Oak & Ash Experimental IPAs ➯ Number 4: Blackcurrants

Oak & Ash Experimental IPA No. 4,
"Blackcurrants": Tart and fruity.

Experimental IPA Number 4 from the Oak & Ash Brewery in Beit Shemesh has a bit of a silly name in Hebrew, but most folks are simply calling it Blackcurrants.  The fruit, also known as cassis, is a very dark purple, almost black, that is used for making jam, savory dishes, and juice drinks.  It is especially high in vitamin C.  I read blackcurrants taste tart like passion fruit with a dark berry flavor.  Their growth is banned in New York state and some western counties because they carry a fungus which can destroy pine trees. 

Blackcurrants beer pours out an opaque purple.  It has aromas of sour fruit (maybe blackberries), grass, and some herbal character, most likely from the hops.  It has a slightly tart taste, though pleasantly fruity.  Whatever bitterness there is, is trumped by the sourness.  You get the sense of berries, but I wasn't able to pin it down any closer, certainly not blackcurrants. 

Blackcurrants jam is fruity and delicious,
really unique.

On the drinkability scale, Blackcurrants rates high, full-bodied and juicy, but I can't imagine it going with any food.  An interesting member of the beer family, by itself. 

[Read about the first three Experimental IPAs from Oak & Ash here and here and here.]