CBC Beer Description
The following beer description is from our archive. For currently available beers, please refer to our House Beers, Seasonal Beers on Tap, and Cask Special pages
The Black Ryder
"Noonan-style" American Black Ale
Black I.P.A.? Cascadian Dark ale? Let’s set the record straight, shall we? It was Greg Noonan and Glenn Walter of the Vermont Pub and Brewery who on December 4, 1994, first took an I.P.A. recipe and painted it black. More recently accomplished brewers around the country have begun producing this new beer style in earnest, with my personal favorite expression being Stone Brewing Co.’s Sublimely Self-Righteous. Now there’s a movement amongst many
Pacific Northwest brewers attempting to define the style according to their own credit, calling it Cascadian Dark Ale.
We say “Stop the madness!” and accept the fact that once again, innovation has flowed Westward from the New England States. ‘Nuff said.
The Black Ryder is a “Noonan-style” twist on our popular Easy Ryder ale. Hopped with Cascade and Chinook in the kettle, then double-dryhopped with additional Chinooks lending grapefruit and pine notes. We’ve blackened it with the use of a specialty malt from Germany, Weyermann’s CaraFa, in which the outer husk is removed before roasting. This allows significant depth of color without roasty, acrid flavors such as those normally experienced in Porters and Stouts. Blended in the mash with a 50/50 blend of pale barley malt and malted rye, a full palate with hints of dark grains is complemented by the aforementioned notes of grapefruit and resinous hops.
Cheers to our friend Greg, and cheers to good beer!
OG: 1.050/12.5*P FG: 1.012/3.0*P ABV: 5.0%%