Smuttynose Maibock

Brewed by Smuttynose Brewing Company
Style: Heller Bock
Portsmouth, New Hampshire USA

22oz bottle, courtesy of artusory. Thanks, Ryan! Pours a hazy, golden-amber color; white head with good lacing. Maple syrup and floral hops in the aroma. Average carbonation. Medium mouthfeel: candy sugar and dried fruits; malt-dominated, with some hops; alcohol definitely showing through. Lengthy, hoppy and boozy finish.

It pours with a foamy head and a clear dark orange body. Slightly sweet, with a nice aftertaste. Heavy malt character without a lot of hops.

22oz bottle. Vintage 2009. Clear orange color, white bubbly head. Aroma of sugary bubble gum. Nice rich malts, hint of toast. Followed in aroma with a clean, crisp herbal hop. Heavenly aroma. Flavor is a stick sweet malt nectar. So good! Big and chewy. Some ripe tree fruits as well like a juicy apple. This beer is so damn tasty. I am definitely gonna have to buy more of these. Sweet enough it should age very well.

22 oz. bottle from Once Upon a Vine McArthur in Richmond. Slightly hazy reddish brown pour with a small head. Sweet grainy and slightly nutty aroma. Taste is grain, caramel and spice. I got some paper notes initially, but those faded. Thick texture.

Pours a golden color with some amber hues, nice frothy generous head, great lacing. The aroma was honey, earthen and grassy hops, rich bready malts. The flavor was excellent bready malts, light honey, some grass, a nice spiciness along with carbonated zing. The malts had a grapey-ness to go along with the bready richness, and this was a very fine example of the style, top notch. Mouthfeel was full, rich, yet balanced, very clean feeling. At-a-boys, Smutty!!!

Bottle courtesy of Sammy: Poured a cloudy deep beige/orangey color ale with a huge foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma of semi-sweet malt is dominant. Taste is a mix between some dry malt with some light sweetness and some light nutty notes. Body is full with some limited filtration with great carbonation. There was a dryness in this beer that I didn’t particularly enjoyed but otherwise it was a fine example of the style.

Pours a cloudy golden-orange color with a dense, foamy, off-white head. Sticky clumps of lacing cling to the glass. The nose is sweet and toasty up front, with a good deal of caramel providing the malt base. Spicy, floral overtones and a touch of fresh ginger complete the nose. The flavor is again very sweet, falling on the saccharine side of balanced. Toasty caramel is joined by wildflowers, ginger, coriander, and various other spices. A substantial, syrupy body finishes pretty clean, but sits heavy on the stomach. Overall, a very solid example of a style I’m not really crazy about. Nice beer.

22oz bottle, 2008 vintage. fresh bottle sampled. pours hazy golden with foamy white head. aroma is leathery, hint of citrus and biscuity. leathery hop flavors coating the tongue while a good dose of bitterness balances the biscuity clean malt profile. medium sticky body makes this not as sessionable as i’d want but this is a great maibock.