Rogue Monk Madness

I must say I’m a bit indifferent on this one. It pours an attractive copper brown with an excellent head, but it goes downhill from there. Sticky candied hops in the aroma, slight vegetal quality. The flavor has a maltiness going on, but an unbalanced harsh hoppiness kind of detracts. And that thing on the description about pairing well with desserts. Don’t buy it. Sugary foods and this do NOT mix. What starts out as drinkable but flawed turns into a tongue scraper after even something a inoccous as a sherbet or sorbet.

Color=Brown
Aroma=Malt, Coffee and LOTSA Hops.
Flavor=HOPS...something beneath that I think probably tastes good, though it isn’t even remotely Belgian, but I can’t be sure because of all the hops.
Overall=I am starting to loathe Rogue. <P> Seriously Rogue seems to operate just like many of the Macro brewers but from the extreme opposite end. They just hop every beer they make all to piss as opposed to making them flavorless. This one is actually not all that bad, but it’s so not even remotelt Belgian (as the name implies) it annoys me the way their constant rebranding of what I suspect is actually only the 4 beers they make, annoys me.

Bottle: The aroma was a little light with some peach, caramel, and citrus hops. Pours a transparent reddish-orange with a small off-white head. Flavor is very watery up front with just a hint of caramel, but finishes with lots of oxidized piney hops. Rather unimpressive.

Draft @ Mellow Mushroom WestChase

Please explain to me what similarity this beer has to any beer Belgian other than some common themed malts and the existence of water and yeast, which are not Belgian… The body had some hints of toffee, brown sugar and a light smokiness, but that was far overpowered by the aggressive alpha American hops. Was this an actual recipe or leftovers and a time crunch to brew a new beer?
I was most let down that it was not even an attempt at a Belgian style, but a ruse to provoke my curiosity. One doesn’t order a beer self titled STOUT and receive a glass of milk unnoticed, no difference here.

Pours dark amber with a mostly receding light tan head. Aroma of bready aromatic malt, mild grapefruit, PNW hops, dates, and nutmeg. Taste is spicy, acidic, and quite unique. Spiciness is contributed by both the hops and yeast, but this tends to muddy the perceived qualities of this beer. Mouthfeel is full bodied and resinous with lush carbonation. What is this beer trying to be? I know Belgian brewers don’t like being pigeon-holed into ’brewing to style’, but this just feels like an "everything but the kitchen sink" beer.

A copper/a,ber color. Nice head and lace. Earthy aroma, citrusy, tangy hops. Medium bodied, lots of hop flavor, chinook and centennial stand out. Lots of tea leaves? The malt is solid but the nuances do not come out, I mean its made with Belgium malts and you wouldnt know it, hops are too in the frontend. That being said, its a quality brew and worth a shot, especially if your a fan of Rogue.

Deep amber with a frothy head. Toasty nose. Assertive flavors. First sip is loaded with toasty-woody-nutty caramel. Woody nuts follow through. Sharp grass. Tart fruit. Plant-like bitterness. Pinch of sugar daddy sweetness in the background; but mostly bitter-tart. Good, but perhaps a bit too much Chinook; that’s some harsh stuff.

Bottle... Mostly clear mahogany ale with a small, frothy, light tan head. The nose is all citrusy, earthy hops with just a hint of the caramel and Munich malts hacking their way through the rain forest of hops. The flavor displays the degree to which this beer is "hopped to high heaven." Intense bitterness with very little, if any, malt or residual sugar making its way onto my palate. Solid malt backbone, but even at room temperature any sweetness is crushed by all those Chinook, Amarillo, Centennial and Summit hops. Full-bodied and tannic with mild carbonation. Lengthy, bitter finish. I sort of thought this would be Rogue’s attempt at a Belgian style. Guess not!