Ithaca Excelsior! Ten

Brewed by Ithaca Beer Company
Style: American Strong Ale
Ithaca, New York USA

Dark opaque brown pour with a very small and bubbly cream colored head. Aroma has lots of dark fruit, with plum and raisin, and there’s also a good amount of caramel malt. Hints of apple and pear come through as secondary flavors to the darker aspects of the smell. Flavor is mostly extremely sweet, with big caramel and molasses. There is a slight hop kick, but not “aggressively hoppy” as the bottle says. The finish has some burnt sugar and a solid amount of booziness, a characteristic that I always like in a good beer. Palate isn’t extremely thick, but is full and rich, and the sweetness and alcohol lingers nicely. A really nice brew.

750 ml shared with craftycarl21. Dark brown pour with very minimal tan head. Aroma is dark fruit, gobs of caramel, raisin, plum, apple and some burnt sugars. Flavor is quite sweet- caramel burnt sugar, a touch of boozyness, and a decent hop kick characterize the flavor profile. Palate is medium to full with a sugary dry coating finish. Definitely a kicker of a beer.

From Cletus via trade. Poured a hazy reddish brown color with a creamy tan head and lots of lacing. The aroma was juicy, citrusy hops, earth and pine along with plenty of sweet malts. The flavor was a nice blend of citrus and pine hops against sticky sweet malts and light spices. Relatively thin body and a delight to drink. A nice example of the style. Clearly not an IPA and clearly not a barleywine. Good stuff.

Incredibly dark red color, completely opaque. Nice head retention. Beautiful lace. The smell is equal parts dark, gritty malt, and woody, resiny hop. Lots of dark cherry/raisin malt and pine sap. The taste is severe, woody, grassy hops, with a sting of citrus at the end. Well-balanced by roasted -- almost burnt -- malt. The malt is really dark and a needed balance. The feel is thick and britty like a barleywine. It’s heavy, thick and bursting with tons of flavor. It’s just maybe too dark for too many in a row.

Cherry Orange off white bubbly head, disapates quickly. Smell is very hoppy, lots of yummy orange peel, cider notes that just add to the booziness in a great complex way! The taste is a lot smoother then expected. Bit bubbly upfront but not overpowering. Nice clean yummy wood flavors, creamy mouthful with an fantastic tartiness finish. I’m not much for the American strong ales but this was fantastic.

cloudy brown pour with a resilient offwhite head. piney, fruity hops dominate the aroma with some caramel malt and a cherry tartness, brown sugar, and a bit of booze. Smooth mouthfeel is creamy and robust. Fruity, woody, caramel malt tones, pretty complex. A decent bitterness throughout makes for a nice balance. The alcohol is well meshed with the flavor, and warms as it goes down. Great subtle wood going on here as well. Also an element of tartness in the center, wonderfully complex. Fanastic. If you see this, buy two

Sampled from a 750 ml brown bottle this beer poured a murky dark brown color with a trace of a brown head. The aroma was full of floral and fruity hops with a touch of brown sugar underneath. The flavor was harsh, sour and fruity with a roasty, malty undertone with notes of molasses and cherry. The finish was long, sour and had light caramel and strong harsh fruity hops. Medium body. Interesting.

Pours a dark brownish red color with a foamy, tan colored head that shows good retention leaving spots of lace behind. The aroma is very malty with toffee and sweet caramel showing strong with some citrus and piney hops in there as well. The flavor follows suit with the toffee and caramel malts up front, some ripened fruits, and citrus and pine hops that adds nice bitterness. Medium full bodied with good carbonation that helps to be very well balanced. This is a solid tasty beer.