Weird Beard - Fade to Black

Why are all awesome Weird Beard beers named after other awesome things? Is this one a direct reference to the Metallica classic? (It might not be a classic in its own right but Metallica made it so that makes it a classic in my books. If you don't agree then your books are stupid.) Who knows? All I know is that I love Met... Black IPAs, if you're an avid reader of my blog (you'd be fictional) you'd know that the black IPA is, by some considerable distance, my favourite style of beer. It's something about the way it's hoppy and decedant, smooth and violent, all at the same time. The guys at Weird Beard have set the bar high but on this one I've set it higher... So no pressure.

It starts off well enough, the pour is as easy and as satisfying as pouring cream; producing a thin, off white, head which leaves pretty heavy speckling. On my imaginary check list that's already one for how it looks. How does it smell? Can something smell dark? No, it can't. It smells like it's going to hurt... In a good way. This would be the point in time, if we were in a room together, that I'd give you a sly wink. Heavy, earthy, hops on the nose with a little hint of something sweeter underneath, like a guy who went to jail on assault charges and came out early because he taught other inmates to knit. So, check.

Niiiiiiice! Maybe one of the more bitter Black IPAs I've had but it definitely gives it something the other Black IPAs on the market don't have, it gives me the sense that this is, first and foremost, an IPA; a bitter-sweet IPA with hints of toffee behind the initial flurry of bitter hops, all of which sits on top of a deliciously malty, smooth, biscuity base. I like that. I don't want my black IPA to just taste like chocolate and coffee, if I wanted that then I'd buy some bog standard porter. Black IPAs are special because they can infuse the sweeter elements of your darker drinks to the hoppy madness of lighter ones. It's a happy middle ground. So don't judge a black IPA just because it's black... You massive beer racist.

...Also, check. Triple check. Lovely beer! Buy it, drink it slower than I did... It barely lasted 2 minutes, which, in beer terms, is like doing a shot.

Food Suggestion: Not food but this beer makes me want to crack out a fine Cuban cigar and strut around pretending to be a Columbian drug lord... Which I imagine would go down well in the upper-middle class conservative village I live in.

Drink this if you like: Similar in ways to Black Betty by Beavertown, which is maybe my favourite Black IPA (and therefore favourite beer.) An excellent example of the breed.