Stone 07.07.07 Vertical Epic Ale - Stone Brewing Co.

GClarkage

California

2.85/5  rDev -25.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

07/29/07- Purchased at Ledger's Liquors in Berkeley, CA.

Presentation- 22oz bottle, vintage 2007. Poured into my St. Bernardus chalice.

Appearance- A semi-flat looking deep orange color. Smaller than 1/4 inch head forms...a bit creamy looking...leaves minor lace spotting behind.

Smell- Got a bit too close to the beer because I couldn't smell jack. Well, I ended up with a nostril full of 070707. It wasn't very nice either. Smelled like sugary corn syrup. Smelled some orange-tangerine notes as it warmed, but mostly sugar.

Taste- Tasted pretty much like it smelled. Overwhelming corn syrup like flavor. Some corriander and cardamom and maybe some white pepper. Can see a touch of tripel and a touch of saison, but not ones that I would want to drink on a regualr basis.

Mouthfeel- Very low carbonation, almost flat. Yucky sugary coating of the tongue and mouth.

Drinkability- Damn, I hope this one really improves with the years. My least favorite of the VE's so far.

Serving type: bottle

07-30-2007 18:33:11 | More by GClarkage

yourefragile

District of Columbia

2.88/5  rDev -24.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

22 oz bottle.

Pours a hazed golden copper with a thin white head. Medicinal and soapy aroma with bubblegum malt and tobacco. Flavor is less offensive than the nose but still overly sweet. Caramel and bubblegum with citrus candy. Syrupy body with low carbonation. Difficult to drink.

Serving type: bottle

01-13-2013 19:08:17 | More by yourefragile

Bighuge

Minnesota

2.93/5  rDev -23.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

This beer is slightly hazed and throws out a deep golden hue. The head is thin and white. Lacing sporadic. Pretty nice aroma with belgian yeast apparent. Nice little sweet doughiness. The spices are not overbearing on the nose. I get a little cardamon. On the palate I get alcohol, sweetness and fruits. Tropical punch like. The alcohol is really evident and acts as the buzzkill in this context. Otherwise, I also get some lime notes, ginger and lemon. Too much stuff going on here and it doesn't mesh all that well....right now. Don't know about the future, but some age can't hurt this. I don't forsee cracking another for years....possibly till 2012. My least favorite of the Epics so far.

Serving type: bottle

07-10-2007 03:34:23 | More by Bighuge

Beaver13

Colorado

2.93/5  rDev -23.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

22 oz bottle. Pours a hazy golden-orange with a small white head that quickly disappears.

The aroma is wheaty malts with some spices and a little fruit and alcohol and some grassy hops.

The flavor is sweet malts, spices (clove, ginger) with some fruitiness. It has a grassy bitter finish. As it warms, the sweetness and ginger become a little cloying. The mouthfeel is medium and watery with low but sharp carbonation.

Overall, a decent Belgian, but not too striking to me. The blend of overwhelming flavors don't balance out really well.

Serving type: bottle

08-14-2007 06:27:38 | More by Beaver13

changeup45

Florida

2.93/5  rDev -23.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

I was happy to find this one on a road trip but it ended up being a bit of a disappointment. Pours a clear, bright orange color with a thin white head. Aroma is a bit stingy with oranges, perfume and an assortment of spices. The mouthfeel on this is very tart, tangy and slightly dry. The strongest flavors are oranges and coriander, with lots of spices (ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg), some lemon, and light fragrant hopping thrown in there. Interesting but the flavors just don't work for me. Halfway through the bomber I was sick of it. Not an awful beer but it is the worst Stone product I have had so far. Maybe I should have waited until "sometime after December 12th, 2012."

Serving type: bottle

08-30-2008 02:06:03 | More by changeup45

DefenCorps

Oregon

2.93/5  rDev -23.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Bottle that I bought at Norm's in Vienna right around the time this beer was released. Back in the day, there used to be a 2-bottle limit on this stuff. Wow.

The first pour is clear copper/amber with a dense, off-white head that falls off to a thin disk leaving some lacing. This does look nice. The nose, however, is worse for the wear (I think). Honey, some oxidized/stale sugary malt character, potent spice character, surprisingly so for the age of this beer, are present. Green cardamom, allspice and mace are most noticeable, as is some crystallized ginger. A little bubblegum as well. Decent.

