Trader Joe's 2011 Vintage Ale - Trader Joe's Brewing Company

mikesgroove

South Carolina

4.15/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

very dark, almost a hazelnut color of brown, with a slightly reddish tint to it. Very hazy and cloudy and with a good amount of sediment running through it. A good two inch plus of head

alcohol presence here, but not in an overpowering or derogatory way, more of a subtle, just letting you know it was there. Lots of dark spices here. I could pick up even some dark fruits, plums and maybe even a bit of grape very nice warming feeling coming over as I took the first sip. Lots of mellowed yeast here. Some apples and plums, maybe a fig mixed in seemed to bring out the lighter notes. Meanwhile, underneath that was a deep caramel like flavor that blended in with a earthy or bready like back. Very complex and yet remarkably smooth.

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2011 18:59:14 | More by mikesgroove

ChainGangGuy

Georgia

4.1/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

750ml bottle - $4.99 at Trader Joe's in Roswell, Georgia.

Best Before: 07-06-2016.

Appearance: Pours out a near black body with a airy, lofty head stand, light khaki in color. Plenty of head from a little, light pour; good thing I'm using the Duvel glass here.

Smell: Mixed fruits spritzed with alcohol and mixed with a variety of raw sugars, then, a sniff of wafting ground cloves and orange peel followed by notes of burley tobacco, aniseed, and banana.

Taste: Toasted crusty dark bread dosed with dark brown sugar, dark candi sugars, a shot of cola (potentially with a doctorate degree), and a blend of finely-ground spices. Moderately sweet. Clove and redolent, bitterish citrus peel carrying over from the nose. Hints of star anise, spruce tips, allspice. More spicy and less fruity here in the taste, though the banana is making a good showing. Teeny tiny sliver of hops here simply blending into the spice tastes. Sweetish, spicy, well-carbonated finish.

Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied. Lively, effervescent carbonation -- there will be burps.

Overall: An agreeable brew from the simple, understated packaging to the taste to the price tag. Sadly, I've developed the habit of keeping the Vintage Ale in mind until it's actually released, then, only remembering when it's long gone. Not this year, thankfully!

Serving type: bottle

01-29-2012 19:31:51 | More by ChainGangGuy

brentk56

North Carolina

3.21/5  rDev -15.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

Appearance: Pours a very dark brown color with ruby highlights; an inch of tan does an adequate job of leaving a smattering of lace

Smell: Molasses, prune, charred black bread and cloves

Taste: Burnt brown sugar and prune flavors, up front, but there is an excess of clove and sour off-flavors, in the middle; the sourness dominates the finish, as well

Mouthfeel: Medium body with moderate carbonation

Overall: In order to make the price point, I suspect Unibroue makes some compromises with the ingredients, particularly the malts; this beer strikes me as not having the body or the robust complexity of even a mid-tier BSDA

Serving type: bottle

01-22-2013 23:12:03 | More by brentk56

UCLABrewN84

California

4.03/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Brewed by Unibroue.

Best before 7/6/16.

Pours a dark murky brown with a 2 inch foamy tan head that settles to a thin cap. Random streaks and chunks of lace form on the glass on the drink down. Smell is of dark malt, dark fruits, Christmas spices, banana, and the distinct Unibroue yeast aroma. Taste is of malt, dark fruits (raisins, plums), spices (clove especially), and yeast. There is a slight spice bitterness that lingers on the tongue after each sip. This beer has a higher level of carbonation with a very crisp and bubbly mouthfeel. A bit too much carbonation for the style in my opinion. Overall, this is a good BSDA and a fantastic deal for $4.99 for the 750 ml bottle. I enjoyed this year's recipe much more than the 2010 bottle I tried.

Serving type: bottle

12-28-2011 05:28:11 | More by UCLABrewN84

smcolw

Massachusetts

3.78/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Huge beige head which settles moderately, but in a lumpy fashion, leaving minor spots on the glass. The liquor is ruby, brown where bright light barely makes it through the center of the glass.

Strong earthy aroma with lots of corriander, star anise, cinnamon and all spice. Light alcohol nose.

Tastes very much like a Quad. Smooth (but spritzy) darker malt flavor upfront. The spices described above jump almost immediately. The swallow is brandy-like with some warming from the alcohol. The body is full but the carbonation is equally high, so it balances out.

