Southern Tier Iniquity
I’ve had this bottle of Iniquity sitting on the basement floor for a couple of weeks now. I was trying to hold out and pair it with something tasty that my wife had planned for dinner, but as is my nature, impatience can only be tolerated so much and the bottle was opened as a “celebration” of ordering new windows for the house.
After enjoying Laughing Dog’s Dogzilla I was super stoked to find another black IPA on the shelves. I was curious to see how a company whose IPAs I really enjoyed tweaked their recipes to develop this black version.
Appearance
Iniquity pours a very dark brown with a small amount of head that faded rather quickly.
Aroma
And this is where things really get interesting. It seemed that every wiff was a bit different. At first, all I picked up was the initial bittersweet chocolates and light coffee notes. The next sniff would bring citrus hops and a piny character into the mix. The higher ABV (9%) is well masked.
Taste
The chocolates in the nose aren’t as apparent in the taste, but they’re still in there. The malts take on a more toasted and caramel nature with the more pronounced hop profile. This is a tasty brew that is quite warming as you make your way through the glass. The finish has the welcome hop bitterness with a light spice.
Overall
Between the two black IPAs that I’ve enjoyed, I think I prefer the Iniquity as it’s a bit more rich in terms of mouthfeel and flavor compared to the Dogzilla. Both are unique takes on an IPA, but the Southern Tier product seems to suit my likes better. The combination of the dark malt with the citrus/piny nature of the hops turned out wonderful.
Rating: 4/5