Suckin' Diesel

Shout-out to Blackrock Cellar for having a bunch of Dead Centre beers in stock when I called in a couple of months ago. These are very thin on the ground in Dublin. Today's theme, namewise, seems to be "unused Fast & Furious film titles".

"A true Cascadian dark ale" is the bold claim on Stealth Mode, based on its use of Cascade hops, featuring with Centennial and Galaxy. It's the lightweight of the crew at a mere 7.1% ABV and a proper dense black colour with an off-white head. The aroma is bright and zesty, suggesting it's the Galaxy that has the upper hand. I get a sharp lime sourness as well, and that's the surprise on tasting: a light body and a citric tang that builds to a tart intensity. The roast pulls things back from the edge, delivering the tarry, spicy richness that makes black IPA so loved and much missed. A brush of dark chocolate adds a dessertish quality to the finish. I wanted to like this, and it does more-or-less hit the spot for the style, but that thin sour sharpness made it seem too close to something infected, for my liking. Better pump up that gravity for the sequel.

Our middle child is Ultraviolet Tilt, a double IPA of the "DDH" variety but also claiming membership of the west coast club. We'll have to start using the term "neo-west-coast" for these hazy ones, though it is properly amber and has a dollop of crystal malt toffee in there with the hops. That said it is not wanting in old-school bitter citrus: the parade of grapefruit and lemon begins in the aroma and carries right through to the flavour, which is crisp and finishes dry on a note of Earl Grey and rye cracker. The modern side is not completely an illusion, and I definitely got juicy hints of mandarin and nectarine that aren't west-coast but added positive things to the overall complexity. And there's no heat. This is ludicrously refreshing for 8% ABV. IPA-wise there really is something for everyone in here.

I don't think I had ever encountered a sherry-barrel-aged tripel until Eight Degrees released Devil's Ladder late last year. Now Dead Centre has followed that with Preciou2 Cargo, created for the brewery's second anniversary. The concept has me on edge before I even flip the cap. Tripel is best when clean and dry, allowing the spices and honey to flow freely. Letting oaky vanillin leach into one seems inimical to that. This one at least looks OK -- a soothing shade of rich rose gold. It smells quite hot, of pear drops, lychees-in-syrup and cheap German white wine, which did nothing for my apprehension. Though all of 9.2% ABV it's quite light-bodied and missing all but a hint of carbonation. I think that's in its favour, doing a lot to calm the flavours. What you get on the palate is a sweet but not spicy mix of almond paste, honey and sultana, like a flaky middle eastern dessert. The sherry is definitely making a contribution, but it's well integrated into the beer, not a tacked-on gimmick. There's a slight vinousness on the lips at the end, but no belly-warmth. I found this challenging at first, then settled into it. Half a litre is a lot to sip through and it would have made quite a good sharer. Overall it's an excellent piece of work. I look forward to Preciou3 Cargo: Athlone Drift.

Some really interesting recipes from Dead Centre here. I hope their local distribution improves for me.

The Twelve Brewers of Christmas 9: Eight Degrees

For 2020, Eight Degrees picked Ireland's munroes as the theme to their special beers. There were six in total, the first three scattered through earlier posts but I've ended up collecting the second half into the below.

Fourth in the series was a Belgian IPA, no less. Remember those? Loral and experimental hop HBC 522 feature in Fort of the Fianna, a mostly-clear golden number, at 5.4% ABV. The aroma is modestly Belgian: honey and spices, rather than fruit and funk. There's a lovely citrus kick in the foretaste, with a rub of lime wedge and some lemon zest, before the smoother Belgian side takes over. Peachy esters arrive in the middle, and then the incense and allspice effect I associate particularly with tripel. The hoppy side could stand to be more pronounced: my preference for Belgian IPA does lean towards the American takes, while this tastes more Belgian. I have to damn it with the faint praise of being enjoyably understated. Part of me feels current extreme beer trends mean I should talk up the calm and balanced ones more, but at the same time I know Belgian IPA can be done better than this.

I thought that, as with last year, the series was concluding on a dark one, this time a 6.5% ABV porter called The Black Road. They've used smoked malt in this, and sure enough there's a faint hint of fiery roast in the aroma, while the flavour tails off on a note of peaty phenols, but otherwise the smoke is very much on the down-low. You'd hardly notice it. For the most part this is a straightforward medium-strong porter, big on dark chocolate, Americano coffee and creamy tiramisu. At first I was disappointed by the lack of novelty but then very happy with how solidly enjoyable it is. This is no-nonsense fun, albeit something I'd prefer to have by the pint or three rather than 440ml. But while we're all treading The Black Road, a can will have to do.

I was wrong about that being the last in series, though. It didn't finish dark but it did finish strong, with an 11.5% ABV sherry-barrel-aged tripel: Devil's Ladder. Back on that Belgian kick. You don't see barrel-aged tripel every day, and certainly not from Irish breweries, so I was expecting something special when the brewery kindly sent it out to me with a bunch of other Christmas goodies. It's a deep orangey gold colour in the glass with a gelatinous haze. The aroma is very vinous, in a sweet and dessertish way: tokaji, shading to mead and into hippocras. That spiced medieval feel is all over the flavour too: the pepper and clove of a real Belgian tripel but with added grape and honey and, to put not too fine a point on it, booze. It stays clean and quite crisp, though. Other supercharged tripels can burn and cloy; this one brings only a gently relaxing warmth. It was a daring experiment, but they've pulled it off, taking a good example of the base style and enhancing it without resorting to gimmickry.

I'm sure the creative theme for 2021's specials is already ready to go. Did someone say 10th anniversary? Ready when you are, Eight Degrees.