Pizza Port Shark Attack Triple Red Ale

Brewed by Pizza Port (Solana Beach)
Style: American Strong Ale
Solana Beach, California USA

Bottled at Papsoes Blind tasting 19th. June 2008 no 17: Amber coloured. Unclear. Light brown head. Herbs, spice, pine and light caramel in the aroma. Flaovur is sweet, caramelly, light flowery and herbal. A bit piney as well. Full bodied. Dry. Very bitter with a light sweet touch in the end. Very well balanced beer with high drinkability.

22 oz bottle

The third bottle that I could not resist opening soon after getting a shipment from Seattle this is the one that I was probably most looking forward to. Since Pizza Port/Lost Abbey have not been disappointing yet I knew that I was in for something good. That was definitely the case with this; it wouldn’t take me long to drink a case if it was lying around the house.

Aroma / Appearance - The rusty brown body was the color of darkly stained wood and was graced by a dirty white halo. Cherry pie, butterscotch and earthy notes stood out. In the background were gummy bears, wet cedar chips and hints of some flowery hops.

Flavor / Palate - The initial bitter start shocked the palate into action. As it mellowed I detected caramel, molasses, and roses. The woody peach finish kept the throat moist yet wanting more. Each sip refreshed and brightened my senses so it was sad when the bottle was finally empty. For time reasons I probably won’t try this again but if this was all I could drink it would not disappointing.

My Bottom Line:
Voluptuous dried fruit and caramel sweetness hug resinous, leafy hops in this portly and alcoholic American Strong Ale.

Further Personal Perceptions:
-A ring of foam surrounds the misty dark red.
-Carbonation is quite low, making the body’s girth more appreciable, but decreasing drinkability significantly.
-Alcohol warming is persistent.
-The resinous hop bitterness is as gripping as the alcohol in the end.
-For most breweries, this would be a smashing Barley Wine or Strong Ale experiment, but we’re talking about Tomme Arthur here so I was expecting mindblowing greatness as usual.

Bottle.

(Bottle 65 cl) Courtesy of toncatcher. Almost clear amber golden with a tiny, off-white head. Fat and oily hop aroma. Medium body with notes of toasted caramel, overripe fruit and somewhat perfumy hops. Distinct and a little raw hop finish. 190608

Botte #17 at Papsoes blindtasting. Cloudy orange coloured with a small off white head. Sweet and fruity aroma of caramel, hops and pine needles with notes of cardemomme. Fruity flavour of caramel, hops, pine needles, grape fruits and cardemomme. Dry hoppy finish. Well balanced.

Bottle. Papsoes MadsBerg homecoming blindtasting, bottle #17, as Double. Pours hazy orange with a lacing white head. Solid wooden hops aroma. Flavour is solid dry hoppy with a dense caramel malt base and a slowly growing bitterness. Smooth yet also hoppy. Dry and woody hops flavour following. Ends dry hoppy and solid bitter.

22oz Bottle: Pours a slightly cloudy dark amber with virtually no head. The aroma is malt driven with some hop presence but a some alcohol aromas are there on the nose. The hops are there in the taste, sweet citrus perhaps, but not overwhelming. This is about the malt and lots of it. I get caramel, butterscotch and a slight reminder of a barley wine. The alcohol that I smelled provides some warmth in my mouth. This beer is definitely a palate coater with a medium to heavier feel but it fits the style. This is a good beer overall but I shouldn’t be surprised that I’m not crazy over it since I am not a fan of the regular Shark Bite.

22 oz. bottle labeled double red poured into a tulip glass with some vigor only producing a half inch light tan head that diminished. color is a brown ruby and the carbonation visible is low. aroma has a wonderful dry hopped sweetness, citrus, grapefruit, and a hefty dose of crystal malt. mouth feel is medium with just enough carbonation. flavor is fairly bold with a hop wave hitting first then the malts come through finishing with some bitterness both on the hops and malt side. the hop profile is very tasty, and the sweetness is just right.