7.5/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 8
Pours is a nice hazy orange. Aroma is nice, very grassy and fruity. Flavor is lots of piney hops. Good malts used as well. Very crisp and bitter. A very nice IPA.
Tried
on 05 Nov 2004
at 21:48
6.9/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 5
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 8.5
Pours a alomst black when held up to light. Aroma is somewhat hoppy with a mix of malt. Flavor is a strong chocolat/coffee combo. The flavor is a bit overpoweing at first but im liking it the more i drink it. More a stout than a ale but still its a very flavorful brew.
Tried
on 05 Nov 2004
at 20:08
8.1/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 9
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
2003 Batch (1 year old):
Hazy bright copper coloured body with strong orange highlights and no head at all! Aroma of candied hops-truly mouthwatering. Oranges, grapefruits, pine and soap all come out as well! Medium-bodied; Assertive dry hoppiness a matching malt backbone. Aftertaste puckering and dry-great floral hop taste & bittering feel. Overall, a great IPA for Bordeaux lovers, as you get that lovely tannic mouthful. Many thanks to my Mom for picking this up for me on one of her trips to Michigan. I sampled this twelve ounce bottle purchased at Merchant’s in Dearborn, Michigan on 14-September-2004.
Hazy bright copper coloured body with strong orange highlights and no head at all! Aroma of candied hops-truly mouthwatering. Oranges, grapefruits, pine and soap all come out as well! Medium-bodied; Assertive dry hoppiness a matching malt backbone. Aftertaste puckering and dry-great floral hop taste & bittering feel. Overall, a great IPA for Bordeaux lovers, as you get that lovely tannic mouthful. Many thanks to my Mom for picking this up for me on one of her trips to Michigan. I sampled this twelve ounce bottle purchased at Merchant’s in Dearborn, Michigan on 14-September-2004.
Tried
from Can
on 28 Oct 2004
at 21:03
6.6/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
On tap at Founders for their 2004 Harvest Celebration. I missed this in its first go-round this summer, but Summer Braggot reappeared for this gathering of beer fans. This was possibly a new batch as the ABV was listed as 9.1%. Poured an unusually hazy yellow (almost tan) with a medium off-white head. Sweet honey aroma led to...you guessed it...a nectary, floral honey flavor with hints of alcohol following each sip. Pretty solid mead but lacking the unusual yeast characteristics that often define interesting meads.
Tried
from Draft
on 24 Oct 2004
at 19:36
7.5/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7
On tap at Founders for their 2004 Harvest Celebration. I liked this beer a bit more than I did the newly-tapped but otherwise similar Harvest Ale. Poured a hazy orange from the cask pull. Pine and citrus hops dominated the aroma, and piney hops also provided most of the flavor profile, rounded out by grapefruit rind and biscuity malt. Had a soapy, creamy mouthfeel the Harvest Ale lacked. I believe this was also hopped with Amarillo hops. A fine APA.
Tried
from Draft
on 24 Oct 2004
at 19:33
8.2/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 10
Overall 8
On tap at Founders for their 2004 Harvest Celebration. All I can say is WOW! Amazingly creamy and smooth with an awesome amaretto and hazelnut flavor offsetting the roasted malts. This beer reminded me of a fine hazelnut coffee with a dash of almond syrup yet had none of the acidity usually associated with coffee. At 4.2% ABV and on nitro tap this beer is supremely smooth. I sometimes have qualms about letting character not derived from hops, barley, and yeast skew my ratings, but this beer is just too good to ignore.
Tried
from Draft
on 24 Oct 2004
at 19:29
7.2/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 7
On tap at Founders for their 2004 Harvest Celebration. Hazy straw body topped by a thin off-white head and a nice clump of Amarillo hops flowers. Citrus aroma with hints of orange peel, lemon and grapefruit rind. Flavor was similarly citrusy (mostly grapefruit rind) with some pine. The malts were subdued but added a slightly toasty character to the beer. Not too complex. Might border on India Pale Ale territory.
Tried
from Draft
on 24 Oct 2004
at 19:25
7.2/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 7
On tap at Founders. Despite the rather unoriginal name, this is an amped-up version of the Dirty Bastard Scotch Ale rather than an incredibly hopped IPA as its better known namesake is. The malts take top billing here; big caramels and fruit compete with hints of piney hops. Toast and coffee become apparent after a few sips, and the beer becomes almost candylike over time. Alcohol is not very noticeable. Like a big, fruity I2PA without the hops.
Tried
from Draft
on 22 Sep 2004
at 04:44
7.6/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
On tap at Founders and also newly bottled (the first new bottled Founders beer in some time). This is a rather aggressively hopped dark rye beer; the crisp, spicy, piney hops complement the tingly, spicy, and somewhat fruity rye malt. The flavor profile is quite dense and almost takes on a roasted character. I think this will be popular once it’s distributed.
Tried
from Draft
on 22 Sep 2004
at 04:41
5.1/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 5
Flavor 5
Texture 4
Overall 5.5
On tap at Founders. Hazy yellow/straw body, thin off-white head. The beer is called "Chamomile" and the namesake dominates both the flavor and aroma. I imagined sitting next to a box of Kleenex on a snowy winter day, sipping on this beer from a tea cup between sniffles. Behind the strong chamomile flavor was a light, somewhat tangy malt body. An interesting concept but uninspired attempt.
Tried
from Draft
on 30 Aug 2004
at 13:36