Despite the Trader Joe's name, I would encourage others to try this. I imagine in a blind taste test this would test well against even its Belgian brethren.

Serving type: bottle

12-02-2011 23:40:05 | More by smcolw

Zorro

California

3.8/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Very dark brown colored beer that passes almost no light, medium sized tan colored head.

Smell is spicy with a strong coriander scent. Little bit of sweetness but not to much. This smells mostly of coriander and allspice berry.

Starts out semi dry and spicy in the mouth, coriander with dry spice drop candy flavor. Pleasant warming of the chest from the alcohol. Additional tastes of brown sugar, clove and mint. After a while I taste toffee candy. Not the best beer Unibroue makes, but it IS a Unibroue beer.

Mouthfeel is good.

Overall a tasty and very affordable beer. Not the best beer Unibroue makes, but Unibroue doesn't really make bad beer.

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2012 23:28:42 | More by Zorro

DoubleJ

California

3.93/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This could be a fun one. It's brewed by Unibroue, which is a good omen, and it's relatively cheap ($4.99 for a 750 ml). Enough with the anticipation, on to the beer:

...wha?....it's recording? oh....It features a dark buby brown color that's polished like marble, and thick forming, creamy color of beige that crumbles to a thin lace. I am weak to Unibroue yeast, and that yeast strain in evident in the aroma. Pleasing buttery pears, vague clove, spiced cinnamon apple, apple pie, "love pie". All this is making me hung...thirsty.

The yeast comes up again in the beer's taste. In this case, it's probably a good thing, because there doesn't seem to be much malt at work underneath. Whatever. Spices are at work, but in a controlled way. Pears, figs, and cinnnamon apples at play. It turns out to be a tasty one, despite "only" having a medium body and semi-bubbly carbonation.

This is a more than respectable beer to come with the Trader Joe's monikor, and one of the better values you'll find among strong Belgian styles.

Serving type: bottle

01-09-2012 06:49:54 | More by DoubleJ

kojevergas

California

3.83/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

750ml brown glass bottle with hood-and-wire cap over a cork served into a Weizen glass in low altitude Orange, California. Reviewed live. Expectations are high given what I've heard about this beer. I really hope it lives up to the hype. Acquired at Trader Joe's (obviously).

A: Pours a three finger head of fair cream, nice thickness, and great retention (especially for the high ABV). Colour is a solid nontransparent black. Generally appealing.

Sm: Lees, yeast, roast, and spice. Maybe raisins and plums; certainly dark fruit. Rich and inviting. A pretty strong aroma. Very pleasant and intricate.

T: Spice and yeast (or lees, if you prefer), with dark fruit esters - maybe plum and/or raisin. Really impressive. Very yeasty, but it isn't biscuity. It does add a lot of character to the body. It's nicely subtle, and I imagine the subtlety would only improve with age. Complex enough, and delightful to drink. Some light wine character towards the finish. Bravo. Rich and almost exquisite.

Mf: Smooth and wet. Not too thick or too thin. Suits the flavours nicely. Not over or under carbonated.

Dr: A bit difficult to drink just given the flavour boldness. There's nothing wrong with that. I'd love to try this aged. It's got a great subtle flavour to it that I really dig.

Serving type: bottle

01-15-2012 07:57:28 | More by kojevergas

Derek

British Columbia (Canada)

4.05/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: Reddy-brown-black with a light tan head, thin ring of retention, very little lace.

S: Peppery spice, a bit phenolic, dark fruit, jaggery.

T: Raisins, dates, figs, pepper, jaggery, candied mango, curacao orange rind, cola, good bitterness, slight alcohol warmth.

M: Well-attenuated, moderate body has a crisp finish.

O: Good overall brew, probably a bit better than what the score adds up to...

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2012 02:55:50 | More by Derek

mactrail

California

3.65/5  rDev -3.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Totally black in the snifter. Big foam-up at first pour but subsequent sloshes are fine. Fairly coarse head. The sudsy mouthfeel is the most pleasant part of the experience. Slight fruity touch of dried figs and old red wine. Surprisingly light bodied. It goes down easily, leaving only a faint burnt raisin toast flavor. Hops are pretty much undetectable. A little aroma of alcohol and something like grapes or jam.

