Industrial IPA - Diamond Knot Brewery

NeroFiddled

Pennsylvania

4.22/5  rDev +13.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Diamond Knot Industrial India Pale Ale
no freshness dating or codes
$4.99 (22 oz.) at Total Wine & More, Claymont, DE

I'm stupid. I'll admit it. I bought a bottle of Diamond Knot's IPA and failed to grab the Industrial while I had the chance. Then when I went back later on, I grabbed the Industrial but failed to grab another IPA for comparison. DOH! But from what I recall, I think that these are basically the same beers with the Industrial amped up a bit, and not different recipes altogether. That said...

Appearance: Clear amber-orange body. Full head of rocky off-white foam. Good head retention. Much better than average lacing that leaves almost solid walls of lace with each sip.

Smell: Malt first, then hops. Bready, cake-like malt with a light edge of caramel interwoven with leafy, grassy, woody (almost like oak, but not quite), citrusy, piney, minty, and floral hops. A soft berry-like and gently cherry-ish yeasty fruitiness adds an additional note of complexity.

Taste: The flavor is more hoppy than the nose suggests, although the malt still maintains the dominant edge at the outset. It's bready and caramelish and, dare I say it again, almost cake-like - but without being sweet (how can that be? Maybe I'm just finding some vanilla?). The 'berry/cherry' yeastiness adds a nice rounding component to it. It's solidly bitter and it dries in the finish with a note of cedar, alcohol spice, and piney and gently citrusy hops. Nicely balanced.

Mouthfeel: Full bodied. Somewhat dextrinous, supple, creamy, and smooth.

Overall: Impressive. A richly malty (without going overboard) double IPA that still presents its hops. It's balanced, rounded, and drinkable. The alcohol is well hidden but the strength will get to you! Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

09-24-2011 03:33:52 | More by NeroFiddled

sweethome

Illinois

3.05/5  rDev -18%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

On tap at Tap House in Seattle as part of WA IPA tasting I put together. This finished 4th of 4.

Looks the part - bright yellow in color. Suprisingly little nose for a NW IPA. Where is my hops?

Entry is sweet - a bit too sweet for me. Not enought hops to clear that out. Some mango flavor...a little pine, but it fails to develop. Slight finish is clipped.

I didn't take enough notes, but it just did not live up to the other three offerings I had.

Overall, I'd call this IPA-light.

Serving type: on-tap

09-07-2011 16:03:57 | More by sweethome

HopHead84

California

2.5/5  rDev -32.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

8/7/2011

Bottle shared by Jason, thanks!

A: Golden orange with a small white head.

S: Strong bread with matching caramel. Orange is faint, barely detectable. Alcohol is apparent in the nose. Way too malty.

T: Lots of bread and caramel with a little alcohol. Light orange notes. This is like a weak Barleywine. The hops are feeble. The malt dominates. Blah.

M: Medium body with upper moderate carbonation. Smooth mouthfeel.

Overall: This might pass for an IPA in Washington, and I'm sure they think it's great up there (another one of their local "gems"), but this is burdened by malt and the hops are pathetic. It's like a pitiful Barleywine.

Serving type: bottle

08-09-2011 00:14:24 | More by HopHead84

sendsilk

Florida

2.5/5  rDev -32.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Grabbed this beer as an impulse purchase while waiting in line at Total Wine in Tampa.

Started to review this in the normal fashion, but once I tasted it I had to stop. This beer is old dammit. Syrupy and malty. Disgusting. I don't know how many times I've bought an IPA without a bottling date on it and been burned. No more.

Brewers, put freaking brewed on/bottled on dates on your beers. This beer may not have been bad when fresh however, the dozen or so CASES that Total Wine is selling (in Tampa) are all past their prime. I will never again buy an IPA wihtout a date on it unless I know it's fresh.

Serving type: bottle

08-05-2011 14:35:13 | More by sendsilk

doughanson78

Washington

3.85/5  rDev +3.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

22oz. bottle poured into a Gulden Draak tulip.

A: Nice dark amber color. Super crystal clear. One finger slightly off white head with great reteintion and sticky lacing.

S: Citrusy hops. Mainly pineapple. Tangerine, mango, slight orange. Hardly any grapefruit like most is dominated by. Also nice floral hop aroma. Very slight caramel malts in the background.

