Stone 11.11.11 Vertical Epic Ale (Red Wine Barrel)

Brewed by Stone Brewing Co.
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Escondido, California USA

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

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Bottle at Bruce’s, London. Big thanks to Kenny. Pours lightly hazy ruby with a fine, creamy off-white head. Certainly some cinnamon on the nose, sweet bread, gingerbread. Medium sweet flavor, dry and fairly boozy, some tang wood, subtle spices, toasty bread. Medium bodied with fine carbonation. Lightly warming to finish, tangy and somewhat dry wood, a bit of bitter earth, soft spices. Pretty nice.

A - pours hazy golden Amber with orange highlights, 1 finger fluffy off white head. S - nice barrel sour aromas. Red wine, oak, tannins. Hints brown sugar, cinnamon, chilies. M - thick pour, medium heavy body, rounded but odd. Lingering malty end with a quiet chili burn. T - muddled flavored. Caramel Malts, red wine tannins, dry bitter oak up front. Red wine, citrus rinds, grape juice. Lingering chili, cinnamon, vegetal notes, the combo of red wine/cinnamon/ chile remind me of Whisky. Suggestive of buttered popcorn jelly bellies O - interesting combo. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Bottle shared at a local tasting, thanks Brad! Pours a clear dark brown with a thin head, the red wine is pretty pronounced on the nose, some spices mixed in as well, the flavor has more dark fruit and oak in the finish, the yeast notes don’t really come through as much, much better than the original.

Pours hazy orange-ish with an eggshell head. Aroma is red wine, chili, cinnamon. Taste is sweet with more chili and cinnamon. Thinner boded with a little rough around the edge. Not bad.

Bottle @ home. Pours hazy amber to brown with a medium, frothy tan head, medium retention with good lacing. Aroma is red wine, oak, spicy and floral hops, caramel and cookie malt with cherry and raspberry notes. Flavor is red wine, oak, spicy alcohol, cherry and raspberry with cookie malt and a sweet finish. Full body and medium carbonation.

Bottle thanks to BeerandBlues2. Pours cloudy dark amber/tawny with average, frothy off-white head; decent retention and lacing. Aroma is red wine, sour fruit, caramel and cookie malts, floral hops, and some herbs and spices. Flavor is sweet, bready malts forward with supporting red wine notes, mixed berries, light floral hops, light vanilla, and some oak; dry finish. Medium body and low carbonation.

Much better than the regular 11.11.11, aroma is red wine heavy with plenty of red wine with some pepper notes. Good brew! ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Bomber from Bev4Less. Pours the same cinnamon dark amber hue as the original did, with maybe just a touch more of a ruby quality... but that could easily be my misremembrance of the details. Lots of fluffy foam head (off an aggressive pour) that really laces and lasts. The nose is a pleasant mix of cinnamon and red wine up front, with maybe just the faintest hint of the green chiles in the back. Nice. Flavor is red wine, something funky like belgian yeast and bananas, and only the faintest hints of cinnamon throughout... until the 2nd sip that is, when the cinnamon takes center stage. It’s good. The body is on the thin side, to support so much flavor and ABV, and so that doesn’t help... but nor does it throw things completely off. I agree with some who said the sum of the parts is less than each on individually... it’s not the most amazing marriage I’ve ever seen. But, unlike most marriages, it works.

From the scores you can see that the parts are good, but the overall package for me just did not work. Too much influence from the barrels? Would have loved to try all three together.

Bottle. Pours a dark reddish amber color with a small off-white head. Has a fruity malty spicy yeasty red wine aroma. Fruity malty woody spicy flavor with hints of red wine and weak dark fruit hints. Has a fruity malty spicy woody red wine finish with hints of dark fruit.