Allagash Odyssey

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

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

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Bourbon alcoholly aroma, coca cola colour. But the taste, bourbon more than whiskey, and very drinkable. Went down really well, smooth on the tongue. A great example of wood working, with vanilla coming through. SUitable understated carbonation

750 mL bottle, caged and corked, bottle October 2006, received via trade with porterhouse. Pours murky, lightly particulate brown with a small, frothy, light brown head, mostly lasting with fair lacing. Aroma is heavy malt (cookie, caramel, toffee), average hops (perfume), average yeast (dough, earth) with notes of subdued alcohol, wood, date, apple, and vanilla. Full bodied, sticky texture, lively carbonation, and a slightly bitter finish. Long duration, moderate sweetness, acidity, and bitterness.

20th June 2008. Smooth but dry. Wood flavours dominate but also seems to impart extra dryness. Very drinkable but not quite joined up enough to be great.

Bottle. Brown colour with a beige head. caramel malty, whiskey, wood aroma and a sweet light alcoholic fruity, whiskey taste. Medium body with a dry finish.

When I first tried this brew at a beer festival, I didn’t think much of it. At the time, I found it very astringent with whiskey-like qualities. This is definitely not the case out of the bottle. Feb 2005 bottle. Pours dark with an average light brown head that diminishes leaving a thin crust throughout the tasting. Scents of molasses, caramel and coffee are present. Taste is of bananas, raisins, prunes, dates, cassis with cask, wood, butterscotch and honey on the finish. Body is full and oily.

I saved this for #2000, because it was the best beer I had over Independence Day weekend. The pour was hazy, deep-brown with a medium white head. The aroma was complex...oakish, with bourbon, figs, caramel malt, some chocoff. The taste was very oaky, with the common vanilla flavor, which was bolstered by big bourbon, figs, caramel malt, and merlot and port wine. A true doppleganger of the 3 alcohol styles, this one is. Great, dense mouthfeel with well hidden alcohol and increasing complexity as it warms. If you see this one, for God’s sake buy this one!!

Draft, EBF: Clear dark brown. Condensed nuts aroma with chocolate powder and dense shredded almond skins. Woody bourbon brings undesirable alcohol in while the yeast just seems to shyly be there, not really providing anything to counter this oily nut juice nature. Growing strong skinny bitterness grows from nowhere and never provides any fight at this monstruous sweetness. Cloying grape coke, syrupy texture, watery through its low carbonation. Yawn.

750 ml corked asnd caged bottle poured a clear dark reddish brown with a lasting tan head. Aromas of toffee, spice, oak, stale popcorn and dark fruit. Palate was light bodied and crisp. Flavors of oak, vanilla, toffee, carmel, stale popcorn and dark fruit with a crisp lingering toffee finish.

750mL bottle, dated February 2005. Poured a lovely shade of burnt garnet with a thick, easily-resuscitated cap of mid tan head.. surprisingly clear, but it was lovely. The aroma did anything but dissapoint.. rich vinous notes and aged molasses were accented by brown sugar, vanilla, and faint cocoa powder.. no oxidation evident, but it definitely became sweeter and deeper with age.. I lost about 8 minutes with my nose in the glass. The flavor opened with black pepper spicage and redder fruit skins, really mellowing out rather than becoming sharp.. brown sugar, aged caramel, and molasses were found on the core, laced with sweeter chocolates.. light peppery and oaky notes, dried cherries, and earth surrounded.. warm, but not hot on the finish with the same excellent malt bill. Heavily-bodied with a creamy feel on the middle and more spicy on the edges.. warm after-effects in the nose after the finish.. balance and aging were spot-on. This was just magnificent.

2011-02-20. Dark brown body with a modest foamy tan head. 3+ Modest aroma, lightly tangy fruit character, mild alcohols and sweet malt. 7+ Flavour has a mild malty base with fruity accents and muted woody notes. Fruit character lingers in the finish. Smooth average palate. Enjoyable but on the mild side. Perhaps it has mellowed with a year in the bottle but this is surprisingly mild for a beer of this strength! Bottled January 2010, via trade with Fred82