BrewDog 5 A.M. Saint

Brewed by BrewDog
Style: Amber Ale
Ellon, Aberdeenshire, Scotland

Serve in English pint, Shaker

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First: this beer isn’t shy on the froth. With a large, airy off-white/light-brown head atop a glowy mahogany/ruby color, 5AM Saint doesn’t look like your run of the mill "amber ale". Its patchy, big-bubbled lacing makes for great glass decor. This beer is almost more on the English end of things - adds a nice edge to a sweet, hoppy aroma. Spicy almost. Great nose. Unique palate. Thin, but not watery or alcoholic. Very, very heavy on hops. Bitter, green finish. Again, not your everyday amber or ESB, even. Warm in the mouth. Great combo of hops... I’m impressed.

Thank you Chris (darkguardian) for the bonus! 330mL, best before 19-04-11 (batch 40). Clear copper with a 1 1/2 finger creamy beige head, good retention. Toasted malts with some earthy toffee dominate with some light chocolate and black pepper notes following. Hops consist of light mango and citrus, light grass, and just smells of overbitteredness. Flavor is grassy and earthy, some peppery notes again with too much bittering hops. There is some of the toffee again and plenty of the dirty earthy notes (redundant). Burps unsalted saltine crackers. Once it warmed the hops turned a little fruitier, but nothing could make up for the finish. Dirty dirty bitterness peaking at a 7, dry. Medium to high carbonation with a medium body. I think they’re mistaking bucketloads of dry hops with too much friggin bittering hops to make this not very drinkable and a waste of hops/$. I was excited to try this, but no. Just no.

Bottle. Creamy off-white good mostly lasting head. Light malty and heavy hoppy aroma. Pine and perfumed notes. More IPA like than ESB-like. Heavy bitter almost harsh IPA flavor. Long heavy bitter finish. Creamy palate. Excellent but not style true.

UPDATED: DEC 26, 2010 Pours a deep, deep amber with a tan, extremely lush head. The hop notes hit you before your nose gets near the glass. Once the foam settles, you can really get the pine, resin, and grassy citrus notes, along with a whiff of caramel maltiness. Really great aroma. Nice flavors, too. Thinner mouthfeel, low to moderate carbonation, faintly sweet with a good balance of malt and hop character. The beer only finishes moderately bitter; clearly the hops are almost all aromatic. Really smooth. The bitter definitely starts to build up as you drink it though, and by the end of the 12oz I was glad to switch to something else. Most certainly not sessionable, despite the low ABV. Glad to have tried it, and it’s a solid beer, but I’ll have trouble paying $3.70 a bottle for it, this gets dinged for the crazy price.

Bottle. Pours a dark orange with a finger of tan head. Aroma is quite like Alpha Dog, fruity, slightly resinous, with a fresh cut grass note, and a powdery chocolate feel to it. Smells amazing, tastes great. Sweet at first, before a generous bitter finish cleans it all up. Medium to light body, lively carbonated. This is a very drinkable, easy to like, no fancy tricks beer that you can drink all night yet still appreciate the complexity of.

Bottle. Pours a clear, dark amber colour with a large, frothy, off-white head. Aroma is predominantly dry and hoppy, much like an IPA, with flowers, pine, citrus, caramel and orange. The simcoe hops are standing out quite nicely. Taste is really like an IPA, very hoppy and floral with hints of citrus, lime and earth/pine. Initially very malty with caramel, thence quite bitter and hoppy on the finish. Medium body, lively carbonation, fairly long duration. Very fresh and soothing. It reminds me of the Mikkeller Single Hop Simcoe which is very nice.

11.2oz bottle, fresh from grape & gourmet. pours a clear, ruby-copper, with a thick, creamy, off-white head leaving sheets of lace on the glass. aroma is excellent, the dry hopping really shows, with huge fruity and woodsy hop notes of grapefruit, orange peel, and peach skins with sprucy, pine resins, and wet grass backed by light, nutty (i really got pistachio shells from this), toasted malts and caramel cereal. flavor is delicious as well, more balanced than the aroma, with bitter pine needles, citrus fruits, and a touch of pineapple up front backed by toasted cereal grains, caramel malts, and more roasted nuts with a bitter, crisp, hoppy finish. palate is medium bodied and slightly dry on the palate with perfect carbonation making this one extremely sessionable. overall, a damn fine beer from the brewdog boys be it an ESB or an amber.

Thanks to 17thfloor for sharing this 12 oz bottle! Pours a nice copper amber color with a creamy long lasting light tan head. Aroma is very fresh hops citric and floral almost herbal, beautifully blended. Spicy and sweet toasted malts with just a hint of alcohol. Flavor starts sweet, a little fruity and/or cakey. Picks up a nice mellow hoppiness, again with the citric, orange a touch of mango. A modest bitterness in the finish balances the sweet but fades quickly after the swallow. Medium body and soft carbonation. Very nice, both complex and rich but I could see myself drinking a beer like this all night.

Nice, amber-redish coloured substance with an off-white, lightly beige head. Head holds very good; Hoppy and fruity smell. Lots of hops. Some weird sweetness at the first taste, that makes place quicky for the sour-biterness. Hoppy, citrus and some spices. Taste is not bad, but not 100% my thing. Aftertaste is also hoppy-bitter, with some citrus inside.

Orangy amber color with an off-white head. Light malt aroma followed by a lightly husky malt/cereal flavor. Smooth and easy drinking, a great session beer.