Stone 06.06.06 Vertical Epic Ale

Formerly brewed at Stone Brewing Co.
Style: Abbey Dubbel
Escondido, California USA

06.06.06 Vertical Epic, let’s get to the bottom of this. Appearance: Pours a dark chestnut brown body topped with a fizzy, thin brown-colored head. Smell: Aroma is largely fruity (bananas and plums) and chocolaty, imbued with a Belgium yeast scent and a wee amount of smoke. Curiouser and curiouser... Taste: Leading flavors of dark chocolate, black licorice, molasses, and grapes. Eventually achieves some herbal bitterness and ends with a yeasty dry finish. Not nearly as sweet as the nose would have you believe. Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied, creamy, and has a mild carbonation which helps to maintain a light finish. Drinkability: Admirable cross-style hybrid brew showing characteristics of a dubbel, weizenbock, smoked porter, and more. Catch ya in 2012, little bomber!

black/brown/blue with medium brown tan head. smells of floral dark fruits and light mocha and grainy malt. viscous and nice carbonation. smooth and slight vanilla creaminess. alcohol is definitely apparent but not overpowering, some sage licorice and cloves. uuummm it’s a stone...just a typical high quality dubbel

Pours dark, aroma is spicy, flavors of raisens and black licorice, pretty good ale cant wait for the 07.

Pours very dark, almost stout like. Initial head is nice, compact bubbles, but it fades quickly to light lacing. Aroma is quite nice, lots of dark fruit. Flavors are very interesting, starts off with the dark fruits from the aroma, but quickly dries out. The aftertaste lingers on the tongue much like a Rochefort, maybe even a hint of that same tobacco flavor. Mouthfeel is a little thin, and the carbonation is a little lower than I’d like. On a side note, I like this from Stone...it’s more proof they can do something other than hops hops hops.

Well, this beer has aged rather nicely. I remember drinking it last year when it was first released and thinking it was a competent but pretty indistinct dubbel. That opinion has changed, for sure. Improbably, it seems even hotter now than when it first came out, but in general the flavors have really started to emerge (even though the beer can’t be said to have mellowed). Lots of fig and beef jerky, with a hint of molasses, like some hybrid old ale. Not so much carbonation right now, but a full body nonetheless. This is tasting just great, and I’m glad I have another bottle to sample down the road.

Bottle. I was afraid that this brew had past me by, but alas, Liquor Stop in Highland, IN still had it when I was down that way for Dark Lord Day 2007 in late April. I’m glad I didn’t miss it. Belgian qualities in the aroma with banana esters. Dry. Almost fully opaque body, with some faint red hues sneaking through when held to light. Large, light tan head that is lasting. Foamy. Excellent lace. Flavor is all Belgian. No American notes to speak of like most other American brewers attempts at the Abbey styles. Perhaps a little lightly carbonated for a Dubbel, but this doesn’t detract from it at all. Dry, but delicious. Alcohol presence grows as it warms. Extremely well done. Not sure how good it will be in 2012 despite promises from the label that it was "designed" to last that long. Eminently drinkable now.

Rated 11/10/06: Stones take on a dubbel is well received, this is an "epic" brew that will only get better with age. Incredible dark brown pour, little light passes through this one. Poured down the center of my goblet the huge tan head fizzes for a while and ultimately vanishes save for a mild ring around the edge. The coolest visual is a trippy tan galaxy that appears while I swirl the glass. As it warmed up a bit the aroma really comes through: hearty malt with some wheat and also generous scents of dark fruit, black licorice, banana,clove, and star anise. Mouthfeel is rich and full nice light alcohol burn that evaporates. Flavor is outstanding touching on all of the flavors found in the aroma with a more prominant alcohol accent. There is also a nice smokey flavor that comes through really helping out with the malt and dark fruits. A familiar yeastiness is also tasted letting me know that this was carefully brewed by Stone. Great beer, I’m a touch sad that I missed the first handful of installments for the Vertical Epic Series, but be sure that I will not pass up the ones to come.

22oz bottle. Pours a very deep brown with almost no head. Aroma is dark fruit, raisens, roasted malts. Flavor is very sweet and fruity. Under the fruitiness there are notes of toast, malt and a hint of hops. Medium body with a decent amount of carbonation. Very smooth. Will have to check out my other bottle in a couple years to see how it ages.