Stone 04.04.04 Vertical Epic Ale

Formerly brewed at Stone Brewing Co.
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Escondido, California USA

This beer offers a hearty yeast aroma that is similar to the one given off by bread rising. There is a hint of orange that lingers in the back of the aroma. This thick beer tingles the palate with a robust wheat taste which fades to a sweet yeast taste that lingers well.

How could this night become any more epic on beer number 36? Answer: Vertical Epic 04-04-04. My first taste of a brew from Stone. Crazy stuff. This is all over the place. The maddening offspring from the marriage of a saison and hefe. Alcoholic. Phenols. Cracked pepper. Dude, where’s my car? (Don’t worry; I had a designated driver.)

(22oz bottle) Many thanks to Argo for the kind gift. I shared this with a few guests during the "Heaven can’t wait" party. It poured a medium, yellow head with a sediment filled orange body. The nose was very nail polish while the flavour was somewhat boozey - more than the 8.5 ABV. Enjoyable and interesting to drink... though always a pleasure to share.

dark goldenrod with fluffy white head. aroma of bananas, lime, pineapple, bread dough, lemongrass, butterscotch, light raspberry hints, mango, papaya, and unsweetened coconut. Has that amazing west coast creamy mouthfeel going on that I love so much. Flavor is of pineapple, mango, banana, coconut. Light astringency that doesnt bother me too much. Kind of tastes liek all the fruit are in some kind of dough or batter. Very tasty

Bottle at RBESG Grand Tasting, August 2005. Gold colour. Is it just me , or does this just have too much going on without a clear underlying theme to draw all the strands together? It has a big citrus rush that I put down to the hops, but perhaps the kaffir lime leaves have a role to play there. Something spicy going on? perhaps that the kaffir lime leaves too? Lots of estery tropical fruit that I didn’t think integrated perfectly and left the whole a bit sweet for my taste. Not a bad beer at all, just not as awesome as I had expected. Unfortunately, too much anticipation can get in the way of appreciation.

Incredibly tasty. Poured a cloudy orange color with a strong herbal nose with a perfumy odor of pepper, coriander, wheat, hops and orange juice? Is that possible? Maybe it was the Lime Leaf coming thru. Don’t know. What an incredible concoction this is with all the differnt tastes going on of spiciness, sweetness, bitterness, alcohol and....wow...overload!! I think this is going to age fabulously and when 12/12 rolls around, I’m having a bottle to see.

I’ve been sitting on this for a while so Im looking forward to this one. Pours a mostly cloudy lemony yellow color with copper hues when held to the light. A good head and decent lacing. The smell is very Belgium. The yeast has a strong flavor. Also fruity aromas like peach and apricot. Touches of bananas and plums mixes well with spice touches as well. Not much of a candi smell but more of a sweet smell to it. The taste feels more like a Biere de Garde. The fruity tastes are more prominent. Big tropical fruits, apricot, bananas cherries and a touch of lime. The malt is balanced well with good complexity. Belgium pale with biscuit flavor. The body is medium to full. A little hot on the taste from the high ABV. But very crisp and a smooth finish. A worthy wait for a fantastic beer.

Bomber thanks to TAR - thanks buddy!. Fruity, esthery and slightly phenolic aroma coming from a hazy dark yellow beer with a white quickly collapsing head. Not that great aroma and not the looks to write home about.... but the flavor is out of this world and a close to a ’9’. It is sweet, malty, spicy and perfectly balanced with citrus and hops. Adorable! Reminds me a lot of 03, which I had last night.