Tommyknocker Hop Strike Black IPA

It's been a long time since I've had a black IPA, so I snagged the Hop Strike out of the sampler next:

Vittles:

6.5% abv

78 IBUs

Appearance: 9/10

This beer looks black until you shine some light through it.  Then you can see the pretty ruby gleam.  It's very dark but crystal clear.  The light tan head starts with a decent showing but falls pretty fast, leaving heavy lacing.

Aroma: 18/25

I was hit first by the roasted/burnt grain smell, which I was expecting to dominate the malty side of the profile.  I also picked up floral, chocolate, coffee, mild vegetal, and faint pine and slightly spicy aromas.  The malt smells were a little bit more dominant than the hops aroma, which I wasn't expecting, since American IPAs are usually hopped fairly aggressively.

Taste: 30/40

It's really a very average tasting beer for an IPA, especially for an American IPA.  The hops profile could barely be called assertive, certainly not aggressive in flavor or aroma.  It just doesn't pack that hop punch that I was expecting, especially since it's listed at a whopping 78 IBUs.  I've had more bitter-tasting beers down in the 30s range, to be honest.  As far as the actual flavors go, again, the malt side of the scale wins out by a hair.  Roasted grains and that earthy rye taste dominated the flavor profile, rounded out by floral, pine, bitter chocolate, and coffee.  The aftertaste was thick, bitter, and lingering.

Mouthfeel: 8/10

Moderately low levels of carbonation lend this beer more of a medium-bodied mouthfeel.  It feels a little velvety on the tongue, with just a very slight sting -- enjoyable.

Style: 5/5

As a black rye IPA, this beer would be entered in category 23, Specialty Beer, according to the BJCP, and the guidelines allow quite a bit of leeway.  I was very much tempted to give it a 4/5 here, since the bitterness aspect makes a pretty poor showing.  Maybe I'm just feeling a little lenient today.

Drinkability: 7/10

It's average for a craft beer, which means it's good compared to, say, a macro lager.  I would like to try it on tap, or, even better, from a cask.  Even so, I'd probably only have one, and I wouldn't really go out of my way to buy this again or recommend it to anyone.  I've had better black IPAs and better rye IPAs, but isn't a bad example of either type.  It's just average.

Overall: 77/100

The label works against the beer.  You see that it's got 78 IBUs, and you think, "Great!  It should really knock my socks off!" and you look forward to that bitter bitch slap, only to get a mild love tap instead.  It's a little disappointing, and it took away from my enjoyment of the beer, since every time I took a sip, I thought, "Damn, I wish this was just a little more bitter."

One left to try, and it's another IPA.  Cheers!