Stone 13th Anniversary Ale

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

A 22 oz bottle. The beer poured a deap amber body with a cream head. The smell is of citrus hops and sweet malt. the taste is all hops with a nice dry finish. 6 pack

Bottle from Mid Town. This pours a beautiful deep copper with a tight, dense beige head. Nice aroma of caramel malts, fruity ale esters, and fresh hops. Heavier side of medium bodied with average carbonation. Initial flavor of dark caramel, toffee, maple, caramelized sugar that quickly moves to a bold piney and herbal bitterness. Hoppy finish is dry with a clingy grapefruit bitterness, diluted molasses, and nuts. There is a hint of booziness and it warms the windpipe as it goes down. It still has that Stone house character underneath. This is the best of the Anniversary series that I have had (starting from 8). Despite what the bottle says, I think this could age well in a Old Ale sort of way. We’ll see....

22oz bottle. Clear dark red with a one finger beige head, good retention. Immediately on pour I nose it, and I feel like I’m sticking my head into a bag of dried hop cones/flowers. Apparently after the volatiles dissipate, the story is slightly different. Lots of perfumey floral and pine hops are up front, some grapefruit. The malt aroma is scorched caramel and toffee. They must’ve used a shitload of hops here. The flavor pretty well follows suit with a little more caramel and sweetness coming forth, as well as some light pineapple? Bitterness peaked at a 6-7 with some alcohol in the semi-dry finish. Light prickly carbonation with a full body. Pretty good beer--Stone still knows how to make hop bombs. And you’re an idiot if you age this, as the label (sort of) implies.

Bottle: Drank on my 8th wedding anniversary after traveling over 12 hours from El Salvador to San Diego. Label description was interesting also a sort of milestone. The 13th Anniv has that distinct Stone characteristic, which is a good thing, the bottle suggests drink June 09! It was still pretty good on July 21st ’09.

Pours an amber/dark brown/even gave some black notes with a head that reappeared with every swirl poured pretty large. Had a citrus/pine aroma and flavor that was delicious. Solid bitterness to in this one. Flavor had some solid malt profile to, caramel very light roast. A little sweet the hops counter this, nice beer.

Nose reminds me of hiking in Maine. Pine, not quite turpentine but pushing the envelope a little, nutmeg, general hoppiness, but well balanced. Nice dark mahogony, just barely transparent (or maybe it’s the light...), mine looks a little cloudy, wish it caught the light just a little more. Palate is nice and smooth, just the right amount of carbonation to break through the malts as they coat your tongue. Flavor is hoppy, then malty, then hoppy, rounding out that initial nose of pine quite well. Great beer, just in time for my birthday!

22oz bottle pours dark blood red with full tan frothy head and lace. very nice Deep pine aroma. Taste is very good. nice mix of both Malt and hops and sweetness. pine resin stickiness really comes out as I found myself licking my lips after each mouthful. pleasant bitter aftertaste

On tap @ Mad Mex. Pours a very dark reddish brown with a lacing tan head. Big pine nose, lots of alcohol here, as well. Silky body, starts off malty and sweet, but that is instantly railroaded into a ravine of sappy, hoppy goodness. Rich maple finish, quite bitter. Worth a try, definitely.