Otter Creek Black IPA

The Alpine Black IPA made its debut at the Vermont Brewers Festival in Burlington, Vermont in July 2010. It was intended to be a one-off pilot batch and quickly evolved into an instant favorite. To appease demand we have decided to release it as our new Otter Creek Winter Seasonal. Those who attended the VBF were lucky to get a sneak tasting of this incredible brew. Since then it has been the buzz around town.

Beer Stats:

Style: Black IPA

ALC/VOL: 6.3%

IBU: 60

Malts: 2-Row, Caramel 60L, Carafa III

Hops: Apollo, Centennial, Citra

Description: “Dark in color and character, this unfiltered Black IPA exudes caramel and roasted notes while highlighting a bold hop bitterness and citrus aroma. Apollo, centennial, and citra hops intermingle with the deep complexities provided by copious amounts of caramel malts and de-husked roasted barley.”

3.5

287 reviews

Middlebury, United States

Community reviews

1.0 Poured from 12oz bottle. Unremarkable take on this trendy style. Very middle of the road without and pop in either side of the fence here. Decent roastiness with a lacking hop bite for an ipa. --you've been Dubbed.

3.8 This black beer came with a large tan head and good lacing. Aroma of roasted malts and coffee, some sweetness and modest hoppiness. Flavors were more balanced as the earthiness of the malts worked well with the floral, herbal hops. Aftertaste was dry and moderately bitter. Medium bodied mouthfeel with average carbonation and a lingering finish.

3.9 Poured from bottle. Aroma of coffee. Almost completely black, with minimal head. Mild taste. Full bodied, creamy texture. Overall a really great brew. I was tasting other IPA’s while drinking this so it tasted very much like a stout to me. I would be curious to try this with other stouts to make that comparison. Had edit my rating, because I was using my phone and it got posted before I was finished.

3.6 Draft. Enjoyable, the malt character comes through in the nose perhaps a bit more than the hops. very dark brown with a a nice tan head. Nice roasted character, fairly smooth mouthfeel with a hop bite. Close to a strong porter but maybe just enough hopping to be classified as Black IPA. Nice either way.

3.1 Great pour and a good initial smells but doesn’t really follow through. Pours a really dark amber with super awesome head and lacing. Carpet lacing. Finishes with medium bitterness, and a little citrus. Tap at Black Squirrel.

3.2 This really seems more like a brown ale. Deep brown with red highlights. Toasted malt and chocolate aromas. Medium body. Toast flavors with just a touch of roasted malt dryness. No hop bitterness or flavor to speak of.

3.6 Dark brown pour. Thick off white head. Well balance hop and dark malt aromas. Charcoal, and dark chocolate hop aroma bit overly noticeable. Flavor is much more hoppy. Spicy earthy floral hop flavors. Nice balance with the dark malt flavors. ---Rated via iPhone

3.7 Smell of roasted malt. Black colour, light brown head. Aroma of chocolate, roasted malt, hops, cocoa. Bitter, medium sweet. Soft, medium-rich carbon, ashy palate. Medium body, slightly watery.

3.5 a solid black ipa. has a bit of a roast hop aroma. taste is a mild pine mixed with some roast malts, smooth body, good texture bit creamy. A nice brew.

2.6 Off black, amber edges. 2 finger coffee head. Nose is roasty charcoal licorice with a major fruitiness. Chocolate and peat. Very light though. Thin mouthfeel. Pine needle. Finish is maple smoke

3.1 Murky darkness. Sweet, almost oyster-like nose. Chewy texture up front; thinner toward the finish. A bit too roasty for a black IPA, IMO. Odd tobacco note in the background. Hops seemed way too mild, with subdued hints of herbs and earth. Mild to moderate bitterness just wasn’t enough. I craved more hops and less roast.

4.0 Transfer from BA reviewed 1-15-12 - Poured from bottle into pint glass Appearance – Black. Very little light seeps through this brew. It forms a nice white head which dissipates slowly over time to leave just a slight amount of lacing. Smell – Some roasted aromas initially meet the nose. Coffee and some roasted barley/malt. This is quickly followed by some more citrusy hops. Taste – A wonderful nutty, coffee, and a bit of cocoa hit the tastebuds first. This is quickly subdued by some more sweet maltiness of sweetened chocolate. The hops then enter and take over. Citrus and a tiny bit of pine. A strange taste transition, but very pleasing. Mouthfeel – A good level of body and a nice level of carbonation both good for the more stout like body as well as the IPA like nature of the beer. Overall - This is one good beer. The best of anything I have tried with Wolvers/otter creek and a beer that is excellent as a standard go to.