Seems like a typical Unibroue offering. Some are great and some are like this, a hard to understand stew with some dark yeasty nonsense going on.

Serving type: bottle

12-07-2011 05:59:08 | More by mactrail

kylehay2004

Florida

4/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: single finger frothy head with decent retention and some lacing on a dark body with some light getting through.

S: mostly dark fruit, mostly red apple and plum, and clove.

T: dark fruit, mostly raisin, plum, cherry and fig. Nice breads, banana, spicey and zest note as well

M: moderate to high carbonation. medium bodied.

Overall: This is a very drinkable member of the genre. Not too sweet, complex and flavorful.

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2012 06:58:58 | More by kylehay2004

nickfl

Florida

4.45/5  rDev +17.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

A - Poured with a large, three finger head of light tan foam on top of a dark brown body with some amber highlights. The head settles slowly and it deposits average lace on the glass as it recedes.

S - Caramel, toffee, and Belgian yeast notes of coriander, cinnamon, banana, and clove.

T - Caramel, toffee and dark fruit up front with notes of plum, clove, and red apple. More toffee and raisins in the middle with a bit of cinnamon. The beer finishes with a nice combination of spicy and fruity yeast character that works nicely with the dark sugar of the malt.

M - Medium-thick body, high carbonation, and a very dry finish.

D - The yeast character is spot on for the style and the dark malt is full of complex, dark sugars that work perfectly with the fruity notes. Very drinkable with a dry finish that really hides the high alcohol content, this is a really nice Belgian beer, I would not have guessed it came from North America, let alone that it was brewed for a grocery store chain!

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2012 07:00:17 | More by nickfl

FosterJM

California

3.88/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

957th Review on BA
Bottle to Hangar 24 2nd Anny Glass
750 ML C/C

Best by:7/06/16
Purchased from Chino Hills, Trader Joe's

App- A great brown color with garnet edges and a bit of crimson in the center of the pour. A giant 2-1/2 finger head a medium khaki color that was fast receding but didnt leave a much in cling or lace. Very bubbly and craterous.

Smell- A nice strong aromatic to the style. A bit yeasty with a bit of cocoa powder which tends to smell like a soda. A good bit of spice behind it and a bit peppery.

Taste- A good version of a favorite style. I am glad I didnt listen to the girl when she said 2 weeks to come in. Ha!! This was uniquely Unibroue and their in house yeast. Everything has a good Saison/Triple yeasty flavoring. A good balance between the grain bill with the malts and a slighter less peppery note with some cocoa powder and a little bit of bittering Noble hops.

Mouth- A little bit too over carbonated this year. It was a tad bit high carbonated and a bit prickly. Missing that smoothness to the style. The body was nice and medium and a bit thin.

Drink- I have only been heavily into craft since Mid 08 and early 09. However, when you dont shop @ TJs till 2010 when they build one by your house, you miss out on some great beer. Never again for this great great beer.

Serving type: bottle

11-24-2011 05:41:50 | More by FosterJM

JoeyBeerBelly

New York

3.58/5  rDev -5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

750ml bottle served in a tulip glass.

L - dark brown with a creamy off-white head that hung around leaving trails of lacing.

S - yeast, dark fruit and spices.

T - sweet dark fruits and yeast finishing dry and slightly tart.

F - medium bodied with good carbonation and a smooth feel.

O - quite good for the price, I'll get a few more bottles of this one before it's all gone.

Serving type: bottle

12-26-2011 03:12:30 | More by JoeyBeerBelly

ngeunit1

California

4.16/5  rDev +9.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Dark black with a finger of frothy tan-khaki head. Fades very slowly.

S - Dark caramel malts, raisin, plums, and other dark fruits, Belgian yeast, clove, pepper, other spices, a touch of sourness, and a touch of booze.

T - Dark caramel malts with raisin, plum, dates, and other dark fruits, Belgian yeast, clove, pepper, and other spices, a bit of residual sugars, a touch of sourness, and a bit of booze.

M - Medium-full bodied with moderate carbonation. Smooth with a sweet and warming finish.

D - Nice BSDA. Good Belgian character and spices.

Serving type: bottle

02-24-2013 04:48:51 | More by ngeunit1

Overlord

California

1.75/5  rDev -53.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

May be showing initial signs of infection. Sadly, I have another bottle, so I'll see if that one is any better.

