6.4/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Deep copper body, thin-medium light tan head. Light aroma, cerealy and biscuity, with alcohol and brown sugar. Definite Munichy body, with strong cereals, toast, brown sugar, and touches of strawberry, lacking the heavier caramels, prune, and raisin associated with the best doppelbocks. Reminds me more of an altbier or the first incarnation of the same brewer’s Phi, which this replaces, but not as good as the latter. Lingering bitter, burnt bread finish, a wet, heavy mass of grass clippings and fall leaves on my tongue.
Tried
on 15 May 2006
at 21:38
5.8/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 5
Texture 6
Overall 6
Pour is a cloudy orange with a big white head. Aroma is fresh hops. Flavor is a bit in the watery dept. but there are some grassy hops in there to make this one decent. Overall this is just a slightly above par APA as it is to watery and the ingrediants don’t really stand out.
Tried
on 29 Apr 2006
at 20:42
3.6/10
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Appearance 4
Aroma 4
Flavor 3
Texture 4
Overall 3.5
Pours cloudy yellow with a HUGE head - aroma is very peppery and sour - tastes kind of like lemon water, and not much else - if I wanted to drink beers like this, I would buy Bud - I consider it an insult to be charged 8 bucks a six pack for something like this.
Tried
on 27 Apr 2006
at 20:28
7.6/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Deep amber color, with clingy, off-white lace - aroma of brown sugar, vanilla, nuttiness, cookie dough - creamy mouthfeel - doughy flavor, very mild sweetness - roasty notes, with subtle brown sugar and hazelnut - the bourbon barrel adds a soft vanilla and oak quality, but doesn’t overpower like in many barrel-aged beers - well-hidden alcohol - some pretty nice stuff.
Tried
on 23 Apr 2006
at 17:09
7.4/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 10
Overall 7.5
Dark pour with foamy tan head. Lots of sweet vanilla in both the aroma and flavor. The oak is forward in the flavor as well, but the taste is more like green wood instead of aged. Sweet caramel with some chocolate notes also come through. Silky smooth, soft mouthfeel. The alcohol is well hidden. This is different. Nonetheless, I thought it was drinkable.
Tried
on 19 Apr 2006
at 20:50
6.3/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 7
Texture 4
Overall 6
Draught Colour not determinable; small white head. Vegetable nose, grain, drying hay, maybe some Brett, and almond aroma. Very strange mis of sweet, malty, some alcohol, esters, but unfortunately, adstringency without real acidity. Finishes rather fishy, like smoked shrimp. Adstringency is rather aggressive. "Interesting", as opposed to "drinkable".
Tried
on 19 Apr 2006
at 05:48
7.4/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Poured black with brown head. Aroma filled with roasted malts, smoke and chhocolate. Flavor is malty sweet with notes of chocolate and caramel. Underneath are notes of peat and smoke. The finish is bitter. Smooth on the palate with slight carbnation. Medium body.
Tried
on 12 Apr 2006
at 16:05
7.4/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Bottle... purchased somewhere in Bloomington. Pours amber brown with a large head. Aromas of bittersweet hops, fruits, roasty malts, and sugar. Flavor is similar. Nice.
Tried
from Bottle
on 16 Mar 2006
at 19:10
7.2/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 7
On tap at Crunchy’s, East Lansing. Hazy butterscotch yellow-orange body, thin creamy light buff head. Hits with a big punch of buttery, tannic oak, with wet hay, peaches, and some caramely sweetness layered beneath the wood overtones. Dense and heavy with strong, prickly alcohol in the finish. I was impressed by the robust, rich, and complex oak notes that still allowed the original characteristics of the beer to co-dominate the flavor after a few "warm-up" sips. Very well-done.
Tried
from Draft
on 22 Jan 2006
at 12:50
7.1/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Rerate from bottle (8-2-2009). Aromas seem far less than before... not much going on other than some wet wood and roasted malt. Flavor seems to have taken a dive, too. There is a bit of roasted malt... some chocolate and wood, but smoke and peat seem to not be here with this bottle. (Original rating 8 4 8 4 15)
Wonderful aroma over a dark, dark brown body. Smoke, peat and dark chocolate. Head is tan and not worth much. Looks good and goes away quickly, leaving little behind in terms of lacing. Flavor is a quick burst of roasted malt that gives way to chocolatey undertones and then wood/peat/charcoal (???) flavor that is different and a nice way to finish. I was pleasantly surprised by this one.
Wonderful aroma over a dark, dark brown body. Smoke, peat and dark chocolate. Head is tan and not worth much. Looks good and goes away quickly, leaving little behind in terms of lacing. Flavor is a quick burst of roasted malt that gives way to chocolatey undertones and then wood/peat/charcoal (???) flavor that is different and a nice way to finish. I was pleasantly surprised by this one.
Tried
from Bottle
on 07 Jan 2006
at 23:19