St. Ambroise Vintage Ale

Brewed by McAuslan Brewing
Style: Barley Wine
Montreal, Canada

Vintage 2001.
A muddy orange colored beer with a foamy tan head. Rather sticky malt and fruit aroma with eartly tones. Sharp citrus flavor with sweet malt notes. Smells and tastes old. Thanks Per for this rare beer!

2001 Vintage. It’d been a while since I’d had this, but a friend picked up a bottle in Montreal and a got the opportunity to try it again. Oh. My. God. It was a revelation in a glass, especially having had the chance to age for four years, it was absolutely delicious. You can practically chew this one, and it has a fantastic caramel, dried fruit nose and flavour. Just simply amazing.

This is a great Barley Wine. Thanks Rastaouere. Caramel, earthy, and roasty flavors. Finishes rich, smooth, and chewy.

Hazy amber color; creamy head. Wonderful malty and hoppy aroma, some phenol, mature. Round barleywine, with a lot of malt, caramel and the correct (strong) hopping; some Madeirization in the final, shows its age. Thanks Per for sharing this bootle.

Huge and warmfelt thanks to DOUGSHOEMAKER for treating Jadoreblanche and I to a bottle of this nectar! Bottle # 6173- Pours a deep orange body, topped by a creay beige head that sits around, and locks that flavour in. Lots of carbonation here too. Aroma is of prunes/rasins, some alcohol, malts, yeast, and spices. Reminds me of a port. Complex! Taste is bittersweet, rasins, vinious, spicy. Tonnes of malt. Creamy mouthfeel, bitter aftertaste. Very warming. Great complexity of flavours and feelings. There’s really so muich going on here, it is hard for me to fathom. Complex in every aspect. My idea of what a barley wine should be! Way to go McAuslan! Thanks again Doug, I owe ya one for this.

Huge thanks to Doug Shoemaker for this exquisite treat!!! Pours an orange/red body, with a medium creamy off white head. Tons of carbonation. Aroma is very complex. Strong raisin aroma sort of like raisin bread. An alcohol scent that slightly burns the nose. Sweet malts also present, very inviting. Taste is bitter sweet. Strong alcohol flavour, with raisins dominating. slight spice, and malts also in the tatse, and faint breadiness. Creamy on the pallate, with a nice lingering bitterness. Nice warming effect. Keeps you wanting more. Overall very complex but well balanced, was a pleasure to try!

2001. Poured a hazy tawny color with a thin off white head. Sweet Malty aroma. Notes of dired fruits, caramel, and molasses. Flavor is very sweet. Tastes of plums and caramel. Full bodied and syrupy. The finish leaves you with a very long sweet coating on your tongue. Mild bitterness at the back of the tonuge as the sweetness finally fades. I’ll save my last one for another 4 years.

2001 Bottle... Lightly hazy, dark orange ale with a small, creamy, khaki head. The nose is sweet and malty with notes of apple, pear, dried plum, maple syrup and toasted toffee. The flavor is bitter-sweet and malty; almost cloyingly so. Fuzzy fruits, grapefruit rind and maple syrup. Full-bodied and syrupy with lively carbonation. Lengthy, sweet, then bitter finish. Great stuff! Thanks to David for the bottle.
Earlier Rating: 2/8/2003 Total Score: 4.4
This beer rocks! If you like Victory's Old Horizontal, you'll love this bottle of beer. The aroma is of plums and maple syrup. Lesser, but still strong notes of English toffee, lightly floral hops and buttermilk. Wonderful and strong. The alcohol is very well disguised in the nose. The flavor is very rich and malty with blasts of buttermilk and caramel up front. Bitter and pungent hops balance out this masterpiece on the backside. Lovely flavor. Excellent ale. Warm alcohol is evident up front and on the backside. Full-bodied with a creamy mouthfeel and fizzy carbonation. Very long, pungent, alcoholic and dry finish with a hint of hickory smoke at the far end. I love this beer!