Samuel Adams LongShot Friar Hop Ale

Formerly brewed at Boston Beer Company
Style: Belgian Ale
Boston, Massachusetts USA

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

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12oz bottle from Pick’s poured into my Chimay Trappist glass. Pours a lightly cloudy orange with a small bit of white head. Aroma of citrus, candied sugar and fermented fruit. Taste is lightly sweet. Taste of banana, clove and bubblegum. Medium bodied with a thick and creamy texture. Lively carbonation and a long sweet finish. Overall, very good. Easily the best of the Longshot bunch this year.

Golden-amber color with a thin head. Minimal lacing. The aroma shows flowers, candi sugar, Belgian yeast, herbal spice notes, and is fairly hoppy. The flavor however, has a lot of sweet caramel and toffee that’s joined by sugars, yeast, and a tangy orange spice. The palate is a bit sticky; not too bad but it is mildly distracting. There are some finishing bitter citrus hops, which is welcomed with all the sweeter flavors. Decent beer. I think I’d like it more though if it were in the 6-7% range.

Nose of spices and hops, some yeast and light grains, slightly sweet. Pours clear golden, white head persists and leaves lots of lacing. Flavor is phenolic Belgian yeast, spices, some sweet malts, citrus from the hops. Medium body and carbonation.

(12oz bottle best by Sep 2011 thanks to Dixonian) clear copper/amber with effervescent bubbles. Nose of cereal grain, fruit loops and milk. Taste of cereal grain, orange, alcohol, and stewed tomato.

clear slightly bubbly gold, medium off white head, lots of lace. fruity, yeasty belgiany nose. slight hop presence. flavor is fruity, yeasty, dry. mostly fruity i think. full bodied, very dry finish. a touch mild and too fruity to me, and once more, too dry for summer nights.

I meant I should have done one of this year’s LongShots as my 2300th beer because the contest was about Category 23 styles, you see, and, oh, well. Got htis in March and couldn’t get around until now. So, call this a Belgian Pale Ale. Pours a lovely amber in the glass, under a pale ale head with some lacing. Smell has coriander to it. Can’t place much hop to this bottle that’s at the end of it’s "Enjoy by" month. Now some notes of Belgian sugar. Taste is a mix of Belgian character: candi sugar in evidence, but not too much. Hop influence has dwindled, and the malts are rather in the Dubbel territory. Not as much spice on the tongue, which is fine by me. What we end up with is a nice, big, malty sweet beer. It was indeed hoppier when I sampled it at its debut in March. But still worth having, but have it soon.

Clear copper pour with a nice white head. Estery banana/juicy fruit aromas with a hint of pepper and coriander. Flavors of pepper, lavender, and banana esters with a nice dry bitter finish to contrast with the slightly sweet start. Medium bodied mouthfeel with a bit af barklike astringency. Well done ... and well done to Sam Adams for the Longshot homebrew competition!

Penny color with a compact white head of considerable lasting power. Yeasty and bready aroma. Uncomplicated flavor, earthy hops and stone fruit. Lively carbonation keep it from being too sweet.

12oz bottle from Spec’s (bought a while back). Pour is hazy gold with 2 fingers of off-white head that lasts and laces. Initial aroma is sweet fruit, honey and banana. Flavor is spicy and fruity, with a bit of floral hop bitterness at the end. Nice substantial mouthfeel. Less warming alcohol flavor than you might expect from a 9% beer, making it deceptively drinkable. Nice beer!

Bottle. Pours a light ambery golden with a large off-white head. Smells of bananas, cherry, bubble gum. Tastes sweet up front and finishes roasted and almost (but not quite) smoky. Has some citrus and spice in there as well. Interesting.