Black Oak Ten Bitter Years - Black Oak Brewing Co.

allergictomacros

Ontario (Canada)

3.55/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A - Clear amber with a light cover of foam.

S - Soft, floral and fruity aroma. Hints of citrus and grapefruit in the back.

T - Bitter for sure. Light sugary sweetness, apples, raisins and pine.

M - Slightly astringent and lightish in body. Sharp carbonation.

D - Not bad. A different balance on the DIPA. Could definitely use some smoothening out.

Serving type: on-tap

11-11-2010 01:04:58 | More by allergictomacros

yancot

Ontario (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev -0.5%

05-10-2013 16:25:46 | More by yancot

Groulxsome

Ontario (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +5.4%

05-07-2013 17:40:48 | More by Groulxsome

DaPan

Ontario (Canada)

4.75/5  rDev +11.2%

02-13-2013 03:48:24 | More by DaPan

kinguy

Ontario (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +5.4%

11-10-2012 16:27:03 | More by kinguy

peensteen

Ontario (Canada)

4.13/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

How have I not ticked this yet?

Hazy pale orange colour, ring of white head with lots of white lace all over the glass. Smell is bursting with piney hops, some citrus and grapefruit, some toasty malt and biscuit present as well. Taste is full of bitter hops, more pine and some orange flavours, pineapple, sopme malt in the finsih as well, lightly sweet witha a dry finish. Light, dry carbonation, medium full body, fairly oily. Great stuff and a consistant DIPA from Ontario, something I would gladly drink on any ocassion.

Serving type: on-tap

09-19-2012 21:00:57 | More by peensteen

chickenm

British Columbia (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev -0.5%

08-10-2012 01:16:37 | More by chickenm

spinach

4.5/5  rDev +5.4%

06-27-2012 20:10:10 | More by spinach

Molson2000

Ontario (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +5.4%

06-22-2012 21:54:49 | More by Molson2000

Rutager

British Columbia (Canada)

4.3/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance. Pours a nice looking hazy orange-gold with half a finger of cream coloured head that leaves some nice bands.

Smell. Toasted malt and sweet caramel, Some pine sap and alcohol with a little yellow grapefruit rind.

Taste. Wow!. Big citrusy, piney and a little bit grassy hops and bitter yellow grapefruit juice and rinds, some roasty toasty grains. Good, lasting oily bitterness. Really nice.

Mouthfeel. Medium-full body, medium-low carbonation.

Overall. Wow! A really great dipa here. I would love some more of these some time!

Thanks TheSevenDuffs!

Serving type: bottle

06-17-2012 19:12:54 | More by Rutager

SebD

Ontario (Canada)

4.48/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: It has a nice cloudy orange/amber color to it. It has a nice thick head that dies down moderately and leaves nice lacing.

Smell: The aromas definitly give out hints of citrus and grapefruit, (tropical smell), with some piney hops, and light caramelly malts in the back.

Taste: Like the aromas, it has a nice juicy hop character bringing out citrus, grapefruit, mango and more. Piney hops balance it out nicely and the malts, although hiding in the back, give it a light caramelly note.

Mouthfeel: It has a medium carbonation with a overall balance and feel.

Drinkability: It's a very smooth drinkable beer accompanied with great flavors and aromas. Definitely one of the best beers i've had from Ontario.

Serving type: bottle

05-13-2012 19:14:42 | More by SebD

beerhunter13

Ontario (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +5.4%

04-20-2012 23:06:48 | More by beerhunter13

cmadd

Ontario (Canada)

4.13/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: The body pours a orange and rusty straw colour with two fingers of head. Great retention and lacing.

S: Almost exclusively piney and citric hop aromas with a malt backbone. Edit: grapefruit aromas develop as the beer warms.

T: Upfront again with the citrus and the pine, the middle is dominated by a nice balancing malt, and the finish is a strong pine bitterness. There is definitely a brashness to the hops that works nicely here and fits the name well. I don't love this style, but I appreciate that it's well done.

M: Great body with perfect carbonation. Not much to report, solid.

