5/10
—
Appearance 4
Aroma 5
Flavor 6
Texture 4
Overall 5
2005 bottle from Charles St Liquors, consumed 8/16/2005. Pours a (CLEAR) bright pink body, with some slightly darker raspberry-red notes in the mix. Initial white head is medium-sized, but fades away to a slight ring of bubbles on the edge before I can even pick the glass up to smell it. Beer is heavily filtered and artificially carbonated. There is no lacing on the glass. Aroma has some fresh raspberries, a bit of dust and paperiness and maybe a tinge of sweet malt. Flavor is, at least, not overly sweet. There is a raspberry flavor, followed by some vanilla. Reminds me alot of the raspberry cream life savers. Flavor is gone immediately on the finish, though before it goes, there is a brief instance of something you might call tartness. Drinkable, though, it’s not offensive. Obnoxious carbonation though, with HUGE bubbles, perhaps the biggest I have seen in a beer. Light bodied, thin and just a touch of sweetness. Very forgettable.
Tried
from Bottle
on 17 Aug 2005
at 11:20
6/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 5
Texture 6
Overall 6
I got this beer in my beer club. I have not been particularly impressed with the beers I have had from them before. Sampled from a 12 oz brown bottle this beer poured a light ruby mahogany color with a small tan head that faded quickly. The aroma was sweet and tangy sour malts. The flavor is light sour malts with a hint of ripe fruity and a tangy finish.
Tried
from Bottle
on 11 Jul 2005
at 16:14
8.2/10
—
Appearance 10
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
2005 bottle generously shared by the bros, pre-release, at their house, on 6/11/2005.
The beer pours a beautiful mahogany-auburn-chestnut, with beige-golden overtones and a small amount of creamy, beige head that is moderately well-retained, but more importanly, actually provides lacing. I almost can’t believe my eyes! An unfiltered beer from Harpoon! Awesome, I’m glad the bros were able to talk the Harpoon people in to not filtering this, which has, in my mind, ruined most of Harpoon’s other beers. Anyways, the beer has a transluscent shine to it, layered colors swirl about. It’s nice to see a dark wheat wine, who says they all have to be golden-yellow? Aroma has notes of peanut brittle, dry English toffee, milk chocolate and light, dry roast. The wheat may add a light vanilla-cream hint to the aroma as well. Flavor begins with a playful caramel malt sweetness that is lightly chewy in texture. Delicious chocolate notes are not bitter, nor are they overdone. Wheat provides smoothness to the mouthfeel, giving it an almost creamy texture. The finish really shines with chocolate, light roast and just an ever so slight wheat sourness/acidity. The acidity in most wheat wines turns me off to the style, but this is only faint and very tolerable. Add to that the fact that you can’t find even a hint of the 11.5 abv and you’ve got a very well-done, classy wheat wine. Not an over-the-top hops and syrupy malt monster. Body, you might say, is a little bit light, making it that much more drinkable, but I would like a touch more malt thickness. Hops add little bits of spiciness, no high alpha acids, some floral bitterness, but mainly just a light spicy flavor in the background. Mouthfeel is smooth and almost silky/creamy, with a touch of thinning on the end as it warms. Carbonation is very low. Great stuff and I am eager to try it again and rerate it, though I’m quite confident in this rating. The brewers at Harpoon could learn a thing or too from these guys!
Rerate
On draught at Redbones, 12/5/06
I’ve been following this beer pretty closely since its release (actually, even before its release), as kegs have been released here and there ever since its initial release. This glass that I had at Redbones recently was just shockingly good. Showing absolutely no signs of aging, (negative signs that is) but just wonderfully cohesive now and much more mellow. The chocolate, wheat nuttiness, light vanilla and chew toffee work together so well now and there is still a light sour/tart wheat twang on the finish, slightly acidic/bready, and very interesting. Texture is incredibly soft and the low carbonation feels great on the palate. No harsh alcohol notes. Really impressive that it’s aging this well. I’m upping the score. (previously at 3.9)
The beer pours a beautiful mahogany-auburn-chestnut, with beige-golden overtones and a small amount of creamy, beige head that is moderately well-retained, but more importanly, actually provides lacing. I almost can’t believe my eyes! An unfiltered beer from Harpoon! Awesome, I’m glad the bros were able to talk the Harpoon people in to not filtering this, which has, in my mind, ruined most of Harpoon’s other beers. Anyways, the beer has a transluscent shine to it, layered colors swirl about. It’s nice to see a dark wheat wine, who says they all have to be golden-yellow? Aroma has notes of peanut brittle, dry English toffee, milk chocolate and light, dry roast. The wheat may add a light vanilla-cream hint to the aroma as well. Flavor begins with a playful caramel malt sweetness that is lightly chewy in texture. Delicious chocolate notes are not bitter, nor are they overdone. Wheat provides smoothness to the mouthfeel, giving it an almost creamy texture. The finish really shines with chocolate, light roast and just an ever so slight wheat sourness/acidity. The acidity in most wheat wines turns me off to the style, but this is only faint and very tolerable. Add to that the fact that you can’t find even a hint of the 11.5 abv and you’ve got a very well-done, classy wheat wine. Not an over-the-top hops and syrupy malt monster. Body, you might say, is a little bit light, making it that much more drinkable, but I would like a touch more malt thickness. Hops add little bits of spiciness, no high alpha acids, some floral bitterness, but mainly just a light spicy flavor in the background. Mouthfeel is smooth and almost silky/creamy, with a touch of thinning on the end as it warms. Carbonation is very low. Great stuff and I am eager to try it again and rerate it, though I’m quite confident in this rating. The brewers at Harpoon could learn a thing or too from these guys!
