Rock Bottom Chicago Blitzen Ale

Brewed by Rock Bottom Chicago
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Chicago, Illinois USA

Draft @ the bp. Too sweet w/ too much banana flavors for a strong ale. More like an imperial hefeweizen.

Draught at Brewpub. Orange with thin, long lasting white head. Fruit, spice and yeast. You can definitely tell this has some alcohol, but for 10.5% it is well hidden. I would order this again.

On tap, pours an opaque gold with small white head. The aroma is of heavy fruit and bubblegum. The flavor has a decent amount of spice to it and it is very sweet. I thought it was well balanced and seemed to hide the fact that is was a 10% beer, but it seems like not too many people agree with me.

draft. Orland park rock bottom. this is a powerful ale. one of the most flavorful I have ever had. lots of different fruits

Draught at the brewpub, served in a very heavy goblet. Pours gold with tight ivory head. The aroma is banana and lemon, faint clove, maybe corriander, and a little bit of malty sweetness. The banana flavor hits first, then zest and a very honey-like malt. It gets a little spicier in the middle and finishes warm with some spicy hops. The aftertaste is very sweet. In fact, the whole thing is pretty sweet, and gets a little bit cloying. It’s a decent brew, but a chore to finish the glass.

Draught during my Dark Lord expedition. Pours a bright orange/red with a quaint head. This is surprisingly see-through for the style. The nose is hearty and sweet with loads of yeasty notes. Very sweet smelling, but not too bad with notes of banana and cloves. The mouthfeel is medium heavy and the first thing I notice when taking a sip is that this is much more sugary than the aroma would let on. Cloves abound in the flavor with notes of rye and a light floral touch and a finish akin to bread pudding. As I reach the bottom of the goblet, the sweetness becomes heavy and overbearing. This would be much more enjoyable to me if the rock candy flavor were toned down a notch. I’d also say the pint-sized serving is a bit much for something this sweet.

Big bubblegum, light vinegar and fruit aroma. Oaky gold. Clear. medium sweet, boozy, woody, lots of yeast character. Medium light body. Edgy alcohol finish. Warming.

Draft. Amber pour. Small white head. Nose is candyish and spicy. Sweet but peppery. The spice ends up dominating, however. Taste is sweet malts, cake, candy sugar, spices, orange peel, yeast and an almost gingerbread man like flavor. Very Christmasy. Body is thick and full. Sticky with low carbonation. Finishes with more spices, candyish notes, and yeast notes. Little too spicy for my personal preferences but still a decent Christmas beer.