O: Before the advent of Witchshark IIPA from Bellwoods Brewery this was likely the best IIPA brewed in Ontario. Now I prefer Witchshark, but I chalk that up a stylistic preference not quality; this is an excellent brew. It's a shame it's so limited and sells out so damn quick. Everyone should get a taste of this.

Serving type: bottle

04-16-2012 03:27:52 | More by cmadd

MattPS

Ontario (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev -0.5%

04-12-2012 17:45:53 | More by MattPS

4.33/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at Gambrinus in London, Ontario.

Dark amber in colour with a thick, creamy head. Aromas of West Coast hops dominate the aroma - pine, grapefruit, and tropical fruit blend with rich caramel malt. The flavour brings more of the same, an explosion of West Coast hops on the palate with toffee malt flavours and a perfectly integrated balancing bitterness.

Serving type: on-tap

01-06-2012 23:03:55 | More by

EnemyWithin

Ontario (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +5.4%

01-06-2012 17:29:50 | More by EnemyWithin

mjtiernan

New York

4/5  rDev -6.3%

01-04-2012 02:16:41 | More by mjtiernan

JohnnyBarman

Ontario (Canada)

4.33/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

On tap at Volo as part of Black Oak Tap Takeover.

Poured into a nonic. Ruby amber, good frothy head, nice lacing.

Rich hoppy nose - notes of citrus, pine, grapefruit, malt sweetness.

I tip my cap to you, Black Oak - this was bloody terrific. The perfect melding of hoppy and malty sweetness made for one damned enjoyable sipper. Almost chocolately was the malt, but the hops certainly held true. Great stuff. Moderate carbonation and body, slight creamyness.

Run, don't walk to the bar if you see this on tap.

Serving type: on-tap

09-23-2011 00:42:43 | More by JohnnyBarman

hopsolutely

Ontario (Canada)

4.22/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

"Ken's Bitter" = an absolute epic Ontario hop blast. An institution that I am delighted to see come out for a second year. (and should have rated earlier).

Beautiful clear amber with decent head, lacing and carbonation Lacking the oiliness I respect (but dislike) from the typical higher ABV hoppy brews.

Citrus aroma with pine, grapefruit and all things hop-magnificent. Caramelized malt sweetness at the start of the taste yields into a well rounded & balanced flavour explosion of malts & west-coast hops. Pleasantly bitter lingering finish.

This is a benchmark Ontario beer - which I have enjoyed on both draught and bottle whenever an 8% ABV is feasible. Thank-you Ken!

Serving type: bottle

09-10-2011 02:37:33 | More by hopsolutely

Jeffo

Netherlands

4.13/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Got this one from kv84 in some summertime trades. Thanks for hanging out man!

From a bottle into a snifter.

APPEARANCE: Pours a one finger, medium looking, white head with good retention. Perfectly clear burnt orange body with no carbonation evident. Head slowly fades to a good film. A film and ring remain until the end leaving dots of lacing down the glass. Pretty good looking double.

SMELL: Bigger nose of pale malts, caramel, and lots of piney and citrus hops. Lemon and grapefruit notes, with splashes of orange peel in there. Very bold and fruity for sure. Quite enticing.

TASTE: Pale malts, some caramel malts and buttery notes, and a good dose of bitter pine at the swallow. Big, bold and persistent aftertaste of caramel sweetness, bitter pine and hops, with some citrus notes in there as well. Grapefruit and orange peel are in there to accompany the piney bitterness. Lots of bold flavors that pack a punch. Great stuff.

PALATE: Medium body and medium carbonation. Light and semi-creamy on the palate, goes down fine with some heat at the swallow and finishes slightly dry on the palate. While not problematic, the alcohol burn could be toned back some for an 8% brew.

OVERALL: This was excellent! An Ontario DIPA that I would gladly drink on a regular basis. It would be nice if they made this a regular offering, or at least brewed up another comparable beer to have regularly in their lineup. Can compete with some of the other big boys out there. Give it a shot if you have the opportunity. Thanks again for bringing one of these along kv84. Recommended.

Serving type: bottle

08-15-2011 10:33:21 | More by Jeffo

jrenihan

Ontario (Canada)

4.33/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Pours a caramelly amber colour. Translucent. A small white head sits atop and sticks around.

