Drakes Expedition Ale

Brewed by Drakes Brewing Company
Style: American Strong Ale
San Leandro, California USA

Bottle courtesy of beerguy101, thanks again Mitch! Reddish brown pour with an off white head. Aroma of caramel malts and some nice earthy citrus hops, and a tinge of dark fruits. Flvor of earthy hops, a bit of spice and more caramel malt. Sweet on the palate with a nice bitterness to it as well...medium body that gets a bit syrupy at parts...dry/bitter finish. More than likely this is the best amber I’ve ever had, very drinkable with a lot goin’ on. I could drink a ton of these.

Bottle shared by nolankowal: Hazy brown color with an off white head. Aroma, citrus, cramel, some light fruit notes. Flavor, bright citrus hops with some lively carbonation, some malty sweetness to it as well. This is one damn good amber ale.

Bottle, via trade with stoutlover72, thanks. Nice hoppy, floral aroma. Medium amber in color, slightly hazy. Hoppy taste initially then a little carmel takes over. Nice palate, little bit sticky. I really like this one.

Body is a deep amber hint of brown to it. Aroma is very floral with hops in the forefront, bit of caramel, and chocolate show up also. Taste is pretty hoppy, caramel and chocolate notes make the beer chewy and sticky, pretty good brew.

11/24/06. Poured out of 12 oz. bottle, purchased at Hollingshead Deli in Orange, CA 8/5/06. Rated blind. Pours a deep red-bronze with orange-brown glow, and fluffy beige head that lasts moderately. Lacing is decently sticky and tightly-woven, fairly uniform. Muted caramel nose with earthy, dirty-hop and sourdough-wheat bread crust bitterness, subtle dried fruit and a slight leathery twang. Soft carbonation with a fluffy airiness lifting a medium-full body to medium-light in effect. Slightly papery with a fuzzy, itching bitterness and a dry, deeply toasty (bordering roasted), scratchy finish. Maybe a bit past its prime. The flavor has worn fairly thin, and I wonder if there were ever much depth or elegance to the malt extraction in the first place. Seems almost like a mediocre hoppy barley wine that has faded. Some alcohol comes through the dirty bitterness, and a sticky, resinous film is left on the tongue and lips. Surprised to find that it’s actually an amber ale-- quite a hoppy and toasty one, at that. And considering the gravity of this and the fairly light alcohol, there’s actually quite a lot of flavor, but I think my bottle is a bit too old. Might want to re-rate for a little more perspective.

A very interesting combination of an amber ale and IPA. Hazy copper body is toped by a thick beige head that leaves some moderate lacing. Citrusy pink grapefruit clashes nicely with notes of toffee and chocolate in the bouquet. Full mediumbody is almost chewy with malt. Taste largely ehoes the aroma, with chocolate and toffee playing off the solid hop bitterness of citrusy grapefruit. Very enjoyable!

Draft at Drakes. Pours with a copperish color. Aromas of caramel, toffee and malts with a hint of hops. The flavor is of dominated by a mlaty bakcbone and some more subtle hops. I think hough that the beer could benefit from a bit more carbonation.

Draft at Drakes 11/10; dark amber with a small tan head; Nose of hops and caramel; flavor of much hops with caramel bits in a medium body.