…so it was exciting today to see the approval for Dark Depths Baltic IPA. Not only does the style sound interesting, but this big 7.6% ABV promises to be a classic English-style porter….and yes they are calling it a LAGER.

I quite agree with the quote from MyBeerBuzz where the state Samuel Adams calling this IPA a lager. As the name hints at, this is a dark beer, so it’s already different than your standard IPA beer. But the taste only hints at the hops, so it’s reminiscently an IPA, IMO.

The beer definitely smells of hops as it approaches the nose, and at first sip you get a bit of sour and bitterness on the lips and tongue. However, a dry texture quickly washes into the mouth carrying a rich, dark bitter stout and bok-like taste. I’d say it’s coffee-like in taste as its dry overall, but has a sweet flavour that envelopes the senses and melts into an even sweeter aftertast, but with a bit of sourness. Only a hint of the sour, however; this isn’t an IPA experience. It’s more stout!

I don’t think this is a bad beer, but I also don’t feel it’s very unique either. I think of it as a strong porter, a style I don’t particularly care for. I suppose if you are a stout or porter fan, this may be fun to try as it fancies a bit of the sourness, but far from a strong IPA sense. A good variation? Probably, but it’s not very interesting to me.