Widmer Brothers Pitch Black IPA

Brewery: Widmer Brothers Brewing Company
Location: Portland, OR
Style: Black IPA
Brewery Website
Rating: A+

Today we’re reviewing the Widmer Brothers Pitch Black IPA. The Pitch Black IPA pours up a deep brown, bordering on black, color with a light tan, frothy head. The nose picks up lots of citrusy, west-coast hops. Grapefruit and some apricot are most notable. There are also some very faint roasted aromas.

On the palate the fruity hops lead off with lemonade and apricot notes. These notes fade slowly into roasted malt notes of dark wheat toast. Bitter hops then build back in with some espresso. There is also a faint residual sweetness as well. With a medium-heavy body, the Pitch Black IPA is on the fuller side, but it is still plenty drinkable. The finish sees fruity hops dancing back-and-forth with some lightly sweetened coffee.

In continuing with the “I haven’t tasted a Black IPA I didn’t like” theme, the Pitch Black IPA is just incredible. There is a fantastic flavor complexity here. The flavors are literally dancing back and forth between malt and hops. This beer is very well-balanced between malt and hops, and all the flavors really meld well together in the Pitch Black IPA. There is also a nice hint of residual sweetness here that really makes all the other flavors “pop”. Widmer Bros have nailed it with their Black IPA, this is just a fantastic beer.