Avery The Beast Grand Cru Ale

Brewed by Avery Brewing Company
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Boulder, Colorado USA

660 ml bottle, 2004 edition 15.7% ABV. Dark brown with bright ruby highlights and a thick, light tan head. Big syrupy malt aroma, crystal malts, brown sugar, molasses, and cookie dough in here. Flavour is quite sweet, cookie dough and biscuity malt flavour precede a big shot of resiny hop flavour that evolves into a long bitter finish. There is also a bit of fruit in here, especially raisin/dates. This fruitiness become more intense as the beer warms up. Loads of alcohol that you can smell, taste, and definitely feel. This is a good beer, but it is a bit muddled. There are loads of individual components, but it seems like a strange cross of Belgian Strong Ale and American Barleywine. A bit too muddled to be really great.

Batch 1 - May 2, 2004
Deep brown with a small tan head. Big aroma of grapes, sweet malts, chocolate and caramel, with some big hops showing up as well... this has a really nice hop aroma, but it’s a bit weak early on. More plums, chocolate covered cherries, burnt licorice and sweet apricots. Thick and sticky, a little fizzy, and stunning the mouth with a carbonated shot of alcohol and yeast. The finish coats the mouth with burnt malts, dark chocolate, cherries, plums, butterscotch and more alcohol. Burning throat has a coating of chocolate to sooth it a little bit. Big time acidity throughout the drink... musty bananas, clove, toffee, etc. Stinging bitterness accompanies the alcohol, making this one a great fireside drink. I like it.
9/4/8/5/17

Batch 2 - Nov 2, 2004
I’ve heard a lot about batch 2 being hot and young (heh heh), that is tastes and smells like fuel and whatnot. Well I cracked my bottle anyway, as an election night sipper. I admit I’m surprised that it doesn’t resemble fuel at all, considering how many bad reviews the new batch has. The color seems lighter than I remember from batch 1, and the nose is full of honey, molasses, pineapple, some sweet, resiny citrus hops, scotch, butter, brown sugar, brown ale malts, with a huge, nose-sticky concoction of malts that just explode up the nose. But seriously, there’s not much alcohol to notice in the aroma, and taste-wise I would guess that batch 2 is about 11-12% ABV, not 18%. Big belgian yeast and candy sugar flavor, a light burn on the back of the throat, with a frothy coating covering the mouth. Sweet, stinging alcohol burn, but that’s something that scores points with this one... don’t drink it as a beer, sip it as winter warmer. Good stuff still, though I prefer batch 1.
9/4/8/4/16

Bottled. (14.9%ABV). Almost clear, copper-colored with an off-white head. Hops, hops, sweet malt, raisins and some alcohol in the aroma. The flavor is quite hoppy also, with alcohol, dried fruits, beef-stock and lots of sweetness. Oily, light astringent in the mouth. A very long finish with lots of hops. Even though it is very hoppy, the sugar-level in it makes The Beast a quite balanced beer. Definately not a session beer, but lovely as a winter-warmer I guess. (060704)

Bottled: Dark amber coloured. Lightbrown dense head. Hops, sweetness, fruit in the aroma. Hops, sweetness, some chocolate notes and spices in the flavour. Really delicious alcahol mouthfeel. The alcahol is initially well hidden, but it pleasantly burns on the palate. Has a balanced bitterness in the end. Really good one provided by Raindog. Thanks.

Batch 3 (2005) 14.9% ABV - Deep amber/brown in color with ruby highlights (especially after I was drinking it for a while) and a slender head that forms about 30 seconds after the pour, then haloes... this Beauty (er, Beast) has a warm aroma of plums and cherries and raisins and brown sugar and molasses and alcohol. This has a chewy, creamy mouthfeel - very satisfying. The flavor is filled with the aforementioned fruits and has a spicy element, pepper and anise and the gods know what. The alcohol returns in the finish, making it a sticky sweet yet dry ending to an excellent brew.

I ’ve cellared some Batch 2 (2004) 18.1% ABV to be shared with other members of The League of Strange Beer Drinkers (except, perhaps, for frankenkitty, who downed a bomber [or more?] on his own!), but I don’t know if I’ll be able to keep my hands off of it for much longer.

<font size=-4><a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp? Armanetti, Willowbrook, IL<font size=-1>

I see I received one of the bottles the workers were screaming and swearing at the labeling equipment. Double labeled and partial backing on BOTH labels. Topaz/ruby color with a smaller lid of yellow/tan bubbles. Near eerie, moss looking lace. Initial fleshy aroma, thankfully, driven off and replaced by a pleasant berry nose, with some toffee, alcohol and caramel. Quite nice after the initial greeting. As this warm the aroma just keeps getting better. Thinner start and with some light fruit including raisins and melon. WHAM, BAM... the alcohol take center stage demanding attention. This is no aside. This is prima donna, get out of my way, on your knees, thank you sir may I have another, got me by the short hairs, look at me now, aria! After pulling myself back up to the desk, this has warmed slightly and this "beast" becomes more warming and spicy (cloves and cinnamon). But what a greeting. This is major league stuff that you must be patient with. "Hoot" as Gusler states is is damn near understated. Flavors, as it warms, range from pineapple to bubblegum, with rich caramel as a backdrop. My god! the burps actually burn. The lights are becoming dim... must.. retain.. consciousness.. to.. finish.. rating....This really is one of the funnest brews I have had in some time. The stars are bright tonight! I can't fell my tongue!!!

Bottle@Home, vintage 2006. Raisin, roses, fruity, flowers and molasses aroma. Orange/red colour, yellowish head, good lace. Very very sweet, raisin, floral, tangerine, pretty bitter. Sticky and full.

Dark prelucid ruby red (w/light) dark mahogany (w/o light) with a light auburn colored head and a little islandic lacing. The nose feel is alcohol; total, the aroma is very rich sweet dark malts and a nice hop wave trying to come over them but fails to do so. The flavor is semi-sweet with some good belgian charactaristics, I didn't think they'd come through as much with this alcohol feel but it does. Spicy warm finish with some great complexities and undertones. This was a great unique beer (if you love the alcohol). I'd like to put one of these away for a decade and see what it's like.