Samuel Adams Utopias

Brewed by Boston Beer Company
Style: Barley Wine
Boston, Massachusetts USA

Serve in Snifter

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Small sample, courtesy of TAR and cb, thanks SOOO much guys! Cognac, wood dust, vanilla and butter in the fabulously complex nose; also bitter orange, alcohol and anise notes developing late. In the body, hugely sweet, but with a massive alcohol warmth throughout, warming and throat-glistening as it should be in a liqueur...brown sugar and some lovely bitter herbs, thme and myrrh...buttery finish. Phenomenal, even better I think that the Millenium I was lucky enough to sample a few days later.

UPDATED: FEB 18, 2008 Another crazy brew from our friends at the BBC. Strong. VERY STRONG. Cannot drink this(besides for the price factor) like a 12oz beer. But something every beer fanatic should have once in his/her life. Tried once, enjoyed. Will accept it if offered in the future. But the price just puts it out of reach for me.

So this is rating #500, and I have to say it’s one of the more challenging ratings to write. Very little I know about beer applies to this brew, so I’m going to fly by the seat of my pants. Clear amber colour with no head. Aroma is conac, scotch and alcohol. Flavour is like a finely blended spirit, sweet and syrupy yet balanced by the alcohol vapour and warmth. Lots of wood, alcohol and dates. Thanks Andy (Landseer) for this one-of-a-kind experience.

UPDATED: OCT 13, 2006 Bottle. My second shot at this elixir thank’s to rooftoprogue. Enjoyed with Landseer, illinismitty and his Mrs. This still does it for me. Unlike any beer I’ve ever sampled other than Millennium. This was just the same as my earlier rating. What I hadn’t noticed last time, since I didn’t sniff it from the bottle, was what Illinismitty pointed out, namely the difference in the aroma from the bottle and from the glass. Interesting. The best thing about this second coming was that it was shared with good friends.

Thanks, Andy (Landseer) for sharing this! It blew me away when Andy walked in with this black box. The word UTOPIA caught my eye. What?!?! Here it was. Oh, I’ve had higher rated beers and better beers but this was going to be an experience. Out came the copper bottle. Little sliding doors revealing Sam Adams. Nice. Clear copper color with absolutely no head. Aroma was of alcohol (whiskey, port, sherry, cognac), cask wood, raisins. Creamy, syrupy mouthfeel. The flavor was strongly alcoholic, mildly sweet, raisin. Like drinking a cognac or a port or sherry or bourbon. Nothing beer-like about it. Not something I’d seek out to drink but an experience that was welcomed and appreciated.

Thanks LANDSEER for this fine brew. Clear amber- red- copper in colour. The nose is malts wow with suggar and alcohol in the nose. The taste is so whisky like with lots of suggar and in the end of the bite there is this cool smokey flavour that just kind of lingers. This was great, not really a beer to me butman was this good. I cant fully begin to describe it.

5/26/04. Poured out of COPPER KETTLE(?!?), enjoyed courtesy of TAR on RateBeer 5/26/04. Only about 1.5 ounces on this tasting, but that stuff could last all day. Color is a lightly hazy dark honey, amber and red outlines. No head at all. Dust floating in the slightly oily, silky, and viscous body-- foreboding flecks of unfermentables. Awesome legs dribble down the side of the glass. Aroma is strongly alcoholic with sharp port, sherry, and maple; subtle pecan-- kick the ass with its alcohol. Deep butter cognac and caramels. It’s a shame, but there’s just too much damn alcohol on this beast for me (and that’s saying a lot). It could be unreal, but it’s too harsh right now. Let’s give it 25 years! Flavor still brings some harsh burn of alcohol, but I don’t mind it so much in the mouth-- I just don’t like it burning my sinuses in the odor. Wood barrel assault; surprisingly subdued flavors at first that then just explode in the mouth. Just wonderful to behold what this beer can do (and do to you-- I bet a hangover from this beast would kill an ox). Finish is terrifically long, caramellized nut, pecan and walnuts; prickly raw wood and a bit of brown sugar stickiness. Glowing and wonderfully warming. I’d love to try this baadasssss when the alcohol has rounded out a bit (ok, a lot!)-- give it the Jadwiga 25-year treatment and call me when it’s ready. Still pretty awesome. Thanks a ton, Jeff and Emily!

This is a great beer to sit outside and sip on while smoking a good smooth cigar. The flavor is very strong and almost taste more like a scotch or brandy than a beer. But if your going to spend this much money on a beer, it better leave an impression, and it does.

UPDATED: JUN 22, 2004 Fantastic....that really sums this brew up. I let a few friends sample it the other day and just sat back and laughed. One felt (as I) that this stuff rocks. The others said "This ain’t beer...there’s no foam, no fizz." I told ’em that carbonation ain’t a requirement. All you need for beer is some fermented grain...add a little yeast and your’re there. You don’t even need to add hops----but that’s a very bad idea. It kinda reminds me of a cross between Grand Marnier, a fine port, and a nice sipping rum. I like the brandy-like aroma. The taste yields maple and vanilla flavors. Very alcoholic...seems more than 25%. I’ve got several bottles. If I compare the two I’ve opened the big difference was the color. One was definitely lighter copper-red. The body is very thick. This stuff is no joke expensive, but I think buying one isn’t the worst thing you could do. The bottle is too cool. Everyone who sees it comments on it. I really like sipping this while I relax before bed. Yum.

Crazy syrup. Almost like apple juice concentrate by apperance. Sweet alchol aroma has many fruity complexities. Sweet slightly smokey flavor. Finishes with an alcohol burn. After taste is the best part.

WCCII: Courtesy of Aaron. Awesome brandy tokay bourbon clear colour with to be expected zero head. Strong fortified vinous and malt whiskey rawish alcohol aroma. Alcohol also dominates the palate along with some light sweetness. Flavour is sort of a cross between a medium dry fortified white wine (sherry) and a light caramel malt whiskey. Being a sucker for fortified wines I like this one a lot but doubt it’s worth $100 a bottle. Thanks for the opportunity to try it out Aaron.