Ithaca Excelsior! Thirteen

Formerly brewed at Ithaca Beer Company
Style: American Strong Ale
Ithaca, New York USA

Serve in Snifter, Tulip

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Had this at the tasting room at Ithaca Beer Company and had two samples as I loved the zesty wheat malty tone which melds better with the hops than I expected as the hops add a nice bitter tone (citra for aroma and sorachi ace for bittering?). Sadly they were out of bottles but growler fills were available. The only thing is i’m not sure i’m a huge fan of the hops here but they seem to match up really well to create this unique style.

750 ml bottle into snifter, batch E!033. Pours extremely cloudy orange amber color with a fairly dense 2 fingers of off white head with great retention that reduces to a fairly thick lacing cap that lasts. Some fairly thick lacing sticks to the glass as well. Aromas of big orange peel, grapefruit, lemon, spices, and a bit of wheat. Damn nice aromas! Super hoppy stuff. Taste of big orange peel, lemon, pine, spices, caramel, and a bit of wheat. Nice amount of bitterness present on the finish, with lingering notes of pine, orange, lemon, and caramel sweetness. Fantastic balance of bitterness and sweetness here, nothing is overwhelming. Medium carbonation and a fairly full body with a nice creamy mouthfeel. Surprisingly, absolutely no alcohol noticed at all for being 9%. Super drinkable as well for the alcohol level. Even though this doesn’t really match up with what I would expect from a wheat ale; this is fantastic with tons of hoppiness and great balance of flavor.

Pours a golden color with a lot of floaters. Has a citrus smell to it with some yeast as well. Has a hoppy citrus taste as well. Bit heavy on the hops if you ask me.

This is a really odd beer. Even after reading through the others’ reviews, I’m not sure any of the scents or flavors identified ring true with me, but it’s really difficult to describe what we have here. It pours a really hazy orange with a slightly frothy white head. To describe the nose, I guess the best place to start is with a hoppy IPA or IIPA that has a floral, cat pissy nose. But, whether due to the bitterness of the citrus peel or the wheat and oats, those hints are blunted and there remains a sort of herbal, fermented smell. This concept for understanding the nose also works for the flavor. Start with a hoppy, somewhat piney IIPA and blunt that with a the wheat and citrus peel, which adds a bit of a bitter element. There is a bit of a subdued sweetness on the finish. Also, the alcohol is slightly apparent, but not too bad. I’m liking this more as I drink it, but it certainly is unique and takes some getting used to.

Bottle shared by bhensonb. Pours orange copper with a modest beige head and a sour apricot aroma. There is a slightly sour caramel malt aroma with a a dry bitter lemony finish that sticks to the palate. This is a very nice brew.

Capped 750 from Half Time. Pours hazy orange with a good white head. Aroma of lightly cooked, slightly sour aproicot. Med body. It’s fruity apricot with a nice smooth funk. Very nice long funky finish.

750ml bottle shared by jsprime. hazed light orange with a white head. a big bad assed imperial ipa with some other shit throw in there for some reason. yee haw.

Thanks Derek! Cloudy copper with a white head. A:huge citrus hop aroma, sweet malts creeping through T:citrus up front-lemon,orange,tangerine, assertive bitterness-slightly out of balance, malts add a little sweetness but they are not overly complex This is a great beer.

750ml Bottle (Batch#: E033!): Aroma of hops, citrus, orange, mango, light grass, tangerine, and slight wheat. Poured amber in color with a medium-sized, off-white/tan head that diminished but lasted throughout. Very cloudy. Very sparkling. Full of medium and large-sized particles throughout. Excellent lacing. Flavor is heavily bitter and lightly sweet. Tastes of malt, pine, resin, hops, citrus, orange, nectarine, light grass, oak, cedar, and wood. Medium body. Dry texture. Average to lively carbonation. Hop, pine, wood, oak, resin, slight grass, citrus finish is dry. 9%ABV is completely hidden throughout.

750mL bottle. Poured clear medium-golden with a well-proportioned sticky white head.. looked great in the glass! The aroma was bright and hoppy/citrusy, with orange peel and cloves leading.. sweet honey and bready backing.. deeper wheat down there too.. the Citra hops were dominant, but that wasn’t by any means bad. The flavor opened with tart orange peel and pineapple, with red wheat and bready support not far behind.. tacky honey across the middle.. lots more tangy wheat, citrus zest, and some floral notes around.. finished tangy with an aspartame-like feel on citrus zest.. overall tasty, but it didn’t work as well as the nose suggested. Medium-bodied and acidic on the palate.. near-refreshing, but there were a few too many sugars.. overall I enjoyed it quite a lot.