Midnight Sun Venus

Brewed by Midnight Sun Brewing Company
Style: Abt/Quadrupel
Anchorage, Alaska USA

opaque pour with tight, dense head that has a filthy hue. aroma is strong just from opening the bottle, nutty doppelbock alcohol even from afar. a closer take reveals more caramelized nuts and dark pit fruits that include a sweetish tinge reminiscent of a bent take on candi sugar, nearly strawberry. big alcohol has its own esters that far surpass the yeast itself. the aftertaste is strong coating chocolate, proceeded by the wood which i never found in the nose. oak is dark, wet and lightly rotten. while this certainly tastes strong i dont know that i would guess 14% were this sample done blindly. this has all the great qualities of a quad or any successful big beer; however it may be the biggest of them all, or at least in my modest resume.

Bottle thanks to maltomeal. Sweet, chocolately, viscous, sweet. This one was well into the night-I’d like to try this one again.

trappist glass. dense dark brown body with a rich, creamy and fine-bubbled dark tan head, lasting retention, beautiful swirling pattern. nose nails the dried apricots i’m sitting here eating... rich caramel and sticky toffee is infused with a red wine/sherry note (mild) with light barrel tannins. rich, tangy and full, frothy on the back, lightly peppery up front. body is exceptionally dense but well-suited for the texture and level of sweetness. light pepper/nutmeg/allspice notes here and there, huge chewy munich/caramel/light roast malt flavor. the base beer speaks more than the barrel, as it should be. dried apricots, dried prunes, dried dates, that thick and chewy character of the dried fruit is perfectly mimicked by the chewy malt body. sweetness is substantial but not overdone, with dark candy sugar and caramelized prune juice coming to mind. resinous damp wood notes in the finish with a light wine/red grape/dried peach touch of sweet. awesome beer throughout.

bomber thanks to brewboone. Pours black with a tan head. Nice lacing. Nose is of oak, vanilla and roast malt. Seems similar to other Midnight Sun brews. Taste is of oak, vanilla and malt. Mouthfeel is sweet. Very nice.

Bottle courtesy of MaltOMeal. Dark brownish red color. The Aggie fans here are pissed to hell. Not good for the team. Smells of a nice coffee bready porter. Tastes of heavy malts with rich ABV flavor.

22oz bottle. big thanks to kan for sharing. this baby poured dark ruby-brown with a foamy beige head. the nose of brown sugar, cocoa nibs, belgian yeast, raisins, vanilla, and oak. the flavors are raisins, toffee, alc, yeasty, mild oak and vanilla. not much barrel but this is really good and is very much in line with the trappist abt/guads, and is probably in the back end of my top 5 abt/quads.

Bottle. Head is initially average sized, frothy, brown, mostly lasting. Body is dark brown. Aroma is moderately malty (caramel, chocolate), with notes of Bit O Honey, peanut butter candy, date, overripe banana, alcohol. Flavor is heavily sweet, lightly acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is moderately sweet, lightly acidic, lightly to moderately bitter. Full body, velvety/creamy texture, lively carbonation, moderately alcoholic. Too sweet to drink very much of it, but it’s quite luxurious and elegant. Would have loved to tried it much younger, but I’m surprised how it’s holding up.

22oz bottle from Todd. Thx again my friend... Pours a dark raisin plum brown with a thick, fluffy light tan head... Rich dark fruit and toffee malts. Not too much barrel influence in the aroma from what I can tell but still very nice for an abt.... Flavors are robust and assertive with focus on booze soaked raisins and plums. Semi-dry finish. Such a nice creamy texture and feel to this beer. Barely detectable abv that slowly creeps up on you. Quite solid I must admit even with little wine barrel aspects.