First thing to note is explosively crazy carbonation. Umm....should half a tulip glass result in an overflowing light tan head? Subsequent pours result in crazy amounts of fizz. Ruddy brown color.

Smells like rancid, spoiled raisins, a bit of buttery malt, and a zingy, intrusive yeast.

The taste is all over the place. Orange rum soaked raisins, a weird tangy malt aftertaste, and the belgian yeast has run amuck with medicinal bananas and an irritating herbal aftertaste.

I usually find this beer to a great value in beerdom. This year's version sucks.

Serving type: bottle

11-30-2011 19:25:15 | More by Overlord

LiquidAmber

Washington

4/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into an Ommegang flute. Pours a very dark red brown amber. Two finger light brown head dissipates quickly to a thin film and heavy ring around the glass that has good retention. Nice lacing. Aroma of dark fruit, Belgian yeast and spicing, light citrus. Great flavor of dark, light and dried fruit, assertive but well integrated spicing with cinnamon and clove dominant. Finishes somewhat dry with a sharp kick from the spices, hops and active carbonation. Medium bodied with slight creaminess supplemented by spicy carbonation. Not quite as intense as the Unibroue main line up, but very pleasant and enjoyable to drink. An incredible bargain for a decent Belgian strong dark at the price.

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2012 03:54:35 | More by LiquidAmber

sweemzander

Illinois

3.08/5  rDev -18.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

750mL corked and caged bottle poured into a tulip.

(A)- Pours a pitch black color. Some tan froth and lace.

(S)- Funky with some spicy(cardamon?) and floral bits. Earthy too.

(T)- Again, some earthy spice and floral bits. Maybe even some signs of Brett?

(M)- A good carbonation level. An interesting balance of funk, spice, and floral bits. Interesting, but a bit weird.

(D)- A funkier version for the style for sure, but fun and intriguing too, but a bit strange.

Serving type: bottle

12-18-2011 19:43:51 | More by sweemzander

garymuchow

Minnesota

4.03/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Desired this for several years and was finally able to come across some.
Great fresh spice aroma - with the spices not necessarily yeast related but the additional spices noted on the label. Nonetheless, a pleasing aroma. Some dark base malt in the back.
Nice visual. Full rich head. Dark body with reds hues on the edges. Soft lacing.
Good complexity to the taste. The spices are evident, but a little quieter than in the aroma. Firm tasty malt. Yeast is rather subdued for style. It's there, but it's not as prominent as I expected.
Body seems as it should. A little south of moderate, with ample carbonation.
For the price, this is a very solid beer. Worth it all the way. Doesn't meet the best version, but I'll seek out the version next year.

Serving type: bottle

02-04-2012 03:23:56 | More by garymuchow

scottfrie

California

4.03/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750ml bottle into NB snifter.

A: Pours a very very dark mahogany brown that barely shows red when held up to the light. The light tan head is billowing and very active, and a full 3.5 fingers of foam filled my glass despite a careful pour. After waiting a long while the head finally receded into a thick fluffy film that held great retention and left rings and streaks of clinging lacing down the glass.
S: Huge notes of spruce and pine forest, sweet candied fruits, fruit skins and fruit zest, followed by scents of sarsaparilla, juniper, coriander and other greens and spices. I get a hint of grape as well.
T: Sweet but not cloying fruits are more noticeable than the nose. The grapes, along with dried raisins and caramel, provide a strong backbone. The forest from the nose isn’t as green or potent in flavor, but the spices (and spicy yeast) come through very nicely, especially in the finish. The finish also contains flavors of cinnamon, nutmeg, and lightly bitter earthy and herbal tasting hops. The aftertaste is sweet with candied sugar and maybe just a hint of chocolate and dark bread.
M: Medium-full body, creamy and ample carbonation with a fluffy and fairly thick mouthfeel. The nearly double-digit alcohol is just barely noticeable.
O: I enjoyed this a lot. For the price, it’s hard to beat. This tastes like a holiday themed winter warmer mixed with a traditional Belgian Dark. Definitely worth an impulse buy while grocery shopping.

