Beer of the Weekend #836: Dark Knight IPA

It’s Des Moines Beer Week and I am in the Des Moines metro area to paint for The Loud Sister. Needless to say, the beer of the weekend is a local brew: Dark Knight IPA, brewed by the Twisted Vine Brewery of West Des Moines, Iowa.


I know the pic is not the greatest but it will have to do. The glass, by the way, is from the Cock & Bull Public House in Covington, Kentucky. I recommend visiting if you’re in the Cincinnati area.

The color is non-opaque black. An overly aggressive pour produces two fingers of dense, buttery, tan head that dissipates slowly. The aroma is arboreal, zesty, and leaning astringent. A little bit of roast is noticeable but it is nothing major. It is a touch chocolaty, too. The first sip is a mouthful of roasted bitterness. It is a pleasing and bitter mélange of pine, zest, roasted malt, and a hint of chocolate. The bitterness carries the beer at first, lingering on the taste buds long after each sip, but its prominence fades slowly as the beer warms (or as the taste buds adjust).

Fun facts about Dark Knight IPA:

• Style: Black IPA. The brewery also calls it “Cascadian Dark Ale.”

• Price: $22 for a 64-ounce growler fill at the Twisted Vine Brewery on Westown Parkway in West Des Moines.

• Alcohol content: 6.9 percent ABV.

• IBU: 95.


The Quiet Man’s grade: B.

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