The palate opens moderately sweet and with quite a bit of ginger. This is more of a Belgian braggot than a cross between a saison and a tripel IMO. Sweet, candied ginger, cardamom, sugar, syrup and honey are all present. Medicinal, I can't say I get much yeast character, at least from this clean pour. Alcohol appears on the finish, adding some burn. Medium-light in body, this beer is highly carbonated and this lends a scrubbing, carbonic acid character to the finish. Despite its heavy-handedness and lack of subtlety, this beer is moderately enjoyable, more so than my notes would lead you believe.

Serving type: bottle

01-07-2013 05:41:46 | More by DefenCorps

gregshead

California

2.95/5  rDev -22.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Enjoyed on 8/27/11. Thanks to SDsurfer217 for this beer from his cellar.

Lots of hiss comes out of this one despite it being released 3_ years ago. Impressive

A: Pours an orange color w/ 3 fingers of head. Very foamy, big bubbles dissipate slowly.

S: Apple spice smell. Ciderish smell. Pretty simple

T: Spices and apple. A liff bit of boozy/heat taste in there as well

M: Tons of carb. Little bit of heat/burn feel

O: A spiced apple beer. Very blah. Not horrible just really plain.

Serving type: bottle

09-04-2011 07:14:36 | More by gregshead

Mebuzzard

Colorado

2.98/5  rDev -21.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Golden and slight hazed body topped by a puffed up head. Nice billowing and some chunks formed in the center. Calmed down to a mild head...a bit slick looking.
Smell is a bit weak. Belgian yeast, corriander, some biscuit. Not very strong, but not bad.
Taste has hints of the Belgian yeast characteristics, slight spice and little buttery. Feels like a carbonated wit beer, I don't like it. Too tingly for me. Drinks fairly well. I'll get some more a plunk 'em down in storage.

Serving type: bottle

06-28-2007 18:44:49 | More by Mebuzzard

CortexBomb

Michigan

2.98/5  rDev -21.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2

Pour: dirty orange with a modest white head on top. The smell is heavy on the spice; ginger, coriander...definitely reminds me of a saison in certain ways as well.

Flavour, very sweet and spicy up front...the ginger and coriander from the nose is prominent, but it is complimented by a sweet maltiness, almost bordering on sugary. Light citrus is also present, not in a hoppy way though, just a touch of zing. A bit of banana as well. This becomes increasingly abrasive as it warms though, and the spices become absolutely overwhelming near room temperature. The score I'm giving it here is an average of the good score that it had when it was still cold, and the bad score that it had once it was warmer.

Mouthfeel, full but not over the top, plenty of carbonation, some tongue bitter. Drinkability, about as good as you could expect for such an intense spice flavour, which is to say, not that good. I would expect this to improve as it ages.

The bottom line: if you like highly spiced, Saison/Belgian Pale style ales, then this is worth checking out. I think age will improve the spice depth here and allow the individual flavours to come out more, but for the present, this beer is strongly on the abrasive side, particularly once it warms, and I would recommend letting it age for a bit (a year or two?) before cracking the bottle.

Serving type: bottle

09-30-2007 03:06:07 | More by CortexBomb

ShanePB

Pennsylvania

3/5  rDev -21.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Bottle poured at Canal St Brewphoria 9. Served into a 5 ounce sampler.

A: Hazy and cloudy golden orange with a nice sized fluffy, rocky white head. Touches of lacing are left on the glass, and the dissipation although rapid, leaves a moderate cap behind.

S: Peppermint, clove, ginger, cinnamon and very floral aromas. There's really no hop bitterness, the floral component is more pollen-like and peppery in a way. There's a lot going on here, a bit chaotic at times but it certainly will be an interesting beer to try.

T: Whoa, lots of sweet and sugary ginger and peppermint flavors up front. The palate is dominated by these, helped only by some yeast esters and Belgian spice mid-palate. The finish is sweet, cloying and sticky. Eh, this is okay, doesn't show any signs of oxidation but I couldn't drink more than a sample of this. Just a bit over the top with some really weird flavors.

M: Creamy, medium-bodied with light touches of bubbles on the tongue. Again, somewhat sticky in the finish but not a bad feel by any means.

It wasn't necessarily a gross beer but it's nothing I'd want again nor more than a few ounces of. The flavor profile went on a tangent and never came back. Sweet, gingery and minty, kind of odd but I'm glad I was able to sample this one.