3.9 Draft in Bar Harbor. Pours very dark with a light head. You also get some malt in the finish. A mild black IPA.

3.4 Bottle, Aroma is light roast and piney floral hops. Taste is pretty mildly toasty and bitter, pretty tasty but nothing memorable.

3.3 Bottle. Dark cola look, inviting citra hop nose. Slightly sticky palate. Flavours of citrus, roasted malt and light caramel. Little bit of smoke in the end. Flavoursome without being cloying. Not a bad drop.

3.6 Aroma is dark malts, citrus and light pine. The flavor is grapefruit, citrus, mild candy sugar, dark malts and a tart/mildly bitter finish.

2.3 sepia with thin cream head. Ultra sweet nose, faintly oxidized and banana estery, hot with chocolate hints. Boozy flavor up front, moderate banana and chocolate malt mid, burnt through the chalky, grating, waxy ethanol finish.

3.6 Reviewed from notes. The appearance had a black body with a quick dissipating tan/off white less than a half finger head, lacing graces the pint glass with some rings around it with a bit of spottiness as it goes down. The smell had hops up front, coffee coming through fairly strong in a roasty sort of way, light smokiness coming through once it starts warming. The taste was bittersweet through the hops and coffee, some pine in the back of it, and balanced. The palate sits about a medium with nothing harsh on the tongue, balanced, dry and bitter aftertaste and finish. Overall, this is good for its style and great to me.

3.0 Bottle from The Lazy Dog Pours a solid dark brown with faint garnet highlights at the edges and a decent sized creamy beige head that persists for a good long time before sticking lots of lace to the sides. Aromas of roasted coffee with a hint of caramel and some light earth and citrus notes. The flavor follows the aroma to a T. Roast and light chocolate and caramel with a light earthy hop flavor. Medium body with a moderate level of carbonation and a slick almost gritty mouthfeel. Virtually non existent hop aroma makes me want to call this a porter or dry stout. The flavor has some hop to it, but the beer in this bottle is either old or there aren’t enough hops in here to call this an IPA. MEH!

2.7 I usually love Black IPAs, but this might be the most disappointing one I’ve had. Doesn’t have the sharp bitterness you’d expect and it has a strange aftertaste. Tried with Kevin at the Black Squirrel in 2014.

3.4 Bottle. Tastes malty, nutty, and like light coffee bitterness. Light body and low carbonation. Smells like malty, nutty grains.

3.6 Bottle. Pours deep, dark brown with creamy beige head. Aroma is roasted and chocolate malts, earthy notes, raisins, prunes, and faint nutmeg. Flavor is roast malts forward, bittersweet chocolate, faint dark fruit esters, and faint espresso; dry, roast finish. Medium body and carbonation.

4.2 Good aroma with a rich, stout-like taste. Not a big fan of the IPA’s, but this is a definite winner.

3.6 Draft at Whole Foods PM. Pours hazy black with tan head. Nose was roasty malt, resiny hops, mild coffee. Tastes as it smells, with a pretty good balance of hops and malt. Earlier Rating: 2/3/2011 Total Score: 3.6 Bottle from Capone’s. Pours turbid black with 1-finger off-khaki head. Nose is black patent malt, intense resiny hops. Nice nose on this, and it makes me crave the taste. Flavor is malty, with big resiny hop flavor, cacao, solid complexity, pretty rich, and smooth. Stays hoppy throughout, with a malt bill to match. Nicely done.

3.4 Pours a dark brown. Has a nutty and chocolate aroma. Taste is a mix of but, brown sugar, chocolate, coffee, and light hop and malt.

2.8 Tap at British Beer Co, malty burn, some slightly astringent hops. I’m not sure whats up with this, as given the centennial and citra this should be way brighter. methinks it just needs more hops.

3.2 Bottle. This is a decent little black ipa that is well worth a go. Tidy brew with lots of zip.

3.9 A: Dark Opaque Hue, Passes No Light, Off White Thick Head, Great Lacing S: Milk Chocolate, Mild Floral, Mild Coffee T: Black Bread, Mild Chocolate, Mild Coffee M: Decent Carbonation, Medium to Full Bodied, Dry, Mildly Bitter, Overall, a decent Black IPA with a nice smoothe mildly bitter aftertaste, drinkable.

3.5 On draft at Mad Fox Oktoberfest. Pours a cloudy cola brown with an ecru head. Roasted malt nose. Flavors of light smoke and resinous hops. Highly carbonated. Mildly bitter finish.

3.6 Bottle into a nonic pint. Pours nice deep brown, thick, persistent cream head. Aroma of roasted malt, chocolate, a bit of grass. Taste is very smooth, chocolate milk, grass, slight bitterness. Real smooth, very easy drinking.