Clipper City Heavy Seas Winter Storm (2005+ -- Imperial ESB)

12 oz. bottle.Lacking in the aroma area, this beer just doesnt do it for me. The taste is almost watered-down. Flavors of sweet malt but then no finish. Light-hop flavors. Just didn’t do it for me.

bottle poured an amber in color with some suspended sediment and a thin off white head. aroma has sweet caramel, floral hops, fruit, and plenty of malt. mouth feel is light and the carbonation average. flavor has a nice malted core, well hopped, good bitterness, and citrus hints. fairly hefty but well balanced. kept me interested through the glass.

Pours a nice crisp dark copper with a very thin though long lasting off white head. Aroma is lots of caramel, toffee, toast, grain, floral and citrus hops, a touch of pine and alcohol. A fine start to the beer. Flavor is sweet malt, a little toast, alcohol, a little tangy fruit, maple leaf. Finish is pretty uneventfull, sort of fruity, burnt sugar and slight bitterness, the beer kind of fades with very little change in flavor or depth. Palate is thin and oily then dry. I am not sure I have ever had anything billed as an Impy ESB, but this stuff is confusing, sort of a highly hopped Barleywine Light. I think it would go fantastically with a greasy pulled pork sandwich or 3 though.

20090214 12oz bottle from Spirits RB. BBF Mar 09. Dark amber, mostly clear, with small but lingering beige head presenting little foamy islands and soapy suds of streaky lace. Aroma is lightly floral, caramel, earl grey tea. Sweet stuff, full and malty, earthy tea and leaf flavors, light citrus and teaberry. Fairly vigorous carbonation helps tame the otherwise hefty body. Finish has a mild hop bite, mineral and herb. Eh, it’s okay stuff. Probably a tick better when fresh, but it’s only a couple months old.

(Bottle (best before 3/09) from McKean and Charles) Basically pass...Pours reddish amber with just a bit of biege head. Aroma of cotton candy, maybe a hint of fruit, some pine. Mouthfeel fairly loose and watery, relatively speaking. A bit sticky in finish. Some very light spotty lacing along with a light syrupy film. Flavor is just sort of candyish sweet, light fruit (pineapple), a touch of pine in finish. A little hot. Kind of a crossover between a barleywine and a big IPA that never develops much of a flavor profile.

Amber Brown with amodest head from a bottle, Nice lacing Modest aroma, big mouth feel with roasted malt, and caramel but a bit to much bitter iron blood aftertaste. It mellows Ok but not smooth

Balanced hoppy ale moderate floral taste with a creamy mouth feel and a slightly bitter finish.

Amber pour with a small white head. Aroma is of hops. Very nicely bitter flavor. Very crisp and clean finish.