Serving type: bottle

11-13-2011 17:00:12 | More by ShanePB

srandycarter

California

3.03/5  rDev -20.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A - Pretty copper, somewhat murky, tonds of thick near white head. Lots of cling lace.

S - Spicy. Belgian yeast and spice are about all I get.

T - Like when you use too much salt, there is no way home. Too much spice in this beer. Overpowering.

M - See taste, balance can't be achieved for me on this one.

D - See Taste and Mouthfeel, and obviously, not sessionable for me.

Serving type: bottle

09-06-2010 03:16:03 | More by srandycarter

charlzm

California

3.03/5  rDev -20.5%
look: 2.75 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3

Consumed on January 20th, 2013 at a private Vertical Epic tasting.

Beer pours a cloudy, medium golden-yellow. No head or carbonation evident in glass.

Aroma is sweet grapefruit.

Flavor is a bit sweet and cidery with bitter citrus peel and a slightly powdery, sightly floral yeast note.

Mouthfeel is a little thick and could use some carbonation.

Overall, this was one of the more drinkable VE beers we shared.

Serving type: bottle

01-21-2013 19:30:56 | More by charlzm

jakon

Oregon

3.05/5  rDev -19.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

22oz bottle purchased for 5.99 at Cedar Hills New Seasons. I got one bottle to drink now, and one to lay down for 5 and a half years.

Pours golden amber with a mediocre white head that dissipates quickly. The aroma is yeasty and sweet. I can't pick up the citrus, but there are some spices working together to form a smell that doesn't really have me excited. The taste is a bit better, but there is something I'm not liking here. I'm not really getting the ginger or citrus. Mostly coriander, sweet malts, and hot alcohol. I'll do a more in-depth review when I drink this on it's intended date. I'm assuming it will be much better.

Serving type: bottle

06-27-2007 23:37:33 | More by jakon

Onibubba

Kentucky

3.05/5  rDev -19.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Pours a clear orange amber with a slight head. Some lacing and a gentle swirl brings this back up. Smells fruity, yeasty, and a bit...off. Taste is more sweetness, big alcohol punch and something a bit...off. Can't put my finger on it. Just a predominant taste to the beer that I cannot identify but I know I don't like. Some spice or other. And, bubblegum. Pink bubblegum. I hate it and its in there. Not as bad a La Fine Du Monde, but there all the same. Is that a characteristic of Belgian Strong Ales?

Drinks high on the tongue. Alcohol is not very well hidden either. This is a real sipper for me, and not one I will be coming back to either. It may just be that the style does not agree with me.

Serving type: bottle

08-18-2007 19:35:55 | More by Onibubba

edskirk3

Pennsylvania

3.08/5  rDev -19.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

My first taste of the Vertical Epic series. I actually had a sample of it at Belgium Comes To Cooperstown before buying this 22oz bomber last week.

The fine print on the bottle suggests I should age this until 2012. I seriously lack that kind of patience so I'm opening it now at an age of 3 weeks.

Vessel of choice: Orval goblet.

Pours hazy orange-gold. Not much head to speak of, except after the pour itself. The head sticks to the side of the glass in a thin ring when all is said and done. Slight viscosity. There's an earthy/musty aroma wafting from the glass. Saison yeast? I've used it in homebrewing and it smells very similar. Also present is orange peel (coriander).

And now to taste. First impression is sourdough bread. Very yeasty. There is then some slight tartness of citrus laced with faint spiciness from either ginger, cardamom or even peppercorn. Doughiness and spice linger a while on the tongue. Warming from alcohol is barely noticeable. Very oily mouthfeel.

This is indeed a young beer which cellaring could only help. Honestly, I think it tastes good as is but the oily mouthfeel is kind of a turn-off. I imagine the flavor profile coming together a lot better with some time on the shelf.

Serving type: bottle

08-01-2007 01:47:24 | More by edskirk3

bruachan

Rhode Island

3.08/5  rDev -19.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

an effervescent golden amber keeps a thick head afloat. as the foam subsides it applies some good lacing to the glass. the suds are pure white

the aroma is simple. that's not necessarily bad. soft hops allow a glint of sweetness to shine through. some heat

the flavor is a little unmotivating, however. reminds me of mad elf. forced, artificially spiced to emulate a belgian yeast. it's not bad; a little sweet, though

in the end not very endearing. i hope the money i'm paying to refrigerate another bottle of this is worth the final result

Serving type: bottle

09-03-2007 05:31:42 | More by bruachan