Brewdog: Movember (2012) (Scotland: Black IPA: 4.7% ABV)
Visual: Black. Coffee head that is not much above a dash of brown bubbles that leaves a surprising amount of lace around the glass.
Nose: Roasted coffee beans. Light kiwi fruit.
Body: Roasted coffee. Lemon grass. Juicy kiwi. Kaffir lime leaves. Tingling hop character. Cigarette smoke.
Finish: Very juicy fruit. Key lime pie and kiwi. Dry roasted peanuts. Coffee cup remains.
Conclusion: Interesting. This reminds me slightly of Bristol Beer Factories Bitter Californian, well what it would be if it was made brewdog style. What calls it to mind is those unusual fruit flavours that you get behind the roasted coffee character. The fruit is really juicy and odd, key lime pie, kaffir lime leaves, kiwi fruit. It reminds me of really good quality fruity coffee, it’s that mix of flavours and soft yet rich flavour.
The lower abv makes it a much more easy going mid body than a lot of Black IPA’s, it’s nowhere near as harsh or thick as you would otherwise expect. It does give the beer a lot of room to let flavours roam.
This has been described to me as like a lighter Libertine Black Ale, but the flavours feel quite different to me. LBA was all sharp citrus, this Is more mellow and juicy. At the abv It is a heck of a lot more sessionable as well.
After drinking for a while I still can’t come up with a better descriptor for it than the aforementioned “Juicy fruity coffee”. It has all the subtleties of the flavour and a character and that present but not overwhelming bitterness.
On the down sides? Maybe that the thinner texture can hurt a tad at times, usually it lets flavours roam, but on the more bitter moments it lets the roasted bitterness have a bit too much control. The lighter texture also seems to let a too clinging feel to the hosp on the finish. Small points on an overall pleasant and different beer. Nice enough to enjoy, and light enough to enjoy twice.
Background: Another tap only beer from Brewdog Bristol. No I’m not obsessed. The original Movember beer was a bit of a favourite of mine being a very easy drinking beer. This is a very different styled beer so I thought I would give it a go. With 50 pence per pint going to charity, well, it would be rude not to. For those who don’t know Movember is a charity event involving growing big moustaches to raise money for charity. As always I am not an unbiased actor on Brewdog beers.
