Rogue Monk Madness

Brewed by Rogue Ales
Style: American Strong Ale
Newport, Oregon USA

Serve in Snifter, Trappist glass

Poured a dark amber color, with a small, light tan head that left nice lacing on the glass. Aroma of dried fruits, cherries, light citrus fruits, roasted malt, and chocolate as well. Taste was somewhat bland... roasted malts, toffee, nuts, tobacco, with light banana, more dried fruits, and a fair amount of hoppiness in the finish.

From the bomber. I love Rogue’s bottle labels. Anyway, this poured with the towering head I’d expect, more than 50% a rocky heady with a shiny red sheen beneath. The aroma is lightly sugary, somewhat woody, but a bit beneath my expectations. Tangy and tart from the first swallow, this settles into a mellow drinker, much mellower than the 7.4% would suggest. An interesting contrast of an American hoppiness floating over a more sugary base than the beers we’ve come to love in the States. I like it though ... comes off pretty well, and I believe I’d have this again in an instant if offered. More quality Rogue! (#2669, 1/28/07)

22 ounce bottle from, mmm, dunno, somewhere in the midwest I think, purchased in December 2006 and consumed from a Unibroue glass around cellar temperature. A frothy off-white foam exudes into the glass, filling half of it and dying slowly leaving thick tufts of lace in its wake, all atop the burnished translucent copper-brass body....the first sniff is all pungent PNW hops, very resinous and oily; as I nose it more, there’s a bit of caramelized sugars, some dry woodiness, certainly no Belgian character, and it’s all quite weak and soft.....toffee is the first note on the tongue, a sort of coffee-cake caramel/mocha-java character which is rather pleasing for a moment but is quickly taken over by dry, dusty woody hops which remain as virtually the only trait on through midpalate to the dessicated, overattenuated and extremely dry finish....the mouthfeel is rough and prickly, with a bit of juiciness at the front making it palatable that unfortunately fades quickly into the dust....overdone, overhopped, over-dry and certainly under-Belgian with a name and description like this, but whatever you call it this is an unpleasant mess and I doubt very much that I’ll finish the bottle.

This one has a nice piney hop nose, but as it warms up, more malts become discernible. It poured dark copper. The flavor on this one varied quite a bit. When it was colder, it was mostly piney and grapefruit hop bitterness, but as it warmed, some flavors of caramel malt and some sweet tea appeared. The tea flavor was especially noticable on the backend towards the end of the beer. This beer was extremely resiny, as dry hoppiness would coat the mouth and lips with each sip. For being so hoppy, I found this one rather palatable. This was probably my favorite Rogue Ale that I have ever had.

Poured a very dark clear orange copper color with a small off-white head. Malty aroma with some sweey fruity notes over hops. Notes of diacetyl seem to be present. Malty flavor with toffee and some sweetnees. Some fruitinees. Pretty bitter semi-dry long finish.

Bomber. Pours deep mahogany with a big moussy off-white head. Nose is kind of an in-between state; husky and maybe a bit acidulated but nothing too overpowering. Not as yeasty as my suspicions would have led me to believe when I was driving this beer home from the store (you know, a mock Belgian from Rogue, gotta smell yeasty, but no). Big roasty gingery attack, and those notes carry through to the spicy/bitter finish. I don’t really know what the hell this is but it’s good, and it’d be a good beer for the right dish (game, mild bbq, bold/savory hors d’oeuvres). I’ll happily drink whatever the naysayers leave behind.

Deep copper amber with a towering foamy almond head generating thick lace. Aromas of sweet English toffee and resinous fruity hops. Sweet, with flavours of same on palate, moderately bitter finish. Nothing really Belgian about this brew, but I still enjoyed it a lot.

Verre de dégustation, provenant d’une bouteille de 22 oz, lors d’une soirée chez Glouglouburp. Arôme: Odeur d’houblons et de malt rôtis. Apparence: La couleur est ambrée rougâtre avec une faible densité de bulle. Présence d’un mince col mousseux sur le verre. Saveur: Goût d’houblons et de malt rôtis. Durée moyenne de l’arrière goût. Palette: Le corps est moyen avec une texture légèrement huileuse. Présence d’houblon en arrière goût. (Rating #946)