Blackened Hops vs. New World Porter

Colleen and I decided to do an impromptu beer tasting/judging between two beers within the same style: Black IPA. Some are calling it American Black Ale, or Cascadian Dark Ale, or however else one should deem a dark, hoppy, bitter beer. It's a new style that is quickly becoming quite popular to brew, and in fact I am brewing one with my father tomorrow! The two beers we tasted were "Blackened Hops" from the Sam Adams Longshot Homebrew Competition and "New World Porter" from Avery. New World Porter is actually classified as an "American Porter," suggesting it's a more bitter porter. But, in many contexts and on their newer label, it reads as a Black IPA.

The Blackened Hops had a strong hoppy flavor--floral, citrus, and pine. A bit "grassy." The flavor was malty, a bit smoky, some faint roasted grains, and more bitterness from the hops. This was a nicely balanced beer, not over the top in any direction. It nicely maintained it's head for the entire glass, too.

New World Porter definitely tasted more like a porter. Surprise! There was not nearly as much hoppy aroma, hardly any if that. It had a chocolaty, coffee, smoky flavor, and more malt than the other. There was definitely a lot of hop bitterness, particularly if you had "porter" in your mind. But the bitterness was not overwhelming, and probably not all that present if thinking "IPA." There really wasn't much about this that screamed, "IPA!" but the bitterness was clearly at a higher IBU (international bittering units). Overall, we liked it but were not totally impressed.

The winner?



You got it: Blackened Hops! This is a really nice, hoppy, yet dark and roasty ale. A strong example of what this style is supposed to taste (and smell) like. Nicely done, Rodney Kibzey!

[Addition info: Although black in color, it should be noted that these beers are not thick and heavy in body like a stout. People who may be reluctant to enjoy a stout because of this characteristic should not back away from a Black IPA. They have a similar medium body and drinkability like any other IPA.]