T: Nice caramel sweetness up front. Not as hoppy as the aroma would suggest. In fact as the citrus tries to come through it creates a slight funkiness. A little piney hops do make it through towards the end and slightly balance it out.

M: Light to medium bodied. A nice stickiness. Decent carbonation.

O: Was hoping for more as I've had the regular IPA and love it. Haven't reviewed it yet. A decent IIPA for $3.99 a bomber.

Serving type: bottle

07-19-2011 02:43:26 | More by doughanson78

BretSikkink

Mexico

3.63/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Amber orange in color, head is reasonably tall at first, recedes quickly, and deposits acceptable lacing.

Nose is restrained, very similar to the IPA. Malts bring a little more diacetyl to the caramel sweetness. Hopping is citric and grassy, but more strongly in the pine and herbal department. Balance is key here.

The flavor is definitely hop-forward, but the malt base of caramel and toffee doesn't quite do the trick. Citric fruit rinds mingle with pine cones, notes of lemongrass, hay, and flowers drop by.

I didn't find the body well put together at all. Thinner than it should be, neither lush nor full. The carbonation was off if it was meant to be creamy, and the hopping was big enough to accept a couple more scoopfuls of malts. Tweakable recipe, but not one of my favorites.

Serving type: bottle

06-21-2011 17:40:24 | More by BretSikkink

ckeegan04

Texas

3.7/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A - Pours a clean and clear orangish-brown with a thick dirty white head of very bubbly foam. Smattering of lace left haphazardly on the glass. Head is a solid three fingers after a gentle pour and slowly fades to about a finger of lingering foam.

S - Big graprefruit aromas up front mixed with a touch of pine and some caramel sweetness. As the beer warms I get some more caramel, burnt sugar and still alot of citrus fruit. The hop aromas certainly dominate the smell and the sweetness provides just enough backing.

T - Lots of grapefruit and orange up front with a rather harsh bitterness. Taste is a bit one dimensional with the bitter citrus notes really dominating everything else. Just a bit of sweetness lingering underneath. As the beer warms the flavor profile actually falls apart a bit more with a strong astringent bitterness taking over and the nice citrus tastes and caramel sweetness really falling to the back.

M - Medium bodied with moederate carbonation. The beer is a bit sticky in the mouth and the bitterness really sticks with you.

O - A decent double IPA. The flavors dont come together quite as well as the world class DIPA's but the tastes of a good DIPA are certainly there; lots of hop taste and bitterness with just a touch of sweetness backing it up.

Serving type: bottle

06-14-2011 15:22:34 | More by ckeegan04

Rangermonk

Delaware

4.22/5  rDev +13.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Pours clear and amber.

Big fat creamy head that sticks around, nice lacing.

Smells of citrous and piney notes and biscuit.

Tastes of pine resin, almost feel like I'm chewing pine needles mixed with biscuit. Not a bad experience, but almost overwhelming on the taste buds. Biscuit is there in the aftertaste.

Good body, a little warmth in the background.

This is a good IPA. Strong and very assertive hops, with this interesting grain character in the background. As the beer sits and the head falls away, you can smell the malt.

i would recommend to friends.
My cat approves, she is sniffing heavily over the rim and trying to lick the lace.

Serving type: bottle

06-11-2011 19:06:36 | More by Rangermonk

clayrock81

Virginia

3.68/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours a reddish gold with one-finger head that has lace patches and sticks around awhile. Strong citric hop smell as well as some caramel and biscuity/bready dry malt. Smooth, a little creamy, there is a prevelant citric and floral hop presence that is balanced w/ a bready dryness and sticky caramel sweetness. Finishes crisp w/ a little bit of a citric bite. I enjoyed this beer very much but for the style I thought the hops were subdued; wish they stuck out more (although the ABV is well-hidden in this beer).

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2011 13:32:42 | More by clayrock81

ebrauser

Utah

3.8/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Appearance: Thin white head on a sandy orange, clear base.

Aroma: Grassy, resinous northwest hops. Lemon, grapefruit, and yeast notes.

Flavor: Commanding hop flavors with a very earthy base. Grapefruit and bitter citrus take over from the early grassy notes to finish the beer. Hops are dominant through and through.

