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Stone 09.09.09 Vertical Epic Ale 3.71 392

Stone 09.09.09 Vertical Epic Ale

Percentile
96
overall

bottled
common

on tap
common

Broad Distribution
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RatingsAverageScoreSeasonalABVStyle PctlServe in
3923.72/5.03.71/5.0Special8.5%89.1Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler
Commercial Description:
This is quite a complex and layered beer. Bold and smooth chocolate malt flavors combine with a Belgian yeast lending tropical fruit/banana flavors and hints of spiciness, all complemented by citrus notes from an addition of tangerine peel. Rich vanilla beans add a nice counter to the chocolate malt - actually enhancing the chocolatiness. The finish is smooth, with additional traces of vanilla and toasted characters from French Oak. The goal for this edition of the Stone Vertical Epic Ale series is to be reminiscent of artisanal chocolates accentuated with orange.
 Most Recent Top Raters Highest Ratings Who's Rated This?  
 Pastor (509), Maine, USA
4.1 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/105/58/104/517/20

Oct 26, 2009  
Finished the night with this one for a desert and I was glad I did. It worked extremely well. Bottle poured into a tulip produced three fingers worth of tan head that settled to a thin lace. It was the obvious black stout colored brew as well. The aroma was a mix of Belgian yeast character sweet and fruity. You also got a good mixture of stout aromas of chocolate and espresso. The flavors were much like the nose but as it warmed the wonderful sweet chocolate just filled your mouth. I would say it was a medium to full felling in the mouth with ok carbonation for a stout. Nice drinking brew one full glass was perfect to end the drinking session with. I was glad I have another bottle put aside Serving type: bottle

 dnstone (267), Mons, Belgium
4 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/58/104/517/20
Dec 27, 2009  
Sweet and light roasty maltiness in aroma and flavor; it also has a spicey finish. Notes: ’09 GABF


 demitriustown (703), Shelby Township, Michigan, USA
3.6 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/57/103/515/20
Dec 26, 2009  
Bomber: Aroma is fruity, sweet plum, some discernable malt, a little roast, and yeast characteristics. Appearance is almost black with some brown highlights with a medium sized tan head that diminishes into a soapy film. Taste is surprisingly roasty, almost a stout characteristic, coffee notes, some fruit, but thicker that I thought it would be. Palate has a lingering vanilla coffee taste to it. Overall, this one threw me for a loop the first time that I sipped it but in a good way. Cheers!


 BeerBaron617 (312), Novi, Michigan, USA
3.6 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
5/103/57/104/517/20
Dec 26, 2009  
Had this bomber with my Christmas dinner last night. This stuff, as it’s properly named, is EPIC! lol. Very dark pour, with creamy head. It was sweet, and malty, but also with some slight hop character. It reminded me of the Hibernation Ale I had from Great Divide the other day. Really great stuff to have with an incredible meal. Cheers!


 omhper (12298), Stockholm, Sweden
3.7 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/103/58/104/514/20
Dec 26, 2009  
Bottled. Very dark brown, minimal head. Aroma of raspberry and chocolate. Drier and slimmer than anticipated wit notes of marzipan. Red berries comes to dominate coffee and chocolate with vanilla on a distance. Marked cocoa bitterness. The best Vertical Epic I can remember!


 drewbeerme (2306), Chicago, Illinois, USA
3.8 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/57/104/516/20
Dec 25, 2009  
22oz bottle, pours dark Brien with creamy tan head. Nose of plums, chocolate, and spicy yeast notes. Flavors of chocolate, raisins coffee, with earthy spicy finish. Med body, sturdy carbonation. Possibly the best epic in the series.


 xmarcnolanx (805), Kirkwood, Missouri, USA
3.6 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/57/103/515/20
Dec 24, 2009  
Aroma is sweet chocolate, fruity, estery, vanilla. Taste is oatmeal, fruity citrus, chocolate, vanilla, carbonation, more sourness and yeastiness. Strange. Good, but I feel like the hyper-carbonation really obstructs the taste of this. Finish is slightly sour, a bit bitter, and some sweetness. Decent.


 durhambeer (1227), Durham, USA
3.9 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/58/104/516/20
Dec 23, 2009  
From some of my friends’ reactions, I was sort of putting this one off, thinking it would be a disappointment. And with the first sniff and few sips, I thought it was. But once it warmed, it was a different story. This is a fine beer; unique and lovely -- and with a surprisingly degree of subtlety for Stone. Pours nearly black with a generous light brown head. Nose first reveals bitter, even ashy cocoa and overripe fruits. Weird, and it takes some getting used to. Tastes similar but with more hop bitterness and citric notes as well as some wood. In some ways much of the flavor reminds me of Angostura bitters. I’ve been on a Manhattan kick, which is perhaps why I’m into this beer. Some of the oak and mild vanilla qualities hint at bourbon as well. Nice dry finish. Tasty.


 Strykzone (1497), Wood River, Illinois, USA
3.9 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/103/58/104/517/20
Dec 22, 2009  
Thanks Hayduke! This beer looks much like a porter when poured. It is very dark with a small tan head. Aroma is chocolate, over ripe fruit and wood. There is a lot going on in the flavor. Chocolate and fruit again. This is also a well hopped beer and those hops provide bitterness, dryness, and tartness. There is plenty of malt and it gives a sweetness that nicely balances the hops and that balance leans towards sweet but with a dry aftertaste. Vanilla, wood, and spice. There is a bit of ash that is the only negative here for me. Alcohol is not noticed. Maybe my favorite of Stone’s Verticals to date.



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