Stone Cali-Belgique IPA (Cali-België)

Brewed by Stone Brewing Co.
Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
Escondido, California USA

(11/3/08) Draught sample at the brewpub in Escondido. Clear goldem color. Aroma of fruits, yeast, spicy hops and some flowery notes. Flavor has a bit of sweetness in the beginning but is mostly dry with hoppy bitterness, yeast, spiciness and citric notes in the finish. Medium-bodied.

bomber from grape and gourmet. pours a bright, clear golden color with a thin, clean white head. aroma is purely belgian, sweet and slightly hoppy, bright but not huge. the aroma is balanced by hints of floral west coast hops, citrus, some notes of spice, vanilla, and lavender. flavor is very nice as well. definitely dominated by the sweet belgian yeast and spiciness with citrus flavors of grapefruit and lemon zest, vanilla, and light/sweet malts. has a very dry, bittersweet flavor after the swallow. palate is very smooth with solid carbonation and is quite crisp. i’m beginning to really enjoy this style and this a great example from stone.

This beer has a tricky aspect to it. It smells like you are going to be drinking a belgian ale, but then the hop profile just hits your tongue. The yeast aroma is awesome. This beer has a nice yeast aroma to it. Then you taste the beer and the hops just explode on your tongue. Bravo, this beer has that nice dicotomy. The appearance isn’t anything special. It is very filtered, but still excellent. Average palate, but again this beer just has that awesome palate of sweet yeast and malt, and hop taste. Overall, an awesome beer with a wonderful yeast, and hop profile taste. I would definitely drink this beer if it were a regular offering.

Pours a highly filtered gold, with a soapy film and lace - aroma is mostly of light, juicy tropical fruits and earthy/pine-like hops, with some light belgian yeast phenols hiding underneath, adding a bit of depth - quite a light-bodied ale, but it has full carbonation in the mouth - very crisp malts and spicy bitterness - peppery hops throughout make it hard to distinguish the other characteristics of the beer - some citrus/tropical fruit flavors - the belgian influence is definitely there, but it is hard to make out, manifesting mostly in the form of light phenolic character that the hops never give way to - very dry, bitter, almost chalky in the finish - I like hoppy belgians, but when the hops don’t leave enough room for the complexities that belgian yeast can provide, it’s a little bit disappointing - meh, it’s still relatively tasty.

clear gold under a fluffy white head. mandarin orange hop aroma. flavor of citrus hops, pepper, malty body. belgian yeasty-ness. medium-full body.

Pours clear gold with a half inch head of white. Retention is short-lived and a partial skim coat remained throughout the glass. A few dots of lacework also. Aromatics lead off with a blend of grapefruit, apricots, spruce, and phenols. A hint of lemon and earthy pepper follow through. Fairly aromatic but not pungent or extremely floral. Medium bodied, crisp and drying. A very snappy mouthfeel. Ripe fruit, bitter citrus pith, and crisp malt start the pallet. Grapefruit, peach pits, lemon seeds, and pine resin. A firm, drying bitterness steps quickly forward, followed by some warming alcohol, clovey phenols, and a trace of bready malt. Finishes with a chaulky dryness, lingering bitterness, and fading tropical fruit with pine bark. Tasty..Of the three recent hoppy Belgians from Stone, this one is the the biggest all around. The VE ’08 is the most subdued with the hops, followed by the Collaboration, and then this one.

Thanks Walt for the bottle. Pours a clear gold with a very thin white head. Interesting aroma, but light. Belgian yeast, citrus, and some sugar. Flavor is slight sweet from the malt in the beginning but the hops overpower and there is some slick bitterness at the end. Interesting beer and I like the idea/style.

Bottle thanks to and shared with FunkyBrewster. Pours a clear yellow golden, looks more like a pilsner/lager, thin dense creamy white froth on top. Super piney resiny sappy spicy aroma, hint of sugary honey, really smells like ST Krampus, very green. Super resiny flavor with a very light maltiness, lightly woody, christmas tree like, light fruitiness. Again, similar to Krampus. Medium/light bodies with smooth creamy carbonation, lighter mouthful.