 vyvvy (1582), Hazelwood, Missouri, USA
May 1, 2008
Rating #1500. On tap at Hop Devil Grill in NYC. Pousr dark hazy bronze with a persistent dense tan head. The aroma has black current, huge creaminess, caramel, toffee, and milk chocolate. The aroma is beautiful and thick. By the big rich flavors you know the alcohol as to be big, but the alcohol itself is not detected at all. The body is thick and velvety with gentle soft carbonation. The flavor starts with toffee and caramel that is light and smooth on the tongue while being thick in the taste. There are also dark fruit notes detected. Some bitterness is on the finish, but still incredibly somooth and silky tasting. This is an excellent beer that must have some age on it to come across this mellow, drinkable and big all at the same time for an 11% beer. Excellent.
Sparky27 (388), Phoenix, Arizona, USA
Jul 2, 2008 Bottle courtesy of BOLT7555. Pours a hazy mahogany with 2 finger creamy tan head and delicate lacing. Nose is brown sugar, dates, raisins and malt. Taste is similar to the aroma with an addition of vanilla, wood, earth and a slight hoppy finish. Full, creamy mouth feel. Great beer Jason!
Ibrew2or3 (1571), Safety Harbor, Florida, USA
Jun 18, 2008 Updated: Jun 19, 2008This is the third beer (another 2005 vintage) in our June 11th Old Ale Blind Tasting. It finished in 2nd place but it was the highest rated for me.
It pours dark brown with dark tan head. The aroma is vary dark and fruity with dates, plums and cherries moving toward raisins before burnt malts mixing with caramel, earthiness and even a bit of grassiness. The taste is velvety smooth to start with sweet sticky malts mixing seamlessly with sweet rich dark fruitiness. It then becomes more and more caramel, faint toffee, earthiness and then raisins sprinkled on the top. The alcohol becomes noticeable in the finish but not at all distracting.
This is the ninth beer (the 2007 vintage) in our June 11th Old Ale Blind Tasting. It finished in 5th place.
Pours deep copper with thin dark tan head. The aroma is hot on the nose from swirling it around the glass(plastic) too much to get the sense of it. I get blunted sweet malts, dark fruitiness and caramel. Each of the notes are all kind of smoothed together. I get a bit of tartness too. The taste enters smooth and nearly creamy ushering in notes of dates, raisins and pepper before caramel sweetness takes charge. Yum. Smooth and delicious.
This 2007 vintage is courtesy of CigarCityBrew. Pours deep caramel color with tan head. The aroma is roasted malts, burnt caramel and molasses and dark fruity esters. Very nice. The taste is bold with both dark fruity dates, prunes, raisins, sweet ripe plums that mix into some caramel and faint molasses rich sweetness. There’s also a lingering tartness that surfaces and lingers into the after taste. Smooth for a young brew of this type. Although it is a faintly hot and peppery. Yum.
badbeer (390), Iowa, USA
Jun 14, 2008 Garnet color with a beige head that quickly recedes to a ring around the glass and leaves spotty lacing. Aroma is quite sweet with caramel, toffee, and dark fruit, but there still is a noticeable amount of hops (English variety?). Taste is vinous, has some brown sugar, dark fruits, a hint of spice it seems, and some grassy hops also coming through. Light carbonation and medium to full bodied. An enjoyable beer. Bottle courtesy of hoppymeal.
fishingnet (700), Brandon, Florida, USA
Jun 11, 2008 Bottle courtesy CigarCityBrew. Pours a clear deep amber with a one finger lasting tan head that leaves good lacing. Aroma of sweet caramel, dark fruit, slight vinous, sweet tobacco. Taste is the same as aroma. Medium mouthfeel with a mild amount of bitterness and smooth alcohol. Very good.
GAManiac (178), Atlanta, Georgia, USA
May 31, 2008 12oz bottle courtesy of Hoppymeal. Pours a dark brown mahogany with a small dense head that diminishes quickly leaving almost no bubbles and no lacing. Big caramel malt smell dominates the nose with raisins and molasses mixed in. There is also a definite alcohol sting in there as well. Taste follows the smell with molasses and raisins up front giving way to the huge caramel malt taste. The finish is slightly smoky with the alcohol making its presence felt as well. Mouthfeel is smooth and almost syrupy with little carbonation in the mix. The high sugar content makes it a bit sticky. This is an excellent beer though the syrupy sweet mouthfeel takes away from the drinkability slightly. Still, very nice.
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