Buxton Brewery, Imperial Black

Here’s your cheat sheet for Imperial Black by Buxton Brewery.

Buxton Brewery, Imperial Black / Black IPA / 7.5% ABV / IBU 82

Featured in main subscriber box on 31 January 2019.

Find Buxton Brewery on Twitter at @BuxtonBrewery and on Instagram at @buxtonbrewery.

Serving temperature

It looks like a stout but it drinks like an IPA, so don’t go warm but serve this beer between 7°C and 10°C; stick it in the fridge for 90 minutes.

As ever, be wary of over-chilling your beer. More chill means less flavour. To learn more read my post on recommended serving temperatures.

Flavours to expect

A black IPA? We haven’t had one of those in a while. If it’s your first, then you’re in for some fun. It can mess with your expectations. We’re so used to beers that look like this tasting full, thick and heavy. But this is no stout. Instead it will be lighter (but still fairly full-bodied) and while there should be some roasted notes from the dark malt, there should also be abundant fresh hop aromas suggesting zesty citrus pulp and forest fruits.

Food pairings

I’m only making one recommendation this week. Mild blue cheese goes well with stout but it’s also often paired with IPAs. Here we have the best of both worlds. Stick it on some Stichelton.

Further info

Read more on this beer from BeerBods and Buxton Brewery. You can also check out some of the previous cheat sheets if you want to catch up on a beer from past weeks.