Stone 7th Anniversary Ale

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

Super clouded, deeply golden bronzed yellow color in the glass, a creeping smallish off-white head just sits there a while before it decides to melt away leaving a bubbly edged collar and the lace sticks in small spots and strings. Aroma is oh so yummy, soon as I wiffed this in I knew I was gonna like it. Malt laden caramel candy-refic nose. The caramel malt here is fantastic, its nearly undescribable; besides, just saying that its super fine yummy nice is enough! Totally reminds of Double Bastards' nose with nearly the same roaring axiom over the hops. What hops I do detect (tangerine, dried grapefruit, citric, woody) seem to realm very meagerly compared to what most pales are and should be. But I'll throw that to the weighside as Stone always seems to push the envelope in all styles neither true nor erroneous. Love those malts! It never fades. It never gives up. It just cinders like a cinamatic memory. On your mark... sip...no wait...gulp...WOW, how easy is it to love this beer is beyond words. I can say this "Stone brews rock my world!" Yum, yum, yummy times ten! This is emaculate stuff! Pale ale, or what ever they want to call it, I want more! Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy...I'm one happy lad this day! Hello caramel! Hello hops! A beautiful meadly of the miraculous malten heavy yet hop filled brigade of a beer! Caramel malts strongly covers the front (yum), mixing with a salad of fruits intreguing grapefruit, tangerine, plum, fig, and dulled raisin to boast, but as it settles a toasty effect takes over with major crusted bread and toasty grainy malts becomes the center, melding with the caramel (delicish). Perfect bitterness for me in the hops, which float and stay steady across the finish with mild yet giving citrus and wood dryness...lingers...lingers some more, yields both the malts and hops together to bring a grin to thee lips. Oooh yeah, thats the stuff...caramel, candy, toffee, citrus, wood... everything Stone has ever offered has risen through to torment you to think, " What could possibly be next by these guys?" Holy shit this is good stuff! Feel is way to smooth, full, and malty for a pale, yet it gives and gives, never letting go of your expectations, nor your buds, nor your memory. Great start, great finish. What else is neeeded? This has everything; malts in the front which carry through to the finish, and the finish is hop laden and lingering both on the palate and the memory. The 7.7 ABV catches up to ya pretty quickly, even though it takes nothing to drink it out of the bomber, which is gone before you know it, and your craving strongly for more...and I need more! I can only think of a cross between Old Guardian and Dbl. Bastard, but without all the alcohol, but believe me, this still has a worldly effect on the noggin'. The Levitation and Smoked Porter are the brews to be sessioned by the guys at Stone. Try to session this stuff and it'll be a short evening. Still drinkable beyond commensense and you'll continue to convince yourself as I did that it is.

I got more of an Imperial Pale Ale feel from this beer. Pours a beautiful orang color with a small but lingering head. Aroma was one sided with hops permiating everything, but you coud tell there was some heart to the brew. Flavor was also mostly hop bitterness but held enough malt backbone to carry it through with a decisive bitter kick in the end ti send it on it's way. A good beer but not what I had expected.

Golden ale with a nice white head. Hops kisses the malt in the nose. Sweet malt with resinous hops, very intense, with lots of big chunks of citrus and grapefruit. Well balanced beer with a good body.

Has a clouded orange/amber color with little carbonation and some lace. Smell is sweet malt/hop balance. Taste is similar to the smell with a good malt/hop balance and finishes with a decent amount of bitterness. Overall a fine strong beer.

Man was I excited to find this at The Party Source in Cincinnat!! Clear copper color. Seems to me that this is a mix of Arrogant Bastard and IPA, just like BigBastard suggested. Bitter, hoppy aroma. Very powerful taste. Kind of sweet, with a big hoppy and bitter kick to it. Great malt/hops balance. Quite enjoyable and very glad I found this!!

Thanks to Stubby or SDBruboy for this bottle. I forget which one sent it. Shared this with a friend of mine. Very good beer. Had that typical Stone bite all the way through. with a good malt flavor to go with it.

This was hard to discern from the Arrogant Bastard, with some IPA thrown in. Top notch all the way though. Very hoppy with some sweet malt and citrus in there too.

sticky citrus hop aroma, reddish orange with nice lace, earthy resinous hops meld into unpleasant bitterness on the roof of my mouth