Avery Anniversary Fourteen

Formerly brewed at Avery Brewing Company
Style: American Strong Ale
Boulder, Colorado USA

Serve in Snifter, Trappist glass

(RBESG 2007, Glasgow. Bottle) Dark amber color, brown head. Malty and milky aroma. Creamy, malty chocolate flavor, some fruit andsome caramel notes.

Fairly well carbonated, this beer is topped initially by a three-finger thick, lightly browned, amber-tan colored head that leaves a wispy lacing pattern as I drink this beer down. The beer is a brilliantly clear, blackened-amber colored brew that shows deep red highlights when held up to a bright light. The aroma is interesting; it is certainly hop driven, yet somehow is reminiscent of a citrus & spice, black holiday cake / sweet bread. I get notes of roast coffee beans, bergamot, candied orange peel and some un-specified spice notes sort of like a mix of allspice, clove and cinnamon, but really unlike any of these. The aroma almost has a split personality; at times the hop notes provide a citrus character which mixes with the malt to form notes of a dark spice cake, but at other times sharper, herbal, green, pine-like, even menthol type, almost raw hop notes provide a rough contrast to the other side of the aroma. If you really dig around in the aroma a substantial malt character becomes noticeable with notes of toasted malt, browned bread crust and lightly burnt biscuits. As the beer warms, aromas of warming alcohol become noticeable.

Thick and quite a bit sweeter than I was expecting. The hop character is still quite evident, but again it seems to contribute flavors that meld with the malt character to display a deeply rich, sweet, dark spice cake flavor that has notes of molasses, burnt toffee, orange zest (the citrus character is actually quite prominent), at times notes of cherries and a bitter finish that has lingering notes of espresso and hop bitterness. The usual citrus hop flavors at times take on a fresh, raw hoppiness that reminds me of spicy, freshly chopped herbs, piquant pine needles, and even something like garlic chives. How would I describe this beer quickly, well it is a cross between molasses sweetened earl grey tea (with lots of bergamot and a green, herbaceous, tannic tea character) with a black coffee. The flavors are juxtaposed, cacophonous and jarring, yet somehow remain eminently drinkable and enjoyable. Despite the straight-forward sweetness, this beer has a fairly light body, or I should say that with this level of sweetness I would expect this beer to be sticky and cloying, but instead it has a medium fullness to it.

This is one of the more interesting beers that Avery has put out recently. When compared to there super-high alcohol brews this beer is quite stellar in the comparison. I really like the mix of hop character and dark malt flavors; even the sweetness seems to work here. In fact without the ample hop character the sweetness would likely overpower this beer and make it undrinkable for me (think the beast, mephisto or Samuel). I was fully expecting this to be another strong beer from Avery that was a complete flop, instead I am pleasantly surprised by a beer that almost seems like it shouldn’t work.

(bottle - 22 oz) Murky brown pour with a thick tan head. About an inch of foam. Aroma is light with hints of dark malts, alcohol, and molasses. Flavor is bitter and malty at the beginning with a creamy and sweet middle and a very warming and bitter finish. Aftertaste is a mixture of malts, dark fruits, and molasses.

Thanks to rsamayoa. Bottle: @ rateberians informal gathering. malty, smokey, earhty and woody, nice balance conplex and well balanced.

Bottle. Pours near black with reddish highlights. Great light tan head which leaves its mark down the glass. Malty nose with a fruity hopped edge. Taste is pretty similar with a citrusy hop burn instead of the hop flavor that is expressed in the nose. Oranges, some roasted nuts, and molasses malts. Boozy and dry finish. Good representation of an American Strong Ale, yet nothing too eccentric or over the top.

Tasting at DØE, Aarhus Syd, DK. Bottled, 170609. Brown with beige head. Aroma of hay, malt and spices. Flavor is caramel, spices, alcohol and red fruit.

Bottle. Pours dark reddish-brown with a medium beige head. Sweet caramel aroma with a hint of citrus hops. Flavor is sweet and only partially balanced by some hop bitterness. Notes of caramel, chocolate and grapefruit. Slightly bitter finish.

Butters Big Blowout tasting -Pours a dark brown with a very nice creamy tan head. Aroma a malt, chocolate, dark fruit, hint of citrus. Similar taste with a slight hop bitter finish. Damn good complex strong ale.