Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale

Part of the fun with Stone is reading the bottles. It's true. The Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale is just that. The messages are always arrogant, sanctimonious, with a bit of a "we love this beer, and if you don't, go screw yourself, but we don't care." I usually don't go for holier-than-thou attitudes, but they always pull it off. Quite deliciously so, too.

As far as the Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale goes, I'd put this in the Black IPA category, even though they don't call it one. Pours dark as a stout with a slightly off-white creamy, rocky head. Several different hops in the nose. Lots of hops in the flavor with the charred and roasted flavors finally in the finish. Lemon and grapefruit start, then the roast, followed with a familiar hop pummeling. It's definitely more hoppy than Heavy Seas Black Cannon, but that one has more of the "black" than the "IPA".

Plus, with the 8.7% ABV, you'll likely notice it after a 22 oz bomber.

If you're curious about Black IPAs, a great place to start. If you're not a hop head, something like the Black Cannon is probably more your choice. Can't go wrong with either, though!

Grade: A

Heavy Seas Black Cannon

A couple of firsts for me with Heavy Seas Black Cannon. My first from them, and my first Black IPA. But even from the first sip, I know this won't be the last! Smells like fruit and pine, like you would expect from an IPA, and it's definitely black. I'm noticing some familiar stout characteristics with a dry, smokey mouth feel. Some chocolate and nutiness. It is a bit lighter than most stouts, and while there are some hops in the finish, it isn't a huge, in your face IPA. Really well balanced, and there isn't even a hint of the 7.3% ABV.

This might disappoint hop heads expecting a super bitter IPA, but I think it's a great blend of two dispirate (yes, that's on purpose) styles.

Plus, I'm diggin on the pirate theme.

I haven't heard of many Black IPAs, but I could really see this catching on. Perhaps a future homebrew project of mine!

It's very good, but I don't know if I can quite go to great.

Grade: B