Stone Cali-Belgique IPA (Cali-België)

Brewed by Stone Brewing Co.
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Escondido, California USA

Serve in Shaker, Tulip

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Style; glass: IPA; tulip 22 fl oz x 6.9% ABV = 151.8 / 60 = 2.53 beers * 150 C = 379.5 calories (est.) Purchased at: Canal’s Lawrenceville for $7.99 Aroma: sweet, banana and cloves, some citrusy hops, pine, grass. Visuals: packaging is beautiful, though screen printing always seems to be coming off the bottle. It gives the brand a bit of crumbly marble style, though I wonder if it’s intentional? Perhaps the most brilliant IPA I’ve ever seen, absolutely crystal clear. Like the final scene in THX 1138, it’s that bright sunlight. Golden, pale, transparent, bright white head, sticky fresh Belgian lace. Carbonation is continuous. Taste: Delicious, sweet, and hoppy. A great blend, very much in the spirit of Chouffe’s Hobblon Dobblen (sp?). Expertly balanced, nice easygoing maltiness, great hops. Perhaps my favorite new session brew. Palate: Crisp, clean, and refreshing. A dream of fusion of two of my favorite styles. I hope they develop an imperial of this. Starts very sweet, crisp, middle has a bit of a burn and slight roastiness, finish is hops and bitterness with a salty sweet end note. Amazing. Overall: In terms of lighter brews and more reasonable ABVs, this is a clear winner, and easily my favorite IPA at the moment, and very much a favorite all around, though my top honor still goes to Mikkeller for Black. I’m going to get more, soon. Stone, just keep them coming, and please consider an imperial version of this. originally posted at: <a href="http://beercritic.wordpress.com/"&

Bottle - pours light orange with a medium head. Has a fruity (apple and/or apricot) aroma and taste. Did not taste overhopped at all.

Pours a hazy orange with a foamy off-white head. Aroma of caramel and flowers. Taste is initially caramel sweet followed by a sourness that turns into a floral peppery bitterness. Decently crisp finish without too much bitterness that lingers. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

clear, honey color, earthy pine aroma and flavor from the hops which also give a lingering bitter aftertaste... some lacing but subsides quickly..

Poured from a 22-oz. bomber into a smaller class at the Courtyard Marriott in Culver City, Calif. Less than a finger of head. Color was honey pale. Light layer of gray lacing that wanted to stay, but was slowly evaporating. Light layer of soapy film on the sides. Fruit dominated the initial smell. Got apple first with some pear, grapes and kiwi knocking on the door. Some rotten fruit as well. Tasted pretty close to the smell, albeit a bit skunkier. Got some bitterness in there as well. Apple leading the way still. Some light pear as well. Light body. Creamy texture. Average-to-soft carbonation. Bitter finish. An OK beer, but nothing special. I will say that it had the “Stone” feel to it, but I just wasn’t into it from the start.

Cloudy orangey gold, big frothy white head. Smells hoppy at first, then a good dose of sweet yeasty aromas. Pretty much follows this pattern on the flavor, as well. Nicely mixed flavors. I will drink this again...

UPDATED: MAY 20, 2012 Pours golden straw with a small white head and decent lacing. Aroma is barnyard and light hops. Taste is crisp and light. Not really my style but could drink it in a pinch.

I was hoping for a little more happiness and fruitiness from the yeast. In any case, it is a great beer. It’s smooth, easy to drink, and has a nice lemongrass character. Also has a great color. It does have a nice hefeweizen yeast character, as well as some pear notes.

Bomber. Sweet, floral, hop aroma. Belgian yeast not detectable in the nose. Hazy gold body with a thin, white head that leaves nice lace. Had this once before and wasn’t overly enamored with it. Now, I simply love it. Perfect balance and the Belgian yeast improves upon the Stone IPA base. Stone IPA was already one of my favorite go-to beers, and this is better.

Poured into a Duvel tulip glass from a 650ml bottle with no date.

A: Pours a clear amber body with a moderate sized off-white head with poor retention. Not much carbonation activity after the pour.

S: The aroma is rather strong with the Belgian yeast traits coming through with a backing of some citrus. This smells quite delicious, mildly sweet.

T: Interesting flavor, there’s an assertive tart up-front while some citrus notes take a back seat. The tart reminds me of Chamblay from Unibroue actually and some other wits I’ve had, sort of a lemon tart. The hops really take a back seat here though, as the Belgian yeast shines here providing an interesting tarty citrus blend while the American hops accent it.

M: Medium bodied with lazy carbonation, I wish this were a bit more crisp.

O: This is an interesting beer, the yeast shines here. This reminds me a lot of some witbier’s I’ve had actually which is where the yeast comes in.

22 oz bottle pours a clear golden/amber color with a medium white head that never vanishes entirely, with good lacing. Smell is of citrus hops. Aroma is unusual and complex, including, coriander, orange, lemongrass, Belgian yeast, and perhaps cloves and caramel. Taste is only slightly bitter and a little spicy with some caramel sweetness kicking in on the pleasant finish. Body is medium with soft carbonation. The Belgian yeast makes this an unusual IPA.