Surly Brewing Company

Regional Brewery in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States 🇺🇸
Associated Venue: Surly Brewing Company

Established in 2006

Contact
520 Malcolm Ave SE, Minneapolis, MN, 55414, United States
Description
Great Beer Above All Else

Surly: The frustration we felt when we couldn't find a good beer, much less a great one, in Minnesota. So we made some.

Great beer is all that really matters. Well, that and pushing your limits a bit, looking out for your people, taking pride in where you’re from, and having as much damn fun as you can while doing it.

Brewed Aggressively in Minnesota

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8/10 Appearance 8 Aroma 8 Flavor 8 Texture 6 Overall 9
Bottle 750ml.Clear dark red brown colour with a average to large, frothy, good lacing, mostly to fully lasting, beige head. Aroma is moderate to heavy malty, roasted, caramel, chocolate, smoke, light wood. Flavour is moderate to heavy sweet and bitter with a average duration, ash, caramel, chocolate, wood. Body is medium, texture is oily, carbonation is soft. [20111008]
Tried from Bottle on 15 Oct 2011 at 10:55

8.4/10 Appearance 8 Aroma 8 Flavor 8 Texture 10 Overall 8.5
Bottle @ home, courtesy of bnielsen13. Thanks Brad! Dark maroon brown appearance with a small brown head. Tart, bretty, dark cherry-raspberry-blackberry, mildly funky, fairly tame but nice aroma. Tangy, moderately sour, tart cherry-berry, moderately funky, red wine, almost juice-like, tasty flavor. Somewhat sour, berry, tangy, dry, mild vinous finish. Nice, easy drinking sour.
Tried from Bottle on 11 Oct 2011 at 22:13

7/10 Appearance 8 Aroma 8 Flavor 7 Texture 6 Overall 6
Bomber. Deep brown body with a light brown head. Smoky aroma with notes of roast, caramel, wood, chocolate. The flavor is moderately sweet and lightly bitter. It finishes lightly to moderately sweet and lightly to moderately bitter. Medium body, velvety texture and moderate carbonation. Char and burnt wood taste in the finish with a hint of orange and cherry. Smoke, chocolate and roast tastes turn to sherry as the alcohol and oxidation hit the back of the tongue. A lot going on in this beer, but not all are pleasing. Thanks wnoble.
Tried on 11 Oct 2011 at 17:45

7.6/10 Appearance 8 Aroma 7 Flavor 8 Texture 8 Overall 7.5
Can @ home, courtesy of bnielsen13. Thanks Brad! Clear, golden appearance with a fluffy, cream colored head. Grassy hoppy, slightly spicy, pale malty, straw aroma. Crisp yet sweet, pale malty, hay, straw, bready, grassy hoppy flavor. Incredibly smooth easy drinking session beer. I’d love to have a maß of this beer!
Tried from Can on 10 Oct 2011 at 23:26

8.3/10 Appearance 8 Aroma 9 Flavor 9 Texture 8 Overall 7
Can courtesy of GT2, thanks! Dark chestnut color, medium off white head that settles quickly. Aroma of grapefruit, grass. Taste starts with lots of malt, then has pine, grass, citrus. Nice.
Tried from Can on 01 Oct 2011 at 16:57

8.8/10 Appearance 10 Aroma 8 Flavor 9 Texture 8 Overall 9
750 ml bottle into snifter, bottled on 9/25/2019. Pours dense pitch black color with a 1-2 finger dense and rocky tan head with amazing retention, that reduces to a large cap that lasts. Thick foamy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Amazing appearance. Aromas of big dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, brown sugar, molasses, toffee, raisin, prune, cherry, fig, date, apricot, orange, grapefruit, citrus peel/rind, wood, peppercorn, pine, roasted nuts, toasted biscuit, and dark bread/crust; with lighter notes of licorice, smoke, charcoal, leather, tobacco, herbal, floral, grass, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness. Mild increasing booze as it warms, but not overwhelming. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/black/roast/bready malts, citrus/earthy hops, and fruity yeast notes; with big strength. Taste of huge dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, brown sugar, molasses, toffee, raisin, prune, cherry, fig, date, apricot, orange, grapefruit, citrus peel/rind, wood, peppercorn, pine, roasted nuts, toasted biscuit, and dark bread/crust; with lighter notes of licorice, smoke, charcoal, leather, tobacco, herbal, floral, grass, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness. Light-moderate pine, citrus peel/rind, herbal, floral, woody, grassy, peppery, roast, charred bitterness on the finish. Lingering notes of dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, brown sugar, molasses, toffee, raisin, prune, cherry, fig, date, apricot, orange, grapefruit, citrus peel/rind, wood, peppercorn, pine, roasted nuts, toasted biscuit, dark bread/crust, licorice, smoke, charcoal, leather, tobacco, herbal, floral, grass, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Amazing complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/black/roast/bready malts, citrus/earthy hops, and fruity yeast flavors; with an awesome hop/char bitter/sweet balance; and no minimal acrid/astringent flavors after the finish. Medium carbonation and fairly full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/velvety/bready, and fairly sticky/chalky/resinous/rindy balanced mouthfeel that is great. Mild increasing warmth of 12% after the finish. Overall this is an amazing Russian imperial stout. All around amazing complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/black/roast/bready malts, citrus/earthy hops, and fruity yeast flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on for the huge ABV with the modestly bitter/charred/resinous/drying finish. Nicely soft, and not overly bitter/charred. Definitely needs a bit of age for the freshness. Perfectly balanced between super rich dark/black/roasted malts, citrus/earthy hops, and fruity yeast. Mild residual sweetness with lingering hop/char bitter dryness. A highly enjoyable offering, and amazing spot on style example as expected. Reminds me of Old Raspy a lot on the fresh hop intensity.
Tried from Bottle on 24 Sep 2011 at 17:48

8/10
Tried on 19 Sep 2011 at 18:39

2/10
Tried on 17 Sep 2011 at 19:45

7.1/10 Appearance 6 Aroma 7 Flavor 8 Texture 6 Overall 7.5
750 ml bottle shared by Dansting, Dan has been holding on to it for a little while to share with me, I highly appreciate it. Its about 3.5 years old. Its rare to come across a beer with cranberry that isn’t a cheap as wheat. Pours black with no head. Aroma has a weird fruitiness, apparently cranberries but I wouldn’t have guessed. Its a very strong, fumy, and bitter smelling stout. Flavor is bitter on the black patent malts I would say. Flavor just comes off as a strong stout and there is an non-distinct berriness, I would not call it cranberry. I wonder how they crushed the cranberries, may have made a big difference.
Tried from Bottle on 17 Sep 2011 at 13:53

7.4/10 Appearance 6 Aroma 8 Flavor 8 Texture 6 Overall 7.5
Shared by Matt, thank you very much. The beer is really strong smelling. Its fumy and sweet, has some light soy sauce. It is very sweet and has lots of coffee. Its a bit astringent. I can handle the light soy sauce and light astringency in the grandiosity of the beer. Its full stuff and yet drinkable with just a few small (doable) flaws.
Tried from Can on 17 Sep 2011 at 13:11