Trafalgar Ales & Meads hails from Oakville, Ontario. I've been keeping my eye out for their brews ever since a former boss recommended them to me. Trafalgar has a pretty interesting looking roster of brews--lots of things I'd jump to try if I ever saw them in the liquor store.
Such was the case the other day when I came across the India Ink Black Pale Ale. I was immediately drawn to this brew by its stark and stylish black and white label and its large bottle (650mL). India Ink weighs in at 5% alcohol. It pours very dark--not black like a stout or a porter, but a dark brown with faint red highlights. It has a nice, round aroma with notes of toasty nut. The initial flavour reflects the aroma--it's roasty, toasty and nutty. India Ink contains an interesting mix of sweet and bitter. For lack of a better word, this brew tastes gloomy. However, for such a dark beer, the flavour was considerably more mild than I expected and nowhere near as hoppy. It features a sharp, bitter aftertaste. I thought I could detect notes of licorice, though on reflection, that might be due to my expectations for such a dark ale.
My experience with black ales is limited, so I didn't really know what to expect from this brew. I found it left me reasonably satisfied and interested in exploring other beers in this category. It was a bit on the thin side, but I enjoyed the way the gloomy colour matched the gloomy flavour.
Rating: 7.5 out of 10.
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