Stone 9th Anniversary Ale

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

Beautiful orange colored brew with a perfectly even bih white head on top, which lasts forever. Fizzy carbonation. Intense grapefruit and also honey in the nose. Repeating grapefruit in the taste accomplished by an intense apricot mixed with acacia honey taste. Long lasting medium bitterness on the tongue.

Golden bronze hue. Big tight cream colored head. Sweet floral nose, citrus, then all stinky resinous hops. Bready, sweet malts, faint light fruit, wheat beer notes, then bang! Hops and alcohol smack ya in the mouth. Full chewy body, steady carbonation, somewhat reasonably balanced I spose. Pineapple, tangerine, big citrus, grapefruit, spicy earthy hops. Quite drinkable if you dont mind some serious hops in yo arse!

The nose gives note of Bastard like aromas. Slightly cloudy bright golden and nice fluffy head. In many respects this really tastes a lot like a Maibock/Weissenbock even though the brewing style makes it an ale and it is hoppier than those styles.

Slightly smeared medium golden yellow color with a medium white cap of froth that breaks down into a landscape of bubbled rockyness. Big sheet of lace coats all around the glass. This looks damn nice. Hmmm...not a typical waft from Stone, a bit restrained here with a melony citrus of orange and lemon and some light wheaty snap behind it. Taste is broad and withstanding in a short bittering but long oily hoppyness. Quite exquisite really. It seems quick at first but begins to lay the groundwork for a full-on citrusy construction on your palatable property. Orangey fluff, peels, piths, and pulp skip quickly into a short entrance of the wheat malt that seems very high rendered in flour, dryness, and partially parched in chalkyness. Thankfully and craftly, that area is just as brief as any other in this brigade of quickly happening nuances. Wow! The oily stuff, as mentioned above, begins to float forward in the finishing areas after every sip. So danty, yet obvious. Citrusy oils, hop squeezed bite, and peel-like girth, substain for a long duration of hinting grasses, more so hinting citrus pith, and high grain malt. Wonderfully complex hop profile along its length; which seems short at first, but alas, it grows and grows, from sip to sip. Somehow drying, yet oily and pungent. Sublime. Feel is about medium, if not all together a slight lightish; somewhat. But man does it grow on ya quickly. Yeah, quickly as its very own hoppy characteristics and dryly set base of citric hops and malting. What a strangely awesome beer? Like Clint Eastwood, it’s every way but loose. Tightly set in hops with drying parchness, hop citrusy tricks, and a fairly calm bitterness that just suits its overall ride through finishville. I could drink this for a good long while. Everything about it screams...have fun, enjoy some hops, and get pummeled by our strategicly placed alcoholic punch. Uff-da, Stone knows me too well. Fine stuff!

Bottle, 22 oz. I enjoyed this one with my Uncle Don while he visited from Sydney in October 05. It is golden and incredibly hazy with a nice fluffy head. Looks great as the head leaves and a great looking lace remains. Lots of floral quality in the nose, reminds me of Hop Wallop from Victory. Taste also is much like Hop Wallop. Can’t really distinguish the wheat in this one, probably because the yeast is a different strain than most wheat beers. Nice and hoppy, but mostly grassy and floral with a good sweetness that hangs throughout the entire time of drinking. I like it. Better than 8, not as good as 7 I think.

(Bottled, 0.66l) Very hazy golden with a medium, lacy head. Cardamom, citrusy-aromatic hops, pale, grainy malt in the aroma. Pale-malty, very aromatic-hoppy, grassy, slightly honeyish, very grainy, a bit alcoholic flavor. Medium body, quite low carbonation. A very malty American Strong Ale with pleasant hopping.

Bomber bottle. Dark amber color with medium creamy head that diminished slowly with good lacing. Moderate citrus and hop aroma. Medium body with smooth texture. Full citrus, malt spice flavor with a sharp finish. Good brew that was a good change of pace for Stone.

While this was a meal in and of itself, it was enjoyable, but I have higher expectations after some aging.