Stone 13th Anniversary Ale

Brewed by Stone Brewing Co.
Style: American Strong Ale
Escondido, California USA

Draft. At Cole’s, Buffalo. Very dark amber, clear, nice tan head. Simple, lush, resin/cedar hop aroma, plenty of roast malt. The taste - same, intense conifer/resin bitterness, moderate alcohol, scorched caramel malt - aggressive, oh so good - I was very disappointed no bottles, I will be buying several. VERY lively mouthfeel, a real interplay of deep roast and fresh pungent pine/cedar hoppiness in the long linger - solid. Very, very solid.

22 oz bottle: Mohogany red w/ a lasting thick, light beige head. Aroma is of piney and citrusy hops, followed by buscuity and toasted malt. A bit of the resiny pine sticks around in the nose if left over the glass. Caramelly malt as well. Very clean aromas of malt and hops that seem hop dominated, but overall, well balanced. Flavor is much the same. Piney, floral, and citrusy hop flavor up front, but well balanced by the toasted and caramel malts with a lingering, pleasant bitterness. Bready malt in the aftertaste along with the hops. Fuller bodied beer, milder carbonation, smooth up front, but dry finish in the mouth due to hops and alcohol, but the alcohol is fairly well hidden. Holy crap is this a good beer IMHO! The overall hop character is extremely smooth and very pleasant. Not to say that their other offerings are not, but wow, they really put some effort into this one!

Great looking beer with a rich brown/amber color and a nice head and a bit of lacing. Nose is full of citrus and hops. Nice flavor with a bit of a sharpness at the end. Lighter on the tongue than you would expect.

A Mes rate: bottle BIG thanks to Greg.
Very dark amber with a thin off white film topping. Clearly Stone on the nose. Huge hoppy bigness, some faint but delightful petrol / ethanol in a "oh fuck this is gonna get me drunk" type way. Lots of caramel in the flavour but balanced beautifully with the big bitterness. Surprisingly straight forward. But it’s not a bad thing. It’s just all rather effortless. Big and powerful yet somewhat soft and elegant. Great beer.

pours a beautiful deep mahogany color, hint of red, nice tan head. Aroma is of abundant spicy hops. The flavor is a strange mixture of spicy hops, hop bitterness, dark roasted grain, and alcohol. Thia beer just doesn’t do it for me. It is bitter, but not a good bitter, almost too spicy, along with the alcohol it just seems harsh to me. The roastiness seems to mask some of the hop flavor which leaves the hop bitterness unbalanced.

In color its an intimidating dark brown with with a slight reddish tint. Only the slightest bit transparent. Foam is light tan again with just a touch of red. Beautiful yet menacing appearance. Hop aromas immediately jump out on the nose. Plenty of up front citrus, resin, pine cone and tree sap. Flavors are well layered. Up front on the attack you get more hops, the roasty malts hit on the mid palette, with the hops and malt balancing very well on the finish. Definitely bitter at the end. Alcohol is there as well. Alcohol could be balanced a touch better. Drank this next to a Rochefort 8 which has a higher alcohol content. You can barely taste the alcohol in the Rochefort. Its readily apparent here on the 13. Some bottle age might be fun with this beer allowing the hops to fade a touch and balance more evenly with the malts. Who knows. Who cares. This beer tastes freaking amazing right now!

Pours a murky bloody orange with random isles of light tan carbonation dotting the surface. The nose is extremely pungent, very diverse yet distinct with the overwhelming influence of delicate fresh hops. I can literally smell the hop cones and all of their lupulin glands offer their full glory to my nostrils. This beer is an olfactory roller coast ride. Fresh of the vine aroma with notes of grapefruit rind, caramelized sugar, and mango. Flavor is very rich and strong, forward in several distinct ways simultaneously. First taste is of rich and resinous Simcoe hops, very piny and sticky hops light up the sides and back of my tongue leaving the familiar feel of citrus rind in my mouth. However, this strong hop presence is backed by a substantial malt character that proves a good backdrop while contributing intricacies of its own with bready notes and a very nice balancing caramelly sweetness. Palate is aggressively bitter with a resinous spicy feel and hints of alcohol.

Dark brown with a big reddish/tan head. Aroma of citrus hops, caramel and toffee. Flavor of piney hops, caramel, toffee and some roast. Pretty good.