MF: Not syrupy or big bodied, but lacks the malt backbone to support the hops.

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2011 00:40:09 | More by ebrauser

evilkalla

Alabama

3.75/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Serving: Bomber into a tall glass.

A: Clear copper color with a half-inch or so of decently thick head.

S: Has some piney, resinous notes to it. Pretty good smell.

T: Pretty malty up front with a rush of bitterness that follows. Pretty well balanced, the hops aren't overly aggressive but you definitely notice this is a double IPA. Pretty well done.

M: Fairly heavy on the mouth but not overly so. Decently bubbly and carbonated.

O: Not a bad double IPA, overall. Would drink again.

Serving type: bottle

05-15-2011 23:36:20 | More by evilkalla

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

3.35/5  rDev -9.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

First had: on tap at Flying Pig Bar, Everett, WA

Poured clear honey color, with minimal head. Piney aroma with citrus hops coming through. Similar to the taste: pine and citrus hops, with a sweet maltiness accompanying, though the hops general take over. Light-medium mouthfeel, and moderately drinkable.

Serving type: on-tap

05-01-2011 17:54:10 | More by Rifugium

barleywinefiend

Washington

1.5/5  rDev -59.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1

A: Poured a deep orange color with good carbonation and a nice white head. which fades fast leaving mere bubbles

S: Nose is caramel, graininess and grass

T: Starts a bit chewy, off balance, caramel, grass and then WHAM! A tital wave of ultimate disappointment. A blast of obnoxious bittering hops appears, with a splash of cleaning solution providing a stinging booziness, slicky buttery palate and we wind it down with cooked corn Mmmm!

M: Mouthfeel is mediium bodied and horrendous. Not exactly sure what to say here...

O: Scrap this and avoid at all costs. I want my money back!

Serving type: growler

04-25-2011 01:24:06 | More by barleywinefiend

Pencible

Virginia

4/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: This poured a clear gold with moderate off-white head.
S: It smelled like grapefruit and dry pine cones, with some copper and a little honey malt.
T: It tasted like strong grapefruit and pine hops, with sweet caramel and cream. It had a bitter aftertaste with smooth sweetness.
M: It was somewhat thick with a little carbonation. Pretty nice body.
D: This was a very nice 2IPA, with much better taste and finish than their regular IPA. It had better body too, and the alcohol was well hidden, so it was easy to drink. Solid beer, although still nothing special.

Serving type: bottle

04-12-2011 19:42:23 | More by Pencible

RoyalT

Ohio

4.15/5  rDev +11.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance - This is a nice, light to medium copper with a tremendous off-white head that came up easy and left some awesome pitting.

Smell - This is a very balanced nose. The hops are light but fresh and very floral and the malt is exactly the right size for balance.

Taste - The balance is equally terrific at the taste. The malt is lightly toasted with a terrific sweetness that was kind of off-putting when I had it years ago at the pub but here is awesome. The hop flavor comes over righteously as well.

Mouthfeel - This is the ale's strongpoint IMO. Some would say a bit light in the ass for a DIPA, it's not quite medium-bodied, but it is so smooth and creamy on the tongue it goes down like water.

Drinkability - This is a very sessionable, balanced DIPA that reflects the brewmaster's care.

Serving type: bottle

04-10-2011 00:43:28 | More by RoyalT

cjgator3

Florida

3.53/5  rDev -5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

22oz bottle

A- Pours a clear amber color with an off-white head.

S- The aroma is sweet malt and a touch of caramel and some faint citrusy hops as well. 

T- The taste thankfully has more of a hop presence. Sweet malt and caramel up front, and a nice bitterness in the finish from the hops.

M- The mouthfeel is medium bodied with a moderate amount of carbonation. 

O- Overall, this is an okay IPA, but it falls a little short in my book.

Serving type: bottle

03-29-2011 01:53:55 | More by cjgator3

grittybrews

Washington

4.22/5  rDev +13.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured a rich honey-amber into a pint glass with a finger of soapy white head. Relatively mild aroma of citrus and pine.

Very smooth mouthfeel and low carbonation due to the cask. Extremely tasty with a nice caramel/toffee sweetness balanced by some really juicy citrus and just the right amount of pine sting on the finish.