Smell took awhile to come alive for me- at first it was quite faint. Eventually. it was lots of hops and grapefruit, as well as a bit of soap. A nice smell. Got quite used to it and as the glass went by!

Taste is like the smell. Cirtusy, grapefruit taste. Quite bitter, especially in the finish. Quite juicy. Very nice.

Mouthfeel is good as well. A nice medium/full bodied beer, with moderate to high carbonation. The carbonation is nice, in that the bubbles are quite small, and give off a nice tingle rather than an irritating annoyance.

Overall. a very nice DIPA and probably my favourite Ontario beer. Wish it was around all year!

Serving type: on-tap

07-21-2011 23:54:40 | More by jrenihan

ZorPrime

Quebec (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to fellow BA liamt07 for sending me 2 bottles of this brew. I was looking forward to tasting this one.

Copper color beer with some reddish notes on the edge. Nice cloudy head which sticks very well to the glass. Nice looking beer. The aroma is hoppy (citrus). Not very intense. I get some bitterness in the aroma. Cool. Lets dive in... WOW! First sip is very surprising. I was like... wow, what the hell I'm getting here... Lots of stuff in there. Second sip, I calm down and are able to pick up different aspect of this complex beer. It is very bitter, almost acid but still sweet! The bitterness is strong and lingers in the mouth for quite some time. Woody on the taste too. Light notes of fruits there too. The 8% is well hidden here.

Superb and a very excellent beer. Cheers Liam for sending me 2 bottles! Awesome.

Serving type: bottle

11-15-2010 01:31:36 | More by ZorPrime

wordemupg

Alberta (Canada)

4.1/5  rDev -4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

341ml bottle poured into tulip nov2 2010

A clear bronze with only a couple bubbles feeding a thin film that leaves decent lace

S pine with a little grapefruit and tangerine decent smell perhaps a little pineapple in there too

T now some malt comes out too play with some caramel and bread on top of what I smell, a little surprised that it's not as tropical in the mouth

M bitter like the name would suggest, more carbonation then what was visible and leaves a little behind in your mouth

D for 8% this one went down pretty quick and it's pretty well rounded not lacking in any area

nice example of a DIPA and Canada needs more of them, thanks liamt07 for knocking this one off my want list

Serving type: bottle

11-03-2010 05:06:41 | More by wordemupg

StarshipPoopers

Ontario (Canada)

4.47/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Picked this up at Chancey Smith's.

A - Rich looking amber colour. The head was reasonable, decent retention that ends up as a thin but steady film. The lacing was decent, I think it would have been better if the glass it was served with wasn't moist.

S - Very nice smell. Grapefruit was the main hop aroma, but pine notes also came through. These hop smells were matched by citrus and spices.

T - Much the same as the smell. The beer has a nice bite to it from the spices and generous hops. The citrus notes back up the beer and balance it off very nicely.

M/D - Not as smooth as many DIPAs, but the mouthfeel was certainly nice. It was surprisingly light and easy to down, and despite the slight harshness it was a pleasure to drink. I would gladly have a few of them.

Too bad that this is a limited brew, I would love to have more since it is so close. I definitely want to try it again before it disappears.

Serving type: bottle

10-31-2010 19:52:47 | More by StarshipPoopers

BBP

Ontario (Canada)

4.55/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

A- Amber with slight yeast, decent carbonation and head.

S- Hops and fruitiness as well as a bit of spice.

T- Complex and very tasty. Sweet fruit and grapefruit. A bit spicy. Great balance without being too sweet or bitter. The citrus/grapefruit was balanced well by the fruitiness to it. Very hoppy, but balanced so well that the hops didn't feel too strong for a second.

M- Medium full body. A bit creamy. Good carbonation.

D- Good drink. Light and easy, but flavorful and potent. Alcohol is nowhere to be found. Good blend. I would definitely recommend this to anybody. Drinks far easier than most normal IPAs. Is almost the definition of easy drinking especially for a DIPA.

Serving type: bottle

10-31-2010 17:48:19 | More by BBP