Most beers you see come out of Blackflag are pale, sessionable, and hoppy. But this isn’t pale. And at 6 percent ABV, you’d be on shaky ground if you tried to session on it. But hoppy? You betcha.
Taste of Chaos is a black NEIPA – more like NEIBA, amirite??* – released just in time for winter, which has hit the Sunshine Coast hard and fast this year. Heck, even the punky little angel-demon-reaper dude on the label is wearing a hoodie.
With this beer, the Blackflag crew have put a dark spin on their signature neon graffiti flavour palate. Part of the chaos comes with the cognitive dissonance of pouring a beer that’s as black as your insides, but then getting a huge whiff of light-and-bright fruit up your shnoz. Close your eyes, breathe in the sweet pineapple and marmalade and pine, and it’s hard to remember the beer’s not a hazy gold.
It’s only when you go back for a second or third more thoughtful sniff that you notice it’s not only fruit you’re getting; there’s also some coffee and roast coming through from the dark Munich malt. And when you start drinking, while the hoppy barrage of mixed fruits and is still the dominant flavour, those darker flavours still make themselves known, especially in the finish: you’ll find the malt roastiness plays a part in bringing a bit more bitterness than in ToC’s paler cousins.
Black NEIPA, man. It's kind of bonkers.
Mick Wüst
*Sigh. Sorry for that. I’d say, “It’s been a long day,” but it’s only just passed 11am.
Published June 11, 2024 2024-06-11 00:00:00
