Gearys Hampshire Special Ale

Brewed by D.L. Gearys Brewing Co.
Style: English Strong Ale
Portland, Maine USA

Pours a beautiful deep copper, topped by a quarter inch of soft tan foam. This dies back to a thick film and thicker ring. Minimal lacing. Delightfully earthy caramel malty aroma - sweet and woodsy and maple and cottonwood buds and dark honey. Oh tasty. Sweet and dry at the same time - caramel and honeymalts. Oak and vanilla and hazelnut and leather and maple syrup. A hint of alcohol that begs further exploration. An interesting ’feel’ - it seems light and sessionable and mind-numbingly alcoholic at the same time. Medium-full body, gentle but substantial carbonation. The epitome of balance and construction. Bold yet subdued. I’d trade my chainsaw for three pints of this on cask.

A lesson on how to mix a perky hopping with classic malts. Very sweet and caramel with the hop bite coming on later than expected. Nice complex mouthfeel. Maybe a little nolstagic am I, but this is a great brew.

Beer mug, from bottle. No fresh date found, sampled Dec ’06. Small off-white head, fades fast, no lacing. Clear copper color. Sweet and fruity aroma, a bit flowery. Medium-light body. Flavor shows a pleasant hoppy bitterness. Alcohol is quite apparent. Finish is rather astringent, but fades to a malty sweetness. Not exactly an easy drinker, but improves after warming.

Clear light copper with a finely foamy light beige head. Deep, hop-driven but still sweet nose, with grassy notes, herbs, and flowers.. Smooth in the mouth, without excessive carbonation. Iinteresting building sweetness that then turns into a lighlty bitter finish. Malt has a caramel-and-fruit profile, while hop flavors are lightly spicy. Alcohol is not apparent. Interesting and tasty ale that doesn’t seem to fit nicely into a defined style.

Burned almond into the glass, with an initially sudsy head that diminishes rather quickly, leaving very light spiderlace. The nose is of caramel, nuts, burned toffee and indistinct spices (sours). The taste does have a heavy malt contingency, with some toffee, caramel and nuts. This is hopped assertively (sorry, but the commercial description has the best word). It lends the mid-palate into the back-palate with a burned toast and biscuit finish. There is a bit of holiday spice effervescence, maybe vanilla, left behind. Definitely not a bad brew. The alcohol does show up slightly with a small astringent note. Decent offering!

Cold 12oz bottle: Pours a clear dark orange amber color with a small amount of ivory bubbles around the edges. Aroma is of rich malts, aromatic hops, caramel and alcohol notes. Taste is of rich malts, a blend of earthy and floral hops bitterness, caramel and notes of orange. Medium body, oily texture and moderately carbonated. Ending is mostly sweet with bitter and sour notes.

Rich brown in color with a nice, creamy head, if thin. Aromas are brown toast, hop flowers, butterscotch (I swear I didn’t read the review before mine when I got butterscotch). Tastes are deep and rich. Good level of alcohol. Toast, caramel, hops, tangerine, and a buttery finish. I’m actually surprised, and I really thought this was a solid beer.

12 oz. bottle from Tiger Town in Gardiner. Red/amber body with about a finger of off-white head. Smells malty butterscotch, and yeasty (ringwood). Roasty malt dominates with hints of diacetyl, alcohol, and hop. Definitely a malt-forward beer. Medium-bodied. Alcohol warming creeps in after a few sips. Tasty and drinkable. One sip invites another, and one bottle invites another too! A solid ale. Worth the hype.