HeBrew Monumental Jewbelation Tenth Anniversary Ale

Shmaltz Brewing Company
Formerly brewed at Olde Saratoga Brewing (Mendocino Brewing Co.)
Style: American Strong Ale
San Francisco, California USA

Poured a brown color with a tan to chocolate head, receded quickly to a thin covering, good lacing, though. The aroma was maple, oak, sweet caramel and toffee. The flavor followed suit including some hop bitterness in the finish and some roasted malts. Unfortunately, this was really sticky and cloying, although not overly sweet, just malty sticky, not in a good way. A bad conoction, nothing working together here.

Sludgy brown with a tight tan head, this product has a purely malt aroma at fridge temps. Taste is dark, roasty, bitter, and finishes somewhat sweet and plummy. Rather stouty, and the alcohol is not very obvious. $5/ 750 ml

Bottle and served in my Duval snifter: Shiz, this almost looks like a stout when poured, deep brown and nearly opaque with an initial huge beige fluffy head that left excellent lace on the glass. The aroma was also stout-like as there is some mocha and coffee esters along with tobacco, smoked ham, herbal and grassy hops, earthy and woody yeast esters too. The taste has attributes of a Dark American Strong with a leafy and resiny hop bitterness, minor underplay of acidic fruits, along with a moderate sugary sweet character. The finish is where is at for the palate, smoky and pipe tobacco richness bidding time with fig and hints of molasses. The mouth feel is sprite along the edges with a solid malty creaminess in the midesection and a dry and woody finish, moderate warming as well but the alcohol is mostly hidden under the layers of malty goodness. A vastly under-rated brew IMO. A brew strong ale lovers will find interesting and malty enough for the die-hard stoutie. I will buy a couple more of these bottles. I dig it the more it warmed in the glass and warmed me inside my belly.

On tap at the Muddy Pig. This is honestly what I thought Double Bastard was going to taste like. It is very much like arrogant bastard just a bit thicker and higher alcohol. The dark malt and significant hops are wonderfully matched. I will try in the bottle an see how it compares.

22oz. bottle. Aroma seems comprised of a hodgepodge of attributes, including lightly roasty, almost smoky notes, leafy herbs, peppery spices, faint citrus, pine, lightly musty, earthy and doughy yeast characteristics and a faint raisiny fruitiness in the background. Opaque dark mahogany color, the tan head quickly fading to a slight ring. Flavor profile is sweet, tangy, roasty and rather bitter, with some dusty cocoa and strongly spicy, fresh hop flavors mingling with brown sugar, tangerine, spruce, and some very faint tea leaf and tobacco on the finish, which also shows just a hint of warming alcohol. Palate is fairly active as well, with plenty of effervescence and a certain dryness late, body is full and a little sticky. Unique, no doubt, but seems a bit muddled.

Pours dark brown with a thin head. Strong hop aroma, rather spicy. Solid, smoky body with with a tingly bitter hop aftertaste. Very excellent beer.

Deep chocolate brown, thick tan head (great lacing). Nose was very rich with notes of toasted milk chocolate, earth, pine, raisin, warm fig, and undertones of port. Dark fruity hop flavors lay on a wave of earth, caramel nut, chocolate, and a touch of alcohol heat. Well balanced from start to finish. Full bodied, medium carbonation and quite smooth, soft bittersweet finish. Very impressed with this sipper. It’s a must try in my book...

Had on tap at brew pub as part of sampler. Poured a very dark brown, tan head, good lacing. Tasted a lot of different flavors in this one. Plums, molasses, additional fruits, chocolate, and some spice. Well blended, but the finish is a bit hoppy and dry for me, but the husband LOVED this beer.