s it really safe to paddle out in our waters? It's impossible to know for sure. What we do know is that this is an incredibly distinctive and bold American Red Ale that attacks your taste buds with lethal amounts of hops which are balanced by a boat load of crystal malt. If none of this fazes you, then maybe swimming in the shark filled waters is exactly where you belong. We'll see you in the lineup!
Beer Ratings and Reviews:
[1] Review by changeup45 from Orlando, Florida, USA who has tried this beer once. (11/29/2008 9:49:46 PM)
"I ordered a bomber of this from Hi-Time Wine Cellars. Pours a deep reddish-amber color with hardly any head at all. The aroma is herbal with a blend of caramel malts and citrus hops, creating a nice scent. I was expecting this to be a hop heavy beer but that wasn't the case at all. It is sweet tasting with lots of caramel malt and grapefruit hops with a hint of a dark fruit character. The sweet malts pretty much even out the hops. I thought this drank a lot like a barleywine. A little alcohol sting in the finish but overall this is rather light for the abv. Maybe a little too sweet and not what I was expecting but a pretty good beer. Not something I can drink too much of at one seating unless I'm really in the mood. Got halfway through the bomber... I think I might save the rest for another time if it holds up. "
Aroma:
9/10
Appearance:
7/10
Mouthfeel:
7/10
Flavor:
7/10
Overall:
8/10
Final Rating, by Style:
(3.8)
Sampled: Bottle Sample Size: 22oz @ $5.49 Unit Cost: $3.99 per Pint
[2] Review by Beav from Fort Collins, CO, USA who has tried this beer once. (10/4/2008 2:52:44 AM)
"22 oz bottle. Pours a reddish brown with a creamy off white head that retains well and laces the glass.
The aroma is sweet caramel malts, melon, and piney grapefruity hops and a touch of alcohol.
The flavor is sweet caramel malts, pepper, alcohol, sour apples and tarry hops. The mouthfeel is medium to full bodied with a velvety finish.
Overall, almost an awesome beer. The flavor was a bit subdued and didn't do it for me."
Aroma:
8/10
Appearance:
9/10
Mouthfeel:
9/10
Flavor:
6/10
Overall:
8/10
Final Rating, by Style:
(4)
Sampled: Bottle Sample Size: 22oz @ $7.5 Unit Cost: $5.45 per Pint
[3] Review by Sap from Tucson, AZ, USA who has tried this beer once. (6/13/2008 1:08:35 AM)
"Absolutely the worst example of an Abbey Dubbel ever made, WTF were they thinking....
just joking, sort of. Anyway...
A vigorous pour produces a two-finger thick, tan colored head in my 25cl tulip glass. The beer is a dark, plum colored, amber hue that shows a brilliantly clear, red color and a light carbonation when held up to the light. The aroma smells sweetly of hops as I am pouring this and a deeper inspection of the nose confirms this with ample hop notes of lychee, sweetened grapefruit, tangelo and expressive orange zest. It is really hard for me to smell anything but the hops; this is a bit surprising given the rich red hue, but luckily the hops are very nice smelling.
Sweet tasting and quite smooth feeling with its soft carbonation, towards the middle the beer starts to pick up a biting hop-bitterness that slowly grips the tongue and becomes very pronounced in the long finish. This is nicely balanced between the sweetness up front and the sharp, biting, slightly astringent bitterness that comes to dominate in the finish. The light carbonation adds just a faint tickle to the texture, just enough to keep this from feeling flat. While clearly dominated by citrus and fruit hop notes there is a certain spiciness to this brew that couples with an over that top bergamot-oil / über-citrus zest note up front; it s something like a mix of allspice, mint and hemp oil. This last is definitely noticeable and herbal, but plays a secondary role to the sweeter hop fruit notes.
The fantastically interesting spicy / herbal note that is noticeable, at times explosively, I think is actually partially due to the rich maltiness that is not really all that noticeable on its own. The hop character is just too huge here, but there is obviously a big malt character to this beer that more than anything serves as a vehicle for all of the hop flavors. This really hides its alcohol pretty well too, it really isn't very boozy at all. Perhaps the alcohol is noticeable just a touch as it couples with the hop notes and provides a touch of pepper-like bite in the finish that melds with the bitterness. As the beer warms it becomes a bit more herbal, more hemp like even, but this only creates more of a balance between the competing hop notes of fruit and herb; the fruit still wins out, and decidedly so, but the other side of the hop coin is definitely an appreciated addition.
This is much nicer than I was expecting, for some reason I was expecting an unbalanced, scathing hop bomb. This is certainly an aggressively hop dominated beer, but there is enough malt to support the hops and keep them from getting overly aggressive or harsh. I really like the mix of hop flavors here; dominated by aromatic & expressive fruitiness, but with a slight backdrop of herbal & hemp oil flavors that is then tethered in the finish by an aggressive, clean, biting bitterness. Something about the slight carbonation & the mix of flavors already here tells me that this would be an absolutely phenomenal beer served via traditional cask & hand pump. There is something about this beer that just makes this really hit the spot right now; I am not sure if it is purely situational, palate driven or if this is just a phenomenal beer. No matter what it is I definitely am loving this beer right now.
Purchased: Plaza Liquors, Tucson AZ"
Aroma:
9/10
Appearance:
8/10
Mouthfeel:
9/10
Flavor:
9/10
Overall:
9/10
Final Rating, by Style:
(4.4)
Sampled: Bottle Sample Size: 22oz @ $7 Unit Cost: $5.09 per Pint
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(3.8)
