Holy Mackerel Special Golden Ale

Brewed by Florida Beer Company
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Melbourne, Florida USA

Bottle. Pours a hazy dark orange with a very small white head. The nose is very sweet with loads of sugar up front and hints of orange, clove, and mild spices. Wow, this stuff is sticky sweet. It’s a bit much. The esters manage to add an almost bitter or dry, spiced hint but it is no match for the candy flavor on this one. I pick up a rich marmalade note and some honey as well. My only complaint is there is too much blunt, candy-like sweetness.

Appearance: Pours a clear, orange body with a small, off-white head. Smell: Sugar-coated honey malt aroma with notes of orange peel, bananas, and a whiff of fusel alcohol. Taste: Lightly malty with a sharply honey candy sweetness. Meager pinch of spice. Orange and banana fruitines. A hint of bitterness struggles to temper the sweetness. Light yeastiness. Semi-dry, boozey finish. Mouthfeel: Medium-thin body. Medium carbonation. Quite warming. Drinkability: This may come to the surprise of many here, but I didn’t really care for this beer.

Hazy yellow with thin white head. Aroma is sweet and peary with hints of pineapple. Taste is heavy and sweet with definite fruit. Strange aftertwang, and perhaps some fusel alcohol flavor.

cloudy brownish tan body with no head. It has an aroma of vomit and orange with a bit of honey and malt. The flavor has a bunch of malt and has a hint of wasabi flavor and honey.

Thanks to redlight. Clear darker golden, tiny almost no head at all. Aroma is sweet malt and corn. Flavor is corn, sweet malt, honey, some spicy belgian yeast. Sickly sweetness that lingers and just a mix of sweet pale malts and corn. What a thin and lifeless beer, zero body and taste more like a pale lager.

Clear deep golden bronze pour has a wispy-lacing white head. Aroma of sweet pale malts and Belgian yeast with some fusels and greenth. Body starts sugary sweet, but somewhat thin for the style with some light fruity esters, drying some toward a warming finish. Needs a thicker, more sustained body and authentic yeast strain, but a decent attempt at a Belgian strong.

Bottle from beerlando and served in my NB worthy glass: Clean deep golden hue with a frothy head and very good lace. The aroma is quite phenolic with banana, starfruit, clove, gingersnap, biscuity and caramel malt, grassy and aromatic hop and a hit of sugar.

The taste starts shockingly sweet and sugary supported by a fruity background. An interesting bitterness appears towards the finish and helped slightly with all that sweetness. Spicy and medicinal notes found upon the aftertaste. The mouth feel is a tad sticky but has good carbonation and alcohol to keep to palate refreshed.

Has anyone actually cellared this beer 2-3 years? Maybe it would help because right now it is too discombobulated and flabby. There is some potential under it all.

Nose is heavy on the banana. Also hibiscus flower, ripe papaya, and tres leches. Golden honey jewel color. Taste is banana candy with caramel. Mouthfeel is soft, kind. Clean finish and warms up well. All in all not a bad beer, and makes for a nice strong but refreshing sipper.