Pale Black

Black's of Kinsale supply the goods today, mostly at the pale 'n' hoppy end of the spectrum.

First it's a matching pair of 5% ABV fruited IPAs with American hops, beginning on Pineapple & El Dorado IPA. It's very pale indeed, a light-lager yellow and smells strongly of tinned pineapple or pineapple-flavoured candy. That matches well with the El Dorado hops, to the point where I can't tell where one ends and the other begins. This certainly delivers what's promised on the label: sweet, fun and a little bit daft. There's just enough of a leafy dry bite in the finish for it to qualify as a proper IPA, something that not every fruited-up example does. It would perhaps have suited a summer release better but I liked the ray of sunshine it brought to the January evening on which I drank it.

That was followed swiftly by Mango & Mosaic IPA. This isn't an identical twin, being darker, looking denser and hazier. Sweet fruit syrup is there in the aroma again, but there's a fun twist of black pepper as well. That comes right to the fore in the flavour, turning to a savoury, spicy, cedar and pink peppercorn kick. I love it. The fruit sweetness sits in second place behind it, not syrupy or overdone, but not really tasting like either mango or Mosaic either. Again it's just dry enough and bitter enough that I don't feel gypped having been sold an IPA. That spice, though, is fabulous. I adore peppery beer, however it's done, and this is smack bang in my wheelhouse. While deliciously complex it's moreish too and I would have been well up for another straight after.

The next one, Stratasbeer Intergalactic IPA, is also 5% ABV. From the moody portentous branding I thought it would be much stronger. Strata and Galaxy are the hops, of course, and it's a medium yellow orange with a fair bit of haze thrown in. The aroma is nicely juicy, with the mandarin effect which Strata does so well coming through in particular. The body is light for the strength, making for something quite quaffable, while the flavour is not quite as juice-forward as the aroma promises but shows good zest and peel from the orangey hops. That's it, though. The finish is quick, there are no flaws, but no bonus complexity either. I've lost track of what Black's puts out as a core range these days, but if there's a vacancy, this would fit right in.

Next it's a beer I missed on its initial go around so was glad to catch up to: RedRye Redemption. Although it's red, it's also an IPA, so it's a pale shade of red, more amber when held up to the light. The ABV is only up to 5.5%, and I found the texture lacking as well: not the chewy maltbomb-with-hops that this style does well. Instead, it feels and tastes pale, with standard new-world IPA flavours, particularly assorted citrus pithiness. You do get a buzz of dry rye bitterness but it makes you work to find the malt side, offering merely a hint of coffee in the finish. It's a decent and unfussy sort of mid-range IPA, the label promising more adventure than the liquid delivers.

The light fades completely with Cult of the Coconut, an oatmeal stout with coconut chips and cacao nibs. The aroma is pure coconut, concentrated and oily, like in a cosmetic emulsion of some sort. It dominates the flavour, though slightly differently, being drier and crisper, and matched with similarly strong chocolate notes creating a strong echo of the Bounty bar. The chocolate side fades quickly but the coconut lingers long on the palate. While it's undoubtedly fun, it does lack beer character: a bit of roast or hopping might not have gone amiss. This is very much a product of the pastry-stout era, which may not suit everyone, but approach it with the appropriate sense of playfulness and it works.

It was good to be able to say hi to Black's again. They tend not to feature on here as much as they used to, perhaps because less of their beer shows up in Dublin. They've still got the hang of things, however.