For the style, quite light and extremely well-balanced. Really enjoyed this one.

Serving type: cask

03-27-2011 15:20:04 | More by grittybrews

Cyberkedi

Georgia

3.55/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Aroma is strongly, if not seriously, hoppy with a nice undertone of grapefruit. It pours a clear, brownish amber with a fairly thick, fluffy and somewhat persistent off-white head that leaves minimal lacing. Flavor is fairly hoppy, somewhat but not nastily bitter, with hints of sour citrus and wood. Texture is rather smooth and just a little fizzy. Finish is hoppy and woody and does not last. Overall, a decent IPA.

Serving type: bottle

03-20-2011 20:00:31 | More by Cyberkedi

JayQue

Virginia

3.73/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Nice IPA from Total Wine Va Beach. I had never heard of this brewery before, but this is pretty good. The head is awesome. Explodes out of the bottle...Even a mild pour down the side of the glass results in a huge frothy antique white head. I experienced a bit of spilllage as well. The left over beer in the bottle still left a big frothy head. Nice color....hazy orange/copper color. Thick globs of patchy lacing. Smelll is strong citrus (grapefruit) and piney hops.

Taste is more mild than the smell would suggest but that's ok. Not much malt balance, so the milder hop taste is plenty bitter enough for a hop-head.

Mouthfeel is crisp and bitter...maybe a hair thin but still pretty good.

Drinkability is good. High abv but no hint of alcohol in the taste and fairly easy hops bite. Not a world class IPA but pretty solid anyway.

Serving type: bottle

02-26-2011 00:00:20 | More by JayQue

rajendra82

Georgia

4.13/5  rDev +11%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

The amber body was clear, and the head enormous in size upon first poring. It eventually settled down to a more manageable half glass of foam. The aroma was somewhat soft for the style, with a citric and floral character. The taste was more bitter than the smell suggested, as a grapefruit rind taste was dominant. The malt backbone was not very prominent here, and the hops were there to sample in all their glory. Despite that, the beer never got overly unbalanced, primarily because of a creamy feel,m and because the hops were presented in a drawn out manner, than a heavy assault. If carbonation had been more in check, and had there been a bit more malt backbone, this beer would have been in the upper tier. As it is, it is a pleasing variant of the style.

Serving type: bottle

02-20-2011 07:47:11 | More by rajendra82

avalon07

South Carolina

3.58/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: Poured from a bottle to a tulip glass. Had a coppery color and a slightly hazy texture. There was a big, foamy, long-lasting head. Good lacing.

S: A very underplayed aroma of hops, citrus, and a bit of malt.

T: Tasted of West Coast hops, citrus (grapefruit), and some malt in the finish. A bit on the thin side for this style of beer. Not as much bite as you'd expect.

M: A good amount of carbonation with a smooth finish. Medium-bodied.

D: While this beer is drinkable, it isn't what I would call groundbreaking.

Serving type: bottle

02-01-2011 13:08:14 | More by avalon07

beer2day

North Carolina

4.08/5  rDev +9.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Darker honey gold pour with 1-finger light cream head. Good retention, with half the head still remaining at the bottom of the glass. Thick chunks of lace on the back half of the glass. Very active carbonation.

Lots of hops vying for attention here. Herbal mix, with nice orange and resiny pine on top of that. Fairly substantial malt profile, too, with caramel coming out.

Nice balance of caramel malt against the herbal hops. Still getting orange (peel) and pine resin in the taste. Not oily at all. Nice ramp up of bitters in the finish, with mostly pine covering.

Feel is right on for the style and mix of flavors.

Nice DIPA with a stand-up malt profile against a strong, but balanced, hop presence.

Serving type: bottle

02-01-2011 02:16:07 | More by beer2day

Metalmonk

North Carolina

4.28/5  rDev +15.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bottle sports a seaweed-green label showing brewery logo and deep sea diver helmet. "Fermenting change in taste since 1994." Wow, 1994...who knew?

The lightly clouded orange/rust color screams "hop-haze" and the dirty white head is on the thin side but lasts and lasts, splashing bit of lace onto the glass as it lessens and as the liquid is moved and swirled around.

Aggressive resiny hops dominate the nose, backed up with toasty, toffee-like malt. I see green in the mind's eye with every single whiff.

