party begins at 5 p.m. at Ska, with bottles for sale.
Ska is the first of Durango's breweries to make a black IPA, a style popular in the Northwest. Last year, Ska's Snowdown beer was Hyper Fierce Gnar Gnar Hefe, an unfiltered hefeweizen brewed with toasted coconut and pineapple.
The One Eyed Monster has no such adjuncts, just water, malt, yeast and hops. It should be interesting. Black IPAs are an acquired taste — some drinkers like them and some just don't care for the style. I'll probably swing by Ska for a bottle tonight and write up a review when I can.
1554 is an "enlightened" ale by New Belgium that seems like a black IPA, and has been around for a while, and is a favorite of mine. Maybe it doesn't technically fall into the style but it's what I think of when thinking of black IPAs while I should be working. One eyed monster is an awesome name and I sent this link to my girlfriend to see what she thinks of it.
ReplyDeleteI like 1554 quite a bit, but I bet The One Eyed Monster is a very different sort of dark ale.
ReplyDeleteThe New Belgium beer is brewed with a lager yeast strain, and is likely less boozy (5.6 percent ABV) and much less hopped (21 IBUs) than Ska's new beer, although I haven't seen its stats yet.
1554 is tasty, but it's a different kind of monster.
I forgot to mention: The only beer close in style I've seen around here was Deschutes Hop in the Dark, a seasonal that I saw a few bombers of. It's gone now but will return in May.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.deschutesbrewery.com/brews/bond-street-series/hop-in-the-dark/default.aspx
Yeah I requested Star to get some Hop in the Dark because I wanted to try the style. I make my own black IPA by mixing Modus & Ten Pin in the glass!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the answer on the homebrew contest.