Allagash Interlude

750 ml bottle. I wasn’t even paying attention and andrew asked if I wanted some of this sure I reply not even knowing what it was. wow, big thanks drewbeerme. Oaky nose sour malts lemon citrus, green grapes, dust. Hazy orange yellow tall white head. A little overcarbonated but it leads to a nice oaky sour grape flavor with a little earthy wood finish. Tasty beer.

A very vinous ale, primary tastes of sparkling white wine or Champagne, except a bit more malty and fruity ( green apples, spices and caramel) and a tad sweet at the begining. The first sip is very acidic and even metalic, but this passes and becomes a nice drinkable ale or should i say champagne? It finishes buttery and dry with a light oak aftertaste. The palate was a bit fizzy and twingy. Intresting but absolutltey not worth the high price!.

Another terrific beer from Allagash. The nose indicates the oak aging immediately and it’s not hidden in the palate either. A very tasty, tangy beer. I had it on tap. I think it could benefit from a little time in a bottle.

bottle, 2006. Pours a hazy amber color with a soapy white head. Aroma is decent - brett, orange peel, green pepper, slight spiciness, interesting light malt backbone that adds a pleasant sweetness. I thought this beer was way to acidic at first, but it grew on me. Lots of apple and grapefruit in the flavor - there’s a decent spicy component, but it seems to block some of the other complexities here. I can hardly taste any oak, and I don’t get any red wine flavors either, but maybe that’s a good thing. Decent finish, I wish there was a bit more bitterness, but that spiciness dominates. Overall, not bad, but not worth what I paid for it. Worth having once.

2006 - 750ml. Pours a applejuice-golden color. Fizzy white head lasts for only a little while, but then descends to a thin ring around the edge of the glass. Aroma is brett and a touch of green apple. Taste is slightly alcoholic with a notable brett presence. Apples/fruit are also evident as are some saison-like spices. It’s a little hot overall in the finish, but not bad. This almost has a hint of a standard Fantome taste, IMO. Palate is a little thin and fizzy. Overall, this is a good beer. Nothing mind blowing, but good nonetheless.

750ml Bottle: Very complex aroma is neither sweet nor bitter. I smell Marsalla wine, cloves, oak, light tannins, dark fruit, and a little malt. Poured amber in color with a small off-white head that diminished quickly. No lacing. Clear but hazy. Sparkling. Flavor is a little sweet and a bit tart but not bitter. Flavor is very complex. Starts a little sweet and fruit-like; then it becomes funky like blue cheese or Gorgonzola; finally it’s woody and buttery. Very different combination of flavors for this palate. Medium body. Oily texture. Average carbonation. Long, buttery finish. Overall, the butter and Gorgonzola really throw me off.

A vagrant fruit fly honed in on this as soon as I cracked it--always a good sign in my experience.Orange-amber body with moderate carbonation and a fading, sudsy white head. Great nose with prominent vinous-brett characters with notes of grapes, sour apples, grapefruit, and faint caramel. Nice tangy, briny qualities in the flavor with notable tartness and subdued oak like a well-oaked wine. Firm beer with qualities of tart fruit, ample bitterness, and caramelized fruit and malt sweetness. Nice Flemish sour and wine highlights here. Great beer.

Yes indeed. $20 a bottle. Ouch. Pours a lot darker than expected -- but not that dark -- but the aroma was just as I imagined it: heavenly. It seems with the top notch belgians, the aroma really is the place for the beer to shine, and shine Interlude does. Buttery vanilla, funky hay, tart grapes, and white chocolate dipped strawberries, the complexity and brilliance of the aroma is near unmatched.

Sadly though, it’s all downhill from there. But does that surprise anyone? That’s not to say this tastes bad -- not even close. I’ve just yet to find a world-class beer whos flavor can match the subtle complexity of it’s aroma. Flavor is a lot more herbal, dry, buttery and bretty than the aroma, but lacks any sort of tartness. Big on the savory herbal qualities, but missing any sort of fruit. Yeast dominated, perhaps, but who can complain about that?

This truly is a world class beer, and I knew going in to it that I should probably cellar this bottle -- 6 months old -- for at least a year longer. But I couldn’t help myself, and now, I am no doubt another $20 in the hole, because to not buy another one of these and cellar it would be plain foolish. And I am no fool.