Victory Ten Years Alt

Brewed by Victory Brewing Company
Style: Altbier
Downingtown, Pennsylvania USA

Tap at Waterfront Ale House, Brooklyn - Hazy light red in color - lots of fruity esters in the aroma, mostly strawberry, some citrus to compliment the moderate hoppiness - a little on the sweet side - lots of sticky, caramel malt sweetness and sugar-covered light fruits - hops are assertive, but still not enought to counterbalance the sweetness - some darker roasted malts and a smokiness come in near the end, making things a bit more interesting - I salute Victory for not going overboard for their anniversary ale, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it very much.

Draught pint at Sunset Grill on 3/23/06
Frothy, but small and mostly diminishing beige head atop a bright auburn-magenta-tinged copper-amber. Light chill haze to it, with some minor lacing.
Nose is surprisingly bursting with fruity hops. Well, perhaps not bursting, but they are large, round and full of yellow fruit notes. Plenty of ripe peaches, predominantly, with a light brassy-mineral note of alt yeast, deep toasted grains providing fair depth with no sign of alcohol. Light poundcake sweetness is quickly curtailed by bitter, dry, tettnang-like soily/hay notes. Of medium strength is the aroma.
The flavor continues the hop trend, with bountiful bitterness wedded to lightly sugary pale malts, with a tastefully done toasted malt, vienna-like huskiness that seems to offset the juicy hops perfectly. Very impressed with the abundance of hop flavors and bitterness without any suggestion of PNW. Good for them. Fairly nominal texture, with mostly tight carbonation, perhaps a little too expansive at times, but deep enough malts, peachy-fruits from the hops, hay, sweat and grass as well, and no sign of alcohol in the flavor. Darkens, with more sign of the roasted malts, as it warms, but nothing to get worried about. Balances the drinkability of an alt with the added flavor and gravity of a sticke alt.

Bottle; Best by August 1, 2006: Beer pours very attractive, slightly cloudy copper color with a thick, rich, totally retained beige colored head. Aromas include rich sweet malt of the cereal, biscuit type and I suppose a bit of hops lurking in there under the malt. The hops really shine through in the flavor with some sharp bitter citric notes which are very well complimented by the sweet rich malt and a bit caramel flavor. Very enjoyable beer. I am glad I bought a sixer.

(Bottle (enjoy by 8/10/06) from <A HREF=http://www.ratebeer.com/Place/massachusetts/w target=blank>Julio’s Liquors) Pours dark golden brown with a nice-looking biscuit head. Smells piney, hoppy, sour, honeyish, yeasty. Thick weepy lacing. Sharp hop bite upfront, then licorice and malt. Bitter finish and lingering bitter aftertaste. Smooth mouthfeel although a touch watery.

12oz bottle. Pours a clear dark brown/amber color with a thick creamy light tan head. Head leaves thick sporatic lacing. Nose is lots of toffee, brown sugar, sweet malt, very nutty,floral hops, and caramel. It smells sticky like taffy. Body is a little thin at first but thickens up as it moves. Flavors start off as nutty and malty, but follow up with some off flavors. Some light weird, dirty water notes. A peppery touch that stings the tongue. A film is left on the palate and the tongue is staind.

Bottle courtesy of hopdog. Ruby brown pour with a small tanned head. Nose is spicy and hoppy with some herbal notes, semi-sweet malts aromas, caramel and light honey. Taste is heavy on the spice with more herbal notes, flowery hops, light toffee, and honey. The spice profile seems very pepper laden. Body is medium but has a fine carbonation feel and a certain smoothness/slickness to it. Finishes with a big spice and hop flavor. Light roasty malts, sort of coffee-ish, with light caramel, ground pepper, flowers, and herbal notes and light wood. Nice beer!

Beautiful pour to a translucent red-clay color with a creamy tan head quickly recessing to an icy, oily web on top with a creamy tan rung at the sides. Beady vellum lacing slowly cascades down the glass as we go. Aroma is ignited with cherry toffee, maple beachwood, copper accents, spicy peppery touches, amaretto coffee creamer and honey nectar. Such a rare, unique display of aromatic affection. Flavorful force pushes full stream ahead. Hoppy sticke accents come to the forefront, dancing with a dry, clean, caramel and chocolate percussion. Dry, woodsy balsa tendencies, sticking with a piney, cedar sap vibrancy. Buttery pecans and pralines partner with expressive caramel ribbons. Clean, dry and bitter, and then an unquenching, unflinching meld of the tongue to the top of the mouth is upon us. Splices the inner mouth’s central domain in two. Quite a hoppy alt creation, but a priceless introduction and foray by an American craft brewery into the world of alts. Bitterness crests on the arc at the back of the throat in the finish, along with some cedar resin and peppered toffee cubes with a maple liquor heart.

You can take your 10 malts - 10 hops - 10% abv anniversary ales; I’ll side with this testament to 10 masterful years of brewing at Victory any day of the week. Huge thanks to bstill and Jhop for the bottles!

Poured a clear golden amber color with a thin off-white head. Malty sweet aroma with toffee and fruits. Mainly apple and pear. The flavor had a malty start and a long dry big bitter finish. Light to medium body