Doncha know, hops absolutely dominate in the taste as well. Resin pungency without tasting or feeling oily, you have to love big hops to love this. I do, and I do. Hops are even close to bracingly bitter, but the well-considered caramel/toffee sweetness of the malt has something to say about that. Hints of peppermint and citrus peel/rind are, well, more than just hints. And here come some flowery and herbal elements too. This just avoids the saltiness that many beers of this type can have. Finishes quite bitter, and the 7.9% is just about invisible. If not complex, Industrial India Pale Ale is at least hardly one-dimensional.

Smooth and slick, yet with remarkable tingle from the carbonation, this trades in creamy for tickling bubbles, and though it feels fine, I like a creamier, chewier Double IPA.

So green and bitter that it's probably not the most drinkable in its class, but the ABV is on the friendlier side of that scale. A very enjoyable hop-forward ass- and tongue-kicker.

Serving type: bottle

01-20-2011 22:52:42 | More by Metalmonk

Clydesdale

District of Columbia

4.15/5  rDev +11.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A: Pours a clear, bright copper color. The tall head has a soft orange tint and a fluffy, rocky, foamy texture. Retention is impressive, leaving a nice cap of rocky, chunky foam for a nice while. Extremely impressive lacing sticks peskily in narrow concentric bands. For what it's worth, one of the best looking beers I've ever seen.

S: Some moderate sweetness - equal parts caramel and pale, sugar cookie malt aromas. Pithy citrus (orange and grapefruit), resiny pine, and light herbal/grassy hop notes feature most notably in the nose. A light, faint bit of alcohol is detectable.

T: There's a fairly robust maltiness here - caramel bordering on light toffee and some biscuity notes. Hop flavor is two parts pine resin, two parts citrus pith, and one part floral/herbal character. Bitterness is strong, but met amply by the maltiness. While not an out-and-out hop bomb, this one definitely seems like an authentic version of the style - an amped-up, robust IPA.

M: Slightly fuller than medium bodied. Carbonation is supple and on the lighter side. The finish builds gradually into a resiny dryness.

D: This is my first beer from Diamond Knot, and I'm pretty impressed. Not in the top tier of DIPA's, but not far off and definitely enjoyable on it's own right. I'd be interested in knowing more about the hop varieties added. There's a nice balance of different flavors that adds some nice complexity.

Serving type: bottle

01-13-2011 03:11:41 | More by Clydesdale

woemad

Washington

4/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Big-ass 22oz bomber purchased at Jim's Homebrew in Spokane for $6.25. Sadly, there was no indication of age to be found on the label. I was very interested in trying a bottle of this because this beer had very briefly appeared on-tap in a few local bars about 5 or 6 years ago, but had just as quickly disappeared. I'm guessing the distributors either had something more rewarding to push in its place, there wasn't much of a response, or DK was selling so much locally that they gave up on wider distribution. I had it on-tap at the Capone's in Post Falls and was impressed, but never saw it again.

Poured a dark amber color with a bit of a chill haze to it, and took on a brighter, orangey color when held up to the light. A small yet creamy-looking off-white head stayed around for a while, leaving a surprising amount of lace on the sides of my glass.

The scent of this beer was of sweet, tropical citrus fruit. Pineapple and grapefruit were upfront. There was the smell of a bready malt backbone as well.

Hops are the star of this beer's flavor, tending towards the fruity, citrusy end of the scale, less so the bitterness end. Like a lot of DIPAs, this seems as much dominated by malts as hops, with a big, meaty (figuratively, not literally) malt backup to the hops. The hops do stay in overall command of the proceedings however, climaxing with a bitter hop zap at the swallow that is considerably more assertive than the hoppiness that had gone before.

Medium bodied, with a sticky, oily mouthfeel that was nevertheless not as massive as the mouthfeel of some DIPAs I've had.

While not as huge-drinking as a lot of DIPAs I've had, I'm not sure that's a bad thing. This is almost a "lite DIPA,", as it's not as cloying as many of its style-mates and goes down a little easier. Make no mistake - this is clearly a big IPA, but it doesn't quite smack you over the head with a shovel the way some really malty versions of the style do, and from a drinkability aspect, I kinda like that.

Serving type: bottle

01-10-2011 03:23:39 | More by woemad