Karrde's Beer Reviews #1 - Deschutes Brewery - Hop in the Dark

[Surf314]

Editor's note: we being well rounded individuals (snicker) enjoy more than just games. By popular request, and popular affection of beer, I now present to you the first beer review by Karrde. If you are over 21 and can find this beer, take a sip and tell us what you think at the official beer tasting thread



Name: Hop in the Dark Cascadian Dark Ale
Brewery: Deschutes Brewery - Bend, Oregon
ABV: 6.5%
IBU: 75
Size: 1 pint, 6 ounces
Price I Paid: $7.99 + tax (France 44th Wine & Spirits in Minneapolis, MN)
Availability: May to September
Website: http://www.deschutesbrewery.com/brews/bo...fault.aspx

Well people, here's my first beer review.  I'm still learning the basics of how this is supposed to work, but I guess I'll learn along the way.  For those who don't know me, I'm one of the many members of brb, uninstalling.  For those who know me, I promise not to let this degenerate into a bitching session.  For all I may or may not know about game design, at the least I can say that I am most definitely a seasoned beer enthusiast.  When you're ready to give up your Budweiser, pour your Ice House down the drain, and quit living the High Life, come see me.
I tend to like a stronger flavored, more full bodied brew.  Much more an ale guy than a lager guy, and I tend towards reds, IPAs, and oddball brews.  That being said, you'll see no smoke beer reviews here.  I'm never doing THAT again.  In general, the more bitter, the better.  But on to the review.  For my first time, I decided to choose a beer that I've never tasted before: Hop in the Dark, by Deshcutes Brewery.
Hop in the Dark claims to be an entirely new style: Cascadian Dark Ale.  And this thing is DARK.  I had to do a double take to make sure I wasn't pouring out a stout.  My overall impression is that while this beer is definitely decent, I certainly wouldn't call it revolutionary.  I suppose it being a unique style is up for debate, but I'll leave that to the professionals.
The appearance is just like I said.  Dark.  No, seriously.  See the photos.  You won't be seeing through this one.  On pouring, the head is very thick (Sam Adams commercials, eat your heart out)  On pouring the head bubbles up nicely with a very fast cascade effect that diminishes within seconds.  The head, on the other hand dissipates very slowly over minutes.  Whether this is good or bad is usually personal preference.  Personally, this is a plus for me as it adds to the visual and aromatic quality.
The smell is nice and straightforward, which really is a theme in this beer.  I get a nice combination of sweet and bitter smells coming from this.  In addition there's an herbal quality to the smell with a hint of citrus.  It makes me think IPA.
The taste of this beer is pretty balanced for me.  On initial sampling I find that the sweet and bitter flavors are competing for dominance.  If anything, the sweet is more forceful.  However, on the finish, the aftertaste of bitterness dominates.  Overall I'm getting caramel and herbal flavors.  I have to say though I expected the herbal flavors to be stronger based on the smell, which was somewhat disappointing.  The bitterness was also something of a letdown based on it calling itself "Hop in the Dark."  But it's very nice for 75 IBU.  I usually aim for the 100 plus range.
The mouthfeel however made me very happy.  Personally, I cannot stand beers that feel like nothing is even there.  It's heavy, it's thick, it might be a ton of bricks.  It's no oatmeal stout, but it's very pleasant.  The carbonation is a little underwhelming, but in my experience with black ales, this is usually to style.  I just find that highly carbonated IPAs can be interesting and helps express some of the flavors.
This shit is dangerously drinkable for the experienced beer enthusiast.  It's probably fr too heavy for most people, but for me, I could tear through this like nothing.  For being very heavy, it goes down very smooth.  Not as smooth as say a simple lager, but for its complexity it's very nice.
On the whole this is a nicely balanced beer that looks like a stout but tastes like an IPA.  I'm reminded of Rogue's "Dirtoir Black Ale," though that was sweeter and less bitter.  I would definitely recommend this to others, perhaps as an inroad into heavier beers.  It's not too complex, but it's good enough to keep me interested.  I'd definitely buy this again, and hope my local stores start carrying other products from Deschutes Brewery.  A quick run around their website makes me nice and curious about their "Hop Henge." 
Anyway, hope you found this informational and interesting.  Got any ideas for improvement or have something you want me to review?  PM me on the forums.  Brb, uninstalling sobriety.

[rumsfald]

Excellent read, you're hired.

I'm definitely gonna scout for this now.

[rumsfald]

Editor's note: we being well rounded individuals (snicker) enjoy more than just games. By popular request, and popular affection of beer, I now present to you the first beer review by Karrde. If you are over 21 and can find this beer, take a sip and tell us what you think at the official beer tasting thread

Wait, should the discussion happen here, or over there?

[CaffeinePowered]

[quote author=Surf314 link=topic=4921.msg170409#msg170409 date=1282408530]
Editor's note: we being well rounded individuals (snicker) enjoy more than just games. By popular request, and popular affection of beer, I now present to you the first beer review by Karrde. If you are over 21 and can find this beer, take a sip and tell us what you think at the official beer tasting thread

Wait, should the discussion happen here, or over there?

[/quote]

Its just the way things are linked from the front page, I shall look for this at the store by me that gets a lot of smaller brews in stock. I hope they have it