4.6 AROMA 9/10 APPEARANCE 5/5 TASTE 9/10 PALATE 5/5 OVERALL 18/20Bottle from Spout’s: Turns out I will be in for a nice surprise since I had absolutely no knowledge of this beer recipe until I poured myself a glass tonight. Anyways, the beer poured a dark blackish brown color and was topped with a monstrous sizing of foam. Aroma is vivid and delivers soft delicate scents of spices such as cinnamon, dried mint, allspice, and a bit of rose water all while a sturdy base of mildly roast malt hold everything together. The smell of the yeast does have similarities to Belgian yeast but smells as though it is not an authentic strain. As for the drink, an extremely smooth velvet like palate that goes down easy which is why I awarded a perfect palate score of 5 points. The flavor is rich and robust with dark roast malts that suggest towards chocolate or light ground coffee bean but what truly makes the flavor of this beer stand out from the rest if the Belgian yeast used. It absolutely blows me away with how subtle and perfect the notes of spice actually are in this year’s Vertical Epic with all of the aforementioned spices I described in my nose. This is a well crafted dark Belgian strong style beer that i find to be balanced in full in every aspect of this recipe. Job well done Stone, you finished the Vertical Epic series with a true winner.
3.3 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 13/20
Dark brown with a wink of toffee brown head. Whirlwind of well plugged spice and over ripened banana. Fairly overpowering roast clove from the get go, not what I was expecting at all. Decent enough level of sweetness but was already adrift with a palate sapping ginger vibe that didn’t really pick back up. Quite tarry finish, no sweetness peaking through which is what I was hoping for.
Bottle, Deeblo Doesn’t Rate Tasting, Edinburgh
2.5 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 3/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 8/20
Bottle. Darkest brown woth light brown head. Massive spicy aroma, lots of cloves (dont like cloves), some cinnamon and ginger in the background. Taste is a massive clove bomb, ginger bread, some molasses. Some sweetness and a lightly bitter finish. I’m not in to this at all.
3.4 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 15/20
black spicy nose. light for what it is. Carb & spice. root beer like with iodine. ok but not celestial.
3.7 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
Bottle at Craig?s house. Spicy overtones. Not much in the way of head. Very dark as you might expect.
3.8 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 16/20
bottle at home ... deep dark roast ... thin tan lacing ... soft deep roast... light mellow spice nose ... soft toffee roast... dark chewy cherry roast ... big but mellow spice
3.5 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 15/20
Sample at Hopftest 2013. Comes black with a small brown head. Aroma of spice, malt, fruit, and caramel. Taste is cinnamon, cloves, roasted malt, dark fruit, yeast, and hops. Interesting. A bit too much spice for me.
3.5 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 15/20
A very spicy beer. Ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon. Wasn't expecting much from the look of it, but was pleasantly surprised in the outcome.
---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone
4 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 5/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
Clove and orange nose...maybe some pine. Opaque black, short medium brown head. Complex spices, cinnamon, clove. Slightly chewy mouthful. Slight bitter/spice aftertaste.
4 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
Aroma: Smelling of bread, dates, clove and ginger.
Appearance: A dark black colored beer. A brown head with good lacing and good curtains.
Taste: Tasting deep of roasted malt, grape-fruit peel, strong coffee and minced pie.
Palate: Medium carbonation, a soft and oily texture. A big body with a very dry finish.
Overall: Extremely potent, a very stout beer. Many complex spices. Nearly too much ... but not in a bad way.
Note: Bottle 650 ml. Reviewed 2013-05-19.
3.5 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 14/20
Bottle to flute
Clove aroma is strong, cinnamon, molasses, nutmeg. Inky black with a thin, tan like ringed head. Taste is chocolatey and spicy.
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