Day 351: Dad's Little Helper

Name: Dad's Little Helper

Brewer: Rogue Ales (Newport, OR)

Classification: American Black Ale

Alcohol: 7%

Thoughts: Throughout this year Tyler's has been of great importance to my quest. They have been there with a great selection of beers, good food and at times good suggestions. This was another one. I was looking for something a little different and this is what the bartender suggested. It pours a very dark brown, that borders on black color, and shows the brown when held up to light. It has a huge creamy 2-finger tan head that faded slowly, leaving a layer of lacing on top. It smells of chocolate malt, roasted grains, caramel, cocoa powder, floral hops, herbs and piney hops/ I know thats a lot, but it really is in there. The taste has a nice hop bite mixed with some cocoa and chocolate malty notes. Added sugars balance this out a little, but this is about the only major flaw I could find. There's a big piney hop bite at the finish. The malts give this a porter-like flavor actually thats hopped up. I haven't had a lot of Black Ales or Black IPAs but this is a must have if you like this style. A tremendously good brew from Rogue here. 

Rating: 84/100