The first time I tried this beer was during the live blogging session at this years, first, European Beer Bloggers Conference and I’ve got to hand it the Windsor & Eton team for being the only brewery bold enough to prepare a cask for this session. You can read my live post about this beer here, I only had 5 minutes to write it so there’s not much too it to be honest but please don’t let that put you of reading it.
I remember being impressed by the cask version at the conference and this bottle did nothing but reaffirm my earlier thoughts about this beer.
Windsor & Eton Conqueror Black IPA
It pours a lovely rich stained mahogany in colour with a milky tea coloured head which is quite lively, as you can see from the picture.
The herbaceous hoppy aromas I remember, so well, are still there along with some roasted coffee, a hint of caramelized sugar and a dash of chocolate.
It’s blessed by not being the most bitter black IPA that I’ve tasted or the strongest for that matter, weighing in at a mere 5% ABV. Those that know me will wonder where I’m going with this as usually the stronger and the bitterer the beer the better for my taste buds, but for me the bitter sweet balance is just about spot on and makes for a very drinkable beer indeed.
The taste is not overly complicated like some of the black IPA’s that I’ve tasted but there’s still quite a bit going on. Sweet caramel/chocolate malts, piney citrus hops, a hint of liquorice and a mildly drying coffee like bitterness make this one enjoyable beer!
It is nothing short of being superb and is currently one my top beers of the year. I would highly recommend it to anyone and I’m looking forward to sampling more from the Windsor & Eton Brewery in the future.
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