Name: The Black Stump
Brewer: Typsy Ram’s Brewing (Philippines)
Style: Specialty IPA: Black IPA
ABV: 7.6%
Review Year: 2020
The Black Stump is one of the latest offerings from the new craft brewery in Silang, Typsy Ram’s helmed by seasoned Australian brewer, Ray Mills. The Black Stump is a Black IPA that showcases a bold but harmonious tandem of classic hoppy and dark malt characters.
Ray Mills started brewing in Australia when he was 40. In 2008 and 2009, he was named the Australian Nation Champion brewer and won a Tri-Nations brewing competition with participants from Australia, South Africa, and New Zealand. He moved to the Philippines in 2014 and set up Munting Ilog Craft Brewery together with his partners. In 2020, Ray launched his own brewery and bar, Typsy Ram’s.
STYLE GUIDELINES
This beer is being evaluated as a Specialty IPA: Black IPA(21B) in the context of the 2015 Beer Style Guidelines of the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP). The most current version of the guidelines can be found on the BJCP website.
TASTING NOTES
The Black Stump pours deep brown almost black with a well-retaining foamy mocha head. The aromas are moderate in intensity but showcase rich dark chocolates, coffee, grainy, and oatmeal-like characters. Accents of orange marmalade and dried plum surface secondarily. This Black IPA has a medium body, a seemingly oily mouthfeel, and medium-high carbonation. Decoding the flavor balance for this Black IPA was quite tricky, but here is our best attempt:
The perceived flavor balance seems to be 60-40 in favor of the hops. The hop-derived flavors are assertive: orange citrus blended with pine. Notable impressions of tart grapes and dried plum are present, which could be from the hop flavors melding with the darker malt flavors or even the yeast esters. It is reminiscent of drinking coffee made from beans that exhibit dark fruit flavors.
On the other hand, while the malt flavors take on the minority stake of the balance, their presence is far from subtle. Distinct roasty coffee and dark chocolate flavors come forward. The perceived bitterness is higher than average and seems to exhibit a mixture of pine hop and dark roast attributes. The fermentation character, as mentioned, is quite difficult to distinguish given that it may have blended with the prominent hop and malt flavors; has a neutral character; and/ or was simply overpowered. The beer leaves the mouth feeling dry but has lingering impressions of cacao powder and pine bitterness.
THE VERDICT
With an ABV and IBU of 7.6 percent and 75, respectively, The Black Stump sits comfortably on the upper half of the Black IPA spectrum. It is rich and complex, but still offers a decent degree of drinkability due to its carbonation and body. This Black IPA showcases assertive characters of hops and malts without the two clashing and producing astringent sensations. Simply stated, The Black Stump is a well-made hoppy American IPA accentuated by dark malt characters and ultimately does not come off as a hoppy porter. Very good.
ADDENDUM:
The BJCP also noted that most examples of the Black IPA are of standard strength. Strong examples can be like big, hoppy porters if made too extreme, but come at the expense of drinkability. The hops and malts can also combine to produce interesting interactions.
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