St. Ambroise Vintage Ale

2001 vintage ale, with a dark mahogany color, with a tan-colored head, but falls quickly, forming a ring in the glass. The nose is one of sweet caramelized malt, strong butterscotch note, fruity accent, roasted malt, and a toffeeish touch in the aroma, follows through on a smooth full-bodied palate, with a rich sweet caramelized malt charecter, mellow texture, note of chocolatey pralines, and candied fruits, even a hint of rum flavor, with a toffeeish accent, leading towards a sweet malty and warming alcohol finish.

Mon premier vin d’orge et j’ai tombé en amour avec ce style. Un peu sucré, fruité, caramelisé, frote et chaleureuse. Merci Peter Mc Aulan.

Bottle 2001 edition: the pour revealed a dark amber clouded ale with a rocky 2 finger cap that reduced to a modest ring and laced the glass. Soft carbonation. Aroma was marvelous for this aged ale: sweet tangerine peel over musty dried fruits and a persistant sweet grass smell...very inviting and not at all oxidized. Silky smooth mouthfeel large body, very mellow...no sharp edges at all...excellent. Flavour profile: Orange peel and treacle up front balanced by a thick plum pudding body...complex...some cocoa, figs,nuts, fruits and a floral hop background....finish is long, mellow and warming with sweet anise filling the palate...this ale ages wonderfully and with a few years on it I have to say this is the best domestic barley wine I’ve sampled...beating out my favorite Old Deuteronomy...only because I have never sampled Old Deut with a few years mellowing because it is so drinkable when young..........................................2009 is the best vintage yet---will be sought after, have put 5 in the cellar to age.

Dark ruby red in colour with medium carbonation. The aroma betrays a touch of oxidization (a bit of sherry) along with some strong caramel notes, alcohol, and a bit of floral hops. The flavors are amazing for a beer this old: strong floral goldings hops, christmas pudding, orange, peach, apricot, caramel, and even the slightest hint of chocolate. Great body too, as one would expect. A nice way for me to mark the first -30 degree day of winter here in Winnipeg this season. Merci Turg!

2001 - Luminescent, murky red-amber color in the snifter, with only a whisp of off white bubbles for a head. The aroma has all the dark complexity that you would expect from an aged beer, with dark musty fruit and burnt caramel. Almost smokey flavor, with very ripe pit fruit, and dark caramel and malt extract sweetness. There are still a lot of hops in this bottle. Nice, complex barley wine.
Earlier Rating: 1/25/2004 Total Score: 3.9
Clear red amber with a quickly dissappearing cream colored head. Lots of alcohol and candy sugar in the nose. Almost smokey burnt sugars in this. I can taste the port/liquor sensation. Medium body with lots of burnt carmel, candy sugar, sherry, and bready malts. Seems much more refined than a lot of the other barley wines I've been drinking. Thanks to my secret Santa for this nice beer that I just got around to drinking.

bottle. pours a ruby-brown body with a medium-sized, creamy tan head. aroma is really something else - it’s very interesting and complex. there are strong fruit notes like cherry, apricot, and sweet berries. there is also faint alcohol and yeast. the flavour is very rich yet not as sweet as I expected it to be. the alcohol is apparent up front though it isn’t distracting at all. flavour is dominated by fruit, caramel, and chocolate with a soft malty spine. silky smooth. excellent!
Earlier Rating: 9/2/2005 Total Score: 4.1
bottle. thanks DougShoemaker for #6162! Pours a shiny copper-red body with a medium off-white head that quickly fades to a small ring. beautiful complex aroma of yeast funk, berry fruit, and a fairy faint warm alcohol. I wish I could capture this essence. This is quite the sipper - alcohol is in full force right from the beginning and follows right through the long bitter finish. yeast flavour with dark fruits and sweet malt. Awesome.

slightly tawny port on the nose with light hops. Rich mouthfeel, good and dry with lingering finish. Slightly sweet but well balanced , aging great could go alot longer.

The last in the big box of brew received from beerbuzzmontreal. Deep copper/rudy liquid with a small but stable taupe head. Full rich, fruity aromas. Prunes, plums, raisins, butterscotch, light anise, caramel, and cookie dough are among the scents. Full malt flavors abound. Lightly earthy with a touch of peat. This has aged well and the depths of malt are long and lasting. RIch chocolate and heavy caramel are embraced by the lightly oaken malt. Plenty of white pepper spice to liven the sweetness. The body seems to have thinned out and the carbonation distracts slightly. A long and lasting caramel flan linger. A brew at its prime. Again, many thanks to beerbuzzmontreal.
Earlier Rating: 9/21/2004 Total Score: 3.8
2001via Rastacouere, the last from his awesome delivery earlier this year. Dark amber color with a few small bubbles creating a beige cover. The aromas warm up nicely on this one. Starts with as a floral brown sugar and ends with a dark caramel and brandied fruit. Smooth and mellow feel. Sweet malt start leading to darker fruits with vanilla and spice. The finish pulls this one down as a harsh wood and spice emaciates the malt and fruit body. So close, but yet so far.