Allagash Grand Cru

Brewed by Allagash Brewing Company
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Portland, Maine USA

750mL bottle corked and caged from Holiday Wine Cellar (Escondido, CA). Batch #15 -- from my research, it appears that this is around 2.5 years old. Pours a deep orange-amber. One finger of white frothy head with amazing staying power. Really, I’m still waiting for it to dissipate and it’s just not happening. Fragrant aroma of flowers, jasmine, tropical fruit, and banana. Flavor is really complex and difficult to describe but there is a nice mellow fruitiness and a hint of spice Nicely hopped with a bit of lingering bitterness in the finish. Overall, there is an excellent balance between the sweet and the bitter. Near the bottom of the glass now, and still the foamy head is holding up! A very good beer -- I think the aging did it well.

Aroma: not excessively aromatic, belgian yeast nose with carnal note. Appearance: deep red to brown, has a full bodies appearance Flavor: prominent carmal flavor, bread notes Palate: full bodied, thick, rich, porter like. Overall Imprssions: Prominent carmal flavor! Smooth, rich and tasty.

Dark orange/brown color, off-white head. Sweet malt, yeast, fruit, spice, caramel, and bread. Decent beer, but nothing amazing.

(bottle - 12 oz) Cloudy orange color with a thick off-white head. Aroma is sweet and spicy with a good amount of yeast, candy, licorice, and a light hint of clove. Flavor is sweet and spicy at the beginning with a smooth and creamy body. The yeast is very apparent in the middle and mixes with the spices. Finishes dry and spicy with a mild bitterness. Alcohol is very warming.

Bottle from Bevmo: Poured a gloomy and semi hazed orange hue color with a perfect topping of head. Nose is all yeast in respect to a true Belgian fashion. The flavor is creamy and sweet with a rich base of quality malts while there is a spicy blend of Belgian yeast that dominates over all else. This is a prime example of how a grand cru should be.

Pours a hazy gold with lots of sediment. Perfect white head but no lacing. Aroma is faint - cereal malt, bread and yeast. Taste is the same plus an unexpected smokiness that adds a nice twist. Decently hopped too. This is very smooth and drinkable. Exceptionally well-balanced. Could drink this all day.

Large bottle, Batch 19, gave a generous pop when opened, this ale has a hazy amber-light brown and peach skin (orange-red-dark yellow?) pour with a white and some slightly off-white fluffy head of bubbles that was easily two to three fingers high, there is medium or a bit more effervescence in the glass, the effervescence appeared to increase as the ale sat in the glass, leaves some lacing on the glass, aromas of spicy yeast, a mixture of light and dark fruits (apples-raisins), fruity esters, bread, some floral notes and sweetness on the nose, flavor of light and dark fruits (raisins), toasted malt, caramel and bread in the background with gentle spices, bruised apples (a good thing), a touch of alcohol warmth (I thought this was a little surprising for a 7.2% drink), a touch of sugar, brown sugar and fruit sweetness, some citrus on the palate to, finishes with some bitterness and lingering malt flavor on the tongue, and there is some pepper at the finish while esters and spices linger after the finish, mouth feel is medium or maybe a touch less along with a being smooth and creamy on the palate, very nice Belgian Strong Ale.

Batch 20Hazy golden brown body beneath an off white foamy head. Aroma of slight skunk, yeast, raisins, bread and banana esters. There was some off flavors, metal, yeast, dark fruits. Decently syrupy mouthfeel and nice retention.