Stone 08.08.08 Vertical Epic Ale

Formerly brewed at Stone Brewing Co.
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Escondido, California USA

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

send corrections   |   shelftag   |   edit barcodes   |   update pic

9/16/12. 22oz bomber thanks to Walt! Still a large hiss upon opening. Pours a murky orange with a huge off-white head that lasts and laces a ton. Hugely sweet aroma with tons of orange as well as some caramel, oxidation, and surprisingly, some alcohol. Sweet orange flavor as well with bready grains, a metallic tinge, and a dry but thick finish. Not bad - glad to try it!

Bottle; rating 666 for this beer. Glad it wasn’t 10th anniversary or some such demonic brew.

My first of the VE series; I decided to wait until 2012 to taste the partial collection I’ve put together. But I guess I should have bought two and tried one fresh. Not that this is a bad beer. Quite the opposite. But I bet it would have been even better four years ago. Hazy amber-gold pour, modest head with good lacing. Lovely honey and pepper belgo-ipa, fairly sweet, hops providing more hints of aged-hop cheese than anything else but still able to stand up to give it a big tropical fruit juiciness with mild spice. Alcohol is understated. Delicious even if not world-beating.

Bottle at home shared with friends. 4 year old bottle. Poured a golden orange in appearance with a small off-white head that quickly dissipated. Aroma is bready, lightly skunked, spices, light banana, and biscuit. Taste is white pepper, spicy yeast, bread, clove, tropical fruits, and grass. Mouthfeel is light with soft carbonation. Nothing too special, but really easy to drink. Not bad.

Bottle @ Stephen’s house, courtesy of Stephen. Thanks! Hazy, dark orange appearance with an off white head. Spicy yeasty, bready, orange citrusy aroma. Tangy, coriander, orange citrusy, chewy bready flavor. Some oxidation notes, Not bad.

Medium offwhite head. Hazy amber body. Tropical fruit and barnyard aroma with banana and resin notes. Dry-sweet tropical fruit, resin and barnyard taste with citric smoky notes. Mid-bodied. Hot mouthfeel. Dryish fruity resiny herbal aftertaste with barnyard notes. (0.65l bottle shared by Skomakern.)

From notes. First reviewed 4/26/2010. Fortunate to be able to try this on tap at DLD. 08.08.08 poured a honey orange color, with a small 2 cm head. Not much head retention, but a little light lace stick. Sweet aroma. Sweet malt, mellowed fruits, bananas, and citrus. Some mild spices and earthy notes as well. The start of the sip provides a strong initial sweetness, with caramel, banana, and some citrus (orange and grapefruit) flavors. Alcohol really kicks in the middle. Although the hops have not disappeared completely, it definitely does not have typical Belgian IPA character. The soft hop presence reminds me of orange and lemon zest. Finishes a bit spicy. This beer has a medium/high level of carbonation, a little bit grainy. Medium body. Overall I thought this was a smooth, enjoyable beer. Personally, I thought it drank more like a Tripel due to the lack of strong hoppy character. It would have been interesting to taste when it was first brewed, as a comparison. The novelty of having one of the Epics was a great treat, even if the beer itself was not mind-blowing.

Pours a clear golden body with a very thin white head. Spicy with bananas, cereal, bubblegum, ending dry.

Bortled. Thx Santa. Light amber coloured. Aroma of yeats,sweetness, fruits, spice and some alcohol notes. Flavour of fruits sweetness alcohol yeast, Spice and some grape. Medium to full bodied. Dry and sweet end with light yeast. in the end

Bomber.
Appearance : Clear blond with small head that is short lived.
Aroma : Cereals with spices and honey. Rather malty with lots of honey and spices.
Palate : Very soft carbonation.
Taste : Rich honeyed cereals with spices. Finish slightly yeasty with spices and malt. Light alcoholic notes on the finish. Not much hops nor bitterness.
Overall : Obviously this is too old. A bit too spicy and not enough structure. Not bad but a bit flabby. Enjoyable spices and yeast but.

Poured hazy golden color with a lacy white head. Yeast, spices, and orange peel on the nose. Highly bitter, dry, and aggresively hopped. Exactly what you might expect from a Stone-produced Belgian beer.