About
In 2015, Ellison was created from humble beginnings.
At the time, Lansing didn’t have a brewery large enough to sell its beer outside of its own taproom. Now, there are breweries all over the map competing for marketshare.
Ellison has made it a mission to experiment. A continual refinement of beer, wine and spirits. Sure, we have the usual suspects, but we’re always looking for new flavors. With over 700 different locations across the great state of Michigan to purchase Ellison product, we’d like to say “people like our stuff”.
At the time, Lansing didn’t have a brewery large enough to sell its beer outside of its own taproom. Now, there are breweries all over the map competing for marketshare.
Ellison has made it a mission to experiment. A continual refinement of beer, wine and spirits. Sure, we have the usual suspects, but we’re always looking for new flavors. With over 700 different locations across the great state of Michigan to purchase Ellison product, we’d like to say “people like our stuff”.
8.5/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 9
Texture 8
Overall 9
16 ounce can into snifter, canned in 9/2018. Pours dense pitch black color with a 1 finger dense and fluffy dark tan head with awesome retention, that reduces to small cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Fantastic appearance. Aromas of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, dark roasted coffee, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, roasted nuts, biscuit, and dark bread/crust; with lighter notes of molasses, licorice, raisin, prune, fig, date, smoke, charcoal, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/roast/toast/oak earthiness. Minimal booze in the aromas as it warms. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/black/roast/bready malts, coffee, and bourbon barrel notes; with great strength. Taste of huge milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, dark roasted coffee, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, roasted nuts, biscuit, and dark bread/crust; with lighter notes of molasses, licorice, raisin, prune, fig, date, smoke, charcoal, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/roast/toast/oak earthiness. Mild herbal, grassy, roast, charred, coffee bitterness; and bourbon/oak tannin spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, dark roasted coffee, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, roasted nuts, biscuit, dark bread/crust, molasses, licorice, dark fruit, smoke, charcoal, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/roast/toast/oak earthiness on the finish for a while. Amazing complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/black/roast/bready malts, coffee, and bourbon barrel flavors; with a fantastic roasted bitter/sweet and bourbon/oak spiciness balance; with no cloying, acrid, astringent flavors after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering coffee/char bitterness, and bourbon/oak spiciness after the finish. Light-medium carbonation and very full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/velvety/bready, and lightly slick/sticky/chalky/tannic mouthfeel that is fantastic. Mild increasing warmth of 14.5%, with minimal lingering barrel booze after the finish. Overall this is an amazing barrel aged coffee imperial stout! All around incredible complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/black/roast/bready malts, coffee, and bourbon barrel flavors; dangerously smooth and easy to sip on for the huge ABV, with the mildly bitter/charred/tannic/drying finish. Amazingly soft feel. Not overly bitter/charred on malts, or boozy/tannic on barrels. Perfectly balanced super rich malts, fruity/nutty coffee complexity, and bourbon barrel presence/integration. Not overly sweet/heavy from lingering dryness. A highly amazing offering, and top tier style example as expected.
Tried
from Can
on 29 May 2019
at 03:03
7/10
Zoet fruit, zoet, koekjes. New England koekjesheid
Tried
from Can
on 24 May 2019
at 21:35
7.6/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Sample at The Draft Room during the Ellison Brewery Launch Event on 02/28/2019. Brown-black pour with a medium beige head that recedes gradually to a dense film. Small patches of lace. Aroma of coffee, malt and chocolate. Medium body with flavors of roasted coffee, chocolate malt and mild hops. The finish is charred malt and coffee. Pretty good overall.
Tried
from Draft
on 13 May 2019
at 20:29
6.8/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
Sample at The Draft Room during the Ellison Brewery Launch Event on 02/28/2019 (as Amber). The beer is a clear copper-amber color with a medium thin off-white head that diminishes gradually to a film. Small patches of lace. Malt, fruit and caramel aroma. Light to medium body with flavors of roasted malt, fruit, caramel and slight hops. The finish is sweet with a malty aftertaste. Decent overall.
Tried
from Draft
on 13 May 2019
at 20:26
7.1/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Sample at The Draft Room during the Ellison Brewery Launch Event on 02/28/2019. Hazy pale orange color with a medium thin off-white head that recedes gradually to an outer ring. Sticky strings of lace. Grassy hops, fruit and malt in the nose. Light-bodied with flavors of grassy hop, citrus and biscuit malt. The finish is mildly bitter with a grassy hops aftertaste. Decent overall.
Tried
from Draft
on 13 May 2019
at 20:22
7.4/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Sample at The Draft Room during the Ellison Brewery Launch Event on 02/28/2019. Hazy yellow-gold color with a medium white head that dissipates gradually to a film. Partial rings of lace. Floral hops, citrus and malt in the nose. Medium body with flavors of piney hops, zesty citrus and bready malt. The finish is moderately bitter with a floral hoppy aftertaste. Above average overall.
Tried
from Draft
on 13 May 2019
at 20:20
6.9/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
44 cl can @ olio
Aroma is odd with some English hops, hay and licorice. Flavour has toffee, English hops and some licorice. Not exactly my thing.
Aroma is odd with some English hops, hay and licorice. Flavour has toffee, English hops and some licorice. Not exactly my thing.
Tried
from Can
on 10 May 2019
at 16:35
6/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 5
Texture 6
Overall 6
Refrigerated 16 oz. aluminum can poured into a cup. Pale yellow with medium white head. Aroma is herbal hops, lower body, lower carbonation, and pretty good small-bubble lacing. Taste is herbal.
Tried
from Can
on 09 May 2019
at 23:31
6.8/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
Refrigerated 16 oz. aluminum can poured into a cup. Hazy golden with medium white head. Taste is citrus hops and herbal hops.
Tried
from Can
on 09 May 2019
at 23:27