Arrogant Bastard Ale

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

Yeah! An excellent, hoppy, floral, earthy, fruity, spicy beer with loads of character and body. Big, soft mouthfeel and very smooth and drinkable. The color of this brew is outstanding. Balanced and good.

Tasted during trip to california. 65 cl bottle. No yeast in bottom. Amber to brown colour with a beige lance head. Nice hoppy aroma also notes of malt. A big mouthfull. Very tasteful of hops that ends very bitter and dry. A really good double IPA. Overall a great beer.

(Draft: O'Brien's in San Diego, CA) On tap, this beer tastes and smells surprising floral and sugary, but in this tasting session, it is being compared to pints of an oak aged version of Arrogant Bastard and Double Bastard; However, the strong hops bitterness and bite is still prevelent, even after sipping some Double Bastard; The mouthfeel also seems a little thin; Off-white head has average retention; For comparison's sake, some notes from previous bottles: Medium to full bodied, malty and very aggressively hopped, moreso than a typical IPAs; The malt is fairly sweet, and quite strong in flavor; Dark and brownish amber in color; Somewhat cloudy from fine sediment suspended in the beer

[wow, glad I revisited this rating - yea, this stuff is good, but it’s pretty much nothing but highly sweet, with assertive hops] Hmm, quite unique and flavorful. Nice deep amber color w/good lacing. Very malty aroma, with some hints of plums. Very thick body heavy with malts and with decent hops. Oily mouthfeel. Peppery and slighty fruity-sweet. Very barley wine-ish, specifically, very much like Sierra Nevada Bigfoot. This is better, however. I’m very thankful that we can finally get Stone beers in NY.

The aroma is very hoppy with pine and grapefruit. It’s also got plenty of caramel. The appearance is reddish with a nice head. The flavor is like the aroma. The palate is smooth. This is a good beer.

Stone Oak Aged Arrogant Bastard - Cask @ Real Ale Fest

Oh my grannies bustle, this was my second most favorite at the Real Ale Fest, just a tad behind the Russian River OVL Stout, in fact I had several samplers of this to be sure I was able to judge its character lol.

A somewhat hazy brown, the head a tan crown that was creamy in texture, the lace a thick coating upon the glass, with the nose sweet with the aroma of malt and Oak, hints of alcohol and bubble gum, yummy is a good description. Start was ambrosial, thick with malt, the top moderate to full in its feel. Finish was moderate in it’s a acidity, the hops delightful, quite dry and a bit of a tummy warmer, one damn fine beer in this old dawg’s book.

Re-Rate 01/16/02: Been a while sence I had this bad boy, and it is a beer that 99.9% of the beer drinkers will not like? But I believe if you 'Can't Run With The Big Dogs, Stay On The Porch'. Pours a deep dark ruby brown, large beige head and lots of lace. Nose is malt, some what toasted, hints of hops, the start is malt, the middle full, robust, the finish is hop bitter and dry. Very hearty, a 'Beer Lovers' beer, not meant for the Palate Challenged Lite Beer Drinkers'.

Formidable brew. Funny label and write-up on the back. Fruit-cakey aroma: malt, fruit, spice, vanilla, nuts. Rusty beer with silky thin head. Woody, tannic, strong hops, starchy mouthfeel. Loooong finish. Almost like a winter beer.