Clipper City Heavy Seas Winter Storm (2005+ -- Imperial ESB)

Brewed by Clipper City Brewing Co.
Style: American Strong Ale
Baltimore, Maryland USA

Love this and look forward to it every season. Complex and different it pours nicely and has a full taste that doesn’t disappoint. Not a powerful aroma... but not absent either. Great with smoky cheeses or Italian food. It’s not a crippling ice storm until you drink this by the soothing sounds of your generator. At 7.3abv this can also be used to take the edge off holiday relative visits.

Bottle thanks to Butters. Ruby reddish brown with a thin white cover, big toffee aroma, sweet with a light grassy hoppiness. Taste is more sweet caramel and toffee a bit too thin with an alcohol bite and good grassy hop finish.

12 oz. Cloudy amber, almost no head to speak of, definite hop aroma... first taste, meh, nothing special really here. Tastes like an IPA actually, not quite as bitter.

Yellow-beige head w/ light lacing. Hoppy aroma with tea and grass. Pours a dark honey color. Flat hoppy flavor with clinging palate, not very smooth. Tea aftertaste. Not the best I’ve had from Clipper.

12oz bottle poured into a pint glass. Pours a deep, clear amber with a slight red hue to it. The head is a small creamy tan cap that recedes slowly to a thick ring leaving some spotty lacing. Aroma is sweet with malts and has some grassy hops as well. Some light fruity sweetness is also in the nose with some apples and pears. The taste starts with a quick citrus hop kick up front before giving way to the bready malt backbone. There is still some sweetness with both caramel and some light fruits. The bitterness from the hops comes back in the finish. The mouthfeel is medium bodied and well-carbonated. There is actually hints of the alcohol on the palate, which surprised me a little. This is an amped up ESB that still stays fairly drinkable. It’s not extremely complex but is enjoyable nonetheless.

Cask at the Brazen Head. Deep amber beer, very thick sticky white head. A very bright fresh grassy aroma. Soft earthy/fruity bitterness that lingers softly on the back of the palate. Pine and grapefruit and a touch of tropical fruit as well. Very soft sweet malts, lightly toasty wit a bit of caramel on the back. Great palate, soft and lightly fruity. Very fresh with lots of soft hoppiness but not a whole lot of real bitterness. Just a bit of bright hop character. A really solid brew. The cask works very well.

Pours clear ruby red with a thin off white head. Beautiful creamy, floral hop, and caramel aroma. Flavor is very burned and smokey, it tastes like dry, burned hops. Something I really haven’t experienced before. Interesting. I’m enjoying this right now, but it is strange.

Pours a deep dark brown with almost no head. Aroma of carmel, malt and cherry. Taste of hops, spicy, nicely carbonated. Fiinish is dry.