Stone 07.07.07 Vertical Epic Ale

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

Gold color with a white head. Malty-wheat, sweet aroma with citrus, spice and Belgian yeast. Flavor is sweet with all of the aroma elements and hops making for a complex brew. There is quite a bit of body as well.

Bomber courtesy of Viggo, and shared with piscator34. Pours a fairly light amber with decent head. Spicy nose on this one. Taste follows suit- very spicy and dry. Hops leave a bit of a metallic twang towards the end. Alcohol is somewhat noticable, but does not distract. Body is quite good and carbonation levels suit the style(s). The spice is very close to being over the edge, but do end up working in this brew. I can’t pick up much of the fruit, mostly the earthy spices. Nice beer- hard to see this lasting until 2012 though.

Amber colour with large head. Aroma is yeasty ad wheaty with some spice, ginger, and some citrus of grapefruit and orange peel. Rich throughout but the flavours seem to clash quite a bit. Finishes a touch creamy and bitter.

Bottled sample shared with oakbluff. Light amber in colour with a few floaties and fairly strong carbonation. Very spicy aromas with this one: lots of allspice, cardamom, cinamon, with some fruity banana notes mixed in. More of the spice mix in the mouth, along with some orange rind (I get that pithy bitterness on the roof of my mouth, to be specific), Belgian yeast, malted wheat, and corn sugar. Not really funky/hoppy/farmhousey to be a saison, but not quite a tripel either. Quite drinkable, but a bit overspiced.

Bottle. Pours a deep amber with a thin white head. The aroma is full of spices specifically pepper. We missed the ginger. The taste started spicy with a sugary background and quite sour aftertaste. As the bottle warmed the sourness subsided and this became an almost enjoyable beer. A bit disappointing coming from Stone.

THOUGHTS: Alc. was a little too noticeable. After trying 06.06.06 I didn’t buy another to put away, but I think I will with this one. Great beer. TECHNICAL: Bottle. Poured a sparkling, medium oraney amber with beautiful carbonation and an average, off-white head that mostly diminished. The aroma was lightly malty, with some floral hops, ginger, alcohol, more spices and a citrus mix. The initial flavor was lightly sweet and acidic, while the finish was moderately sweet and acidic, lightly bitter and sour with a rather short duration, that I wished was longer. There is a really nice balance of the some type of flavors as I mentioned in the aromas. The citrus was a really nice touch. It was really different. The medium to full body was syrupy with soft carbonation and a lightly astringent and lightly alcoholic finish.

22oz Bottle: Pours a deep orange golden with a good amount of clarity, and minimal off-white head. Aroma has some Belgian malt, and has a ton in ginger. There are other underlying spices, and some mild floral character. The flavor has tons of spices, yet it still manages to be sweet. There’s lots of ginger, thyme, nutmeg, and herbal tea-like hints. The background gives way to a light sweet fruit touch of fig and maybe a clover honey hint. The finish is predominately a peppery spiciness. This stuff seems more like a Spice/Herb/Vegetable Beer. It’s a decent Belgian effort on Stone s part.

Bottle Golden pour with minimal head. Interesting aroma of spice and a bit of hops. Flavor has some ginger, floral and some other spicy notes. Smooth. Honestly, I’m a bit disappointed, not bad, but not up to Stone’s par.