Serving type: bottle

12-19-2011 04:15:33 | More by scottfrie

cosmicevan

New York

4.3/5  rDev +13.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

after not really loving last year's and buying a case without trying one first (since i loved 2009 so much), i decided on a single bottle.

a - opened the corked and caged bottle and poured 2 unibroue tulips. looks rather promising with the deep purple with crimson highlights liquid capped by the classic unibroue yeasty head with chunky lacing.

s - hey...that's pretty spot on!!! great dark fruit and candied yeast. i forget how much i love unibroue beers. like a mix of candy flavors.

t - VERY nice. like a classic unibroue belgian strong dark, but on the sweeter and softer side. a big improvement from last year where i found the spicing to be a bit overwhelming (although i haven't had that one in almost a year and will probably pop one after this to see where it is at).

m - a bit thin lacking the creaminess that i typically expect from the style and the brewery. an easy drinker and cooling...the booze is pretty invisibile except some tingling in the mouth.

o - overall...hoorah! glad to see unibroue doing what they do best on this year's trader joe. think i best be nabbing a case of this whilst i still can. overall, a solid vintage and very much what i dig about unibroue's BSDAs, perhaps a bit on the sweet and softer side of trois pistoles (one of my alltime favs).

Serving type: bottle

12-12-2011 01:33:45 | More by cosmicevan

Bierguy5

Ohio

3.58/5  rDev -5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

750 ml bottle, 9% abv. Best before 7/6/16. Deep brown in color, with an airy tan head. Head retention is pretty nice. Ruby edges when held up to the light.

Slight roasted malt aroma combines with some darker fruit in the nose. A bit of a Belgian yeasty, spicy and earthy note. Not overly complex, but nice.

Darker malt, with a bit of a caramel feel, and just a slight roasty feel. Darker fruits, with some raisin and fig notes. Yeasty notes give an earthy feel at the end.

Medium body, but the ample carbonation gives a much lighter feel. Alcohol is very well hidden. Not very complex, but still tasty and a great value.

Serving type: bottle

03-15-2012 00:11:20 | More by Bierguy5

AgentMunky

Alabama

3.53/5  rDev -6.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 750mL bottles into a cervoise glass. Stamped G20112317Q. Best before 6 July 2016.

A: Corked very tightly with a Unibroue cork and cage. Head is off-white and fizzy. It churns and fades fast and completely. The beer itself is incredibly dark, almost black, but is actually barely translucent and blood-red in direct light.

S: Winey, musty, and spicy. Corriander and...clove? Bay leaf?

T: A very spicy, noticeably strong BSDA. Though the flavours are strong -- mostly darkish, fermented fruit liberally laced with the aforementioned spices -- they persist only a short time and leave very little notable aftertaste.

M: The mouthfeel is dry, spritzy, and, again, vageuly wine-like.

O: I feel that it's better than my rating indicates, but it's not a particularly strong showing for a BSDA. Perhaps, as the label indicates, it will benefit from aging. As is, it's overspiced, overlight, and underwhelming.

Serving type: bottle

01-15-2012 23:49:48 | More by AgentMunky

wedge

North Carolina

3.58/5  rDev -5.5%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Slight gusher. Pours damn near black in color. Opaque with a tall, rocky beige head that quickly fades to a wispy covering, then nothing. Deep fruit, spice, and Belgian yeast in the aroma. Apple, banana, and a touch of licorice. Big, creamy, spicy flavor...a large smack of Unibroue yeast and some brighter spices like coriander and clove. Sweet raisin and fig with perhaps some ginger and citrus, though it's faint. Medium-plus body with some lively, but not over the top carbonation. Pretty good stuff and an interesting move with the spices...

Serving type: bottle

02-19-2012 02:16:09 | More by wedge

Beaver13

Colorado

2.48/5  rDev -34.6%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5

750ml bottle, best before 07-06-2016. Pours brown with a pillowy light tan head that goes to a thin film that leaves a little lacing.

The aroma is sweet bready chocolate malts with some banana notes from the yeast and some perfumey floral notes. Some spices come out some as it warms (corriander, ginger?).

The flavor is similar - sweet sugary bready chocolate / caramel malts with earthy yeast and some banana. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with sharp spritzy carbonation.

Overall, an OK Belgian. Just didn't mesh well with me.

Serving type: bottle

02-15-2012 07:00:02 | More by Beaver13