Rerate
On draught at Redbones, 12/5/06
I’ve been following this beer pretty closely since its release (actually, even before its release), as kegs have been released here and there ever since its initial release. This glass that I had at Redbones recently was just shockingly good. Showing absolutely no signs of aging, (negative signs that is) but just wonderfully cohesive now and much more mellow. The chocolate, wheat nuttiness, light vanilla and chew toffee work together so well now and there is still a light sour/tart wheat twang on the finish, slightly acidic/bready, and very interesting. Texture is incredibly soft and the low carbonation feels great on the palate. No harsh alcohol notes. Really impressive that it’s aging this well. I’m upping the score. (previously at 3.9)
Tried
from Bottle
on 17 Jun 2005
at 09:45
6.9/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
This was a bottle brought to a party by a friend’s friend - thanks Dan! Sampled from a 750 ml bottle this beer poured a dark chestnut color with a medium sized tan head. The aroma is sour malt and a bit of nut. The flavor is what one expects from a maibock - sour malt and nut. This beer is hoppier than I usually find from this style which was a welcome change. The finish is sour malts. A nice change of pace.
Tried
from Bottle
on 28 May 2005
at 22:11
6.2/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6
Unfortunately Harpoon seems like one of those brewers that just doesn’t live up to their potential. The beers are consistent and well-made but the flavor just is not there on a lot of them. Seems to me they could easily be a GLBC or Bell’s caliber brewer if they would just decide they wanted all their beers to be less boring. Anyway this Killian’s-ish beer is clear amber with a thin ivory-colored head and minimal lacing. Caramel and malt aroma. Medium-bodied and dry with malt, caramel and light nut flavor. The finish is short and hoppy. Smooth and easy to drink, but again there should be more to this.
Tried
on 27 May 2005
at 10:11
5.4/10
—
Appearance 4
Aroma 5
Flavor 5
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
On tap at Barley’s Ale House #1. The Kölsch is not an overly complex style but I enjoy it for being straightforward and refreshing. Unfortunately Harpoon’s version is overly simple. Clear golden color with a thin white head and minimal lacing. Light hops and lemon aroma. Light-bodied with a minimal hops flavor, along with some grass and citrus. The finish is clean and a little tart, but short. This beer is not memorable despite being pretty easy to drink.
Tried
from Draft
on 23 May 2005
at 11:08
4.9/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 5
Flavor 5
Texture 4
Overall 4.5
2005 100 barrel series bottle. Pour reveals a medium auburn colored beer, with light orange/copper tinges, very clear and filtered as all Harpoons are. Off-white head is initially large, but settles to a well-retained cover of foam. Aroma smells of bits of caramel and toffee, and lots of fruitiness. We’re talking ale yeast fruitiness, which is strange. Hints of floral hops in the aroma as well. Dry nuttiness, almost a cardboard sort of thing, dulls the aroma though, and even from a snifter, I have to strain to pull much aroma from it. Flavor is even worse than the aroma, IMHO. Right away you are greeted by a dull, almost fully attenuated body, with no substantial malt sweetness, just some light hops flavor, soily, earthy notes, hints of dry fruits (peaches, raspberries, apricots) and then a mineral water and cardboard finish. Retronasal floral hops are pleasant, but ultimately can not make up for a beer that should have some sweet, thick malt. Too much carbonation, which is forced and disruptive. Bit of acidity, husky grains, dry to the extreme for the style. I poured most of mine out.
Tried
from Bottle
on 11 May 2005
at 09:37
6/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6
(Bottle 35,5 cl) Orangey golden with a moderate head. Hoppy and aromatic, but far from the bitterness and character found in other IPAs.
Tried
from Bottle
on 17 Mar 2005
at 11:20
6/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6
(Bottle 35,5 cl) "Hibernian" another word for "Irish" and in style this is a true Irish Red Ale - from Boston, the Irish capital of the US. Dark amber with a weak light brown head. Nutty smell and also nuts in the aroma with a touch of caramel and a nice, dry bitterness. Reminds me a lot of a typical British Bitter.
Tried
from Bottle
on 16 Mar 2005
at 13:41
3.9/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 4
Flavor 3
Texture 4
Overall 3.5
2005 bottle. Yikes, this stuff made the Harpoon IPA taste good (and that’s not a good thing). Weak, amber-orange color, more yellows than anything, with a quickly dissipating off-white head. Aroma of very mild fruity ale yeast, mineral water, very faint toasted malt in the background. Flavor begins dry, papery, bland and lightly astringent from the lack of malt. Dry, nutty flavor with toast, papery yeast and water. Would it have killed them to add some flavor to the beer? Yes, because then they couldnt sell this crap to the masses during St. Patricks day. Light body, little flavor. I’ve seen bad brewpubs make a better amber ale than this. Horrible forced carbonation and a watery, bland body will make the BMC drinker feel right at home. It’s official, I’m done buying Harpoon beers. P.S. Drainpour.
Tried
from Bottle
on 16 Mar 2005
at 09:58