Stone 05.05.05 Vertical Epic Ale

Dark brown ruddy pour with quickly vanishing head. Has all the scents, looks and taste of a fine Belgium beer, minch meat with a graham cracker crust. But what really took me was the smoothness and lack of undue carbonation that most of these beers demonstrate. We are teased off the label about cellaring this release but it is an undue concern since they nailed it. This is perfect right off the shelf as is!

dark brown with a red tint, it is almost black with a huge grey brown head. sweet molasses nose, this smell reminds me of a quad with spicy alcohol and dark fruits. taste is strong malt and sugar, wow, like a belgian barleywine, should be better in a few years when this sucker mellows. nice chocoloate, plum, biscuit, buttery finish.

Medium sized light brown cap, large bubbled, good retention with minimal lacing thats spotty. Color is dark brown with a red glow. Good clarity, an attractive brew. Nose of dark fruits, plummy, raisiny with hints of clay, peppery spiceyness and a bit of vanilla. Body is med/full, smooth textured. Dry malt flavors, lightly earthy, dusty. Ripe fruits coming through, cocoa and a light roastiness, bananna and alcohol flavors showing as it warms up. Dry, fruity finish. A keeper that will be interesting to age. Once again, Thanks to SDbruboy for a couple bombers of this fine elixer!! Thanks Cliff!

bottle. brownish-mahogany body with a small off-white head. great aroma of raisins, prunes, rich malt, and sugar sweetness. decadent full body with lots of rich sweet malt and dark fruit. chocolate and alcohol finish. I’d like to pick up a few bottles to put away for a few years to see if it gets any better. Very nice.

Dark amber pour with a quickly dissipating head. Fruity aroma with cloves and spice. Taste features heavy bourbon notes, a little bit of chocolate, more cloves, cherry... very spicy and has a nice alcohol bite to it. I really like this one... too bad I’m too impatient for wait for it to age, I’m sure it would be even better.

dark reddish brown color, head is beige and very thin. banana and some chocolate with some spiciness in the background. flavor is more banana (although not as much as the aroma would forecast), more chocolate, some spicy and earthy hops. alcohol is not overpowering. really quite good.

22 oz bottle: Chestnut brown body w/ a short lived light brown head, lightly hazy. Clove spice aroma up front like a hefe weizen w/a medium light banana ester and roast aroma; Hints of plum from yeast and solventy alcohol once it warms. Lightly floral hop. Malt is a little non distinct, but lightly toasty. The flavor is sort of like a chocolate covered banana on the first impression. Well balanced slightly to malt w/ hints of plum and sugary sweetness. Some toasty malt; The finish is a bit sweet, maybe just a bit too sweet, but not cloying. Aftertaste is sweet, sugary, and lingering w/ hints of roastiness. Medium body and carbonation w/ a well hidden alcohol in the mouth; smooth. The first impression was pretty roasty, chocolatey, and unbalanced, but the second impression leaves me as not really being a belgian. More dunkelweizen like in character than Belgian. Maybe some aging will help it out?

22 oz bottle. Thanks fly! It is a reddish/brown color with a nice head. The aroma has raisins, caramel and sweetness. The flavor is winey, sweet, raisiny, some roastiness, and yeasty. Nice combo. Should be interesting in 6 months. Great beer now anyway.