Allagash Four

Brewed by Allagash Brewing Company
Style: Abt/Quadrupel
Portland, Maine USA

Clear coppery orange. White frothed head yields intricately webby lacework. Medicinal, clove, and phenolic esters in the aroma. Hint of raisins, rum, vibrant hoppiness, and damp tea leaves. Abundant yeast yields notes of passionfruit and plantain. Fluffily creamy, densely spongy carbonation. Sharp alcohol tingles the sides of the cheeks, but is softened by a soft fusion of flowers, bananas, and savory yeast decadence, which thickens the body and blankets the tongue. Soft, but highly explosive juicy hops. Lush display of banana and belgian yeast nuanced with clove-spiced cake. Very vague, but noticeable, candy sugar impression. Has a voluptuously malty, yeasty smoothness to the body, but there’s an overexerted metallic zip that lessens the overall richness. Chalky dryness increases as it reaches room temp. Juggling display of bready malts gel with a caramel and coconut essence drizzle, which revitalizes the delicate passionfruit and rounded peach acidity. Gorgeously yeasty aroma and flavor, and packed with a full assortment of mind-boggling subtleties, although the candy sugar remnants were a tad too apparent. Quite hoppy aroma, to boot. A tad sweet and overspiced, but pretty nice.

Sampled with TannernTavernBoys. Pours tawny brown with a soapy white head. Aroma was huge on this thing - lots of dark fruits, grapes lending to a vineous quality, sweet rich malt, light earthy yeast and a spice combination that is very reminiscent of Allagash’s Grand Cru. Mouthfeel is very think and sticky with light frothy carbonation. Taste has lots of brown sugar and caramel. There are some earthy hops in here that become more prevalent as it warms. More caramel and yeast are apparent as it warms as well. The finish is sour with prevalent alcohol. After a bit of ages I assume the alcohol on the finish would smooth out nicely. This beer is very good now, but after a while it could easily get to excellent.

cloudy brown beer with a small off-white head. sweet fruity aroma with caramel. flavor of spices, oranges, peaches, sugar, maple, dark fruits. very sweet. candyish. i like the balance between the tart light fruits and the sweet dark fruits. notes of spices and licorice. aroma is good too. tastes like a champ!

Hazy ruby body with a small creamy tan head. Sweet caramel and fruit aroma. Sweet fruity caramel flavor with some mild hops in the background.

750ml bottle via trade with DocLock! - Thanks Jeff! - What a coincidence I’m drinking this on a night where we start talking about another trade.. - This pours a lovely copper color with carbonated bubbles rising to the top and a short offwhite head that fades back to a ring pretty quickly. Aromas of caramel, toffee, raisin, and a touch of candi sugar. Flavor is yeasty with lots of raisin, some caramel, toffee notes, and some candi sugar. Palate is light well carbonated and soft in the mouth. A touch of alcohol warmth on the finish but it is covered very well. A very well made quad and amazingly enough it is American.. Very nice..

The pour is a dark, hazy amber with a dense off white head. Head duration is fully lasting with decent lacing down the sides of the glass. The aroma is rich with malt, fruit, and spices. Flavor is rich and full bodied with plum, caramel malt, and spices.

(750 ml bottle from Julio’s Liquors, cellared for 1 yr. after purchase) Pours dark slightly rubyish amber, a little hazy. Two fingers of light tan head. Aroma has some Band-Aid, at least initially, along with an almost lemony tang and some candy sweetness. Mouthfeel is initially a bit fizzy, then this dissipates to an almost velvety smoothness. Light weepy rings of lacing melt away quickly. Flavor features an almost sweet and sour quality with candy-like sweetness, light fruits and hints of citrus. There is a bit of chocolate lurking underneath. Didn’t really improve much in complexity or richness as it got warmer and I got deeper into the bottle (as big Belgian-styles sometimes do). A good beer but I was hoping for a bit more of a knockout from this fine brewery.

nice malty aroma, some roasted, some smelly fruit..very inviting. sweet flavor, alcohol, bitter palate. nice balance. enoyed with some very tasty sushi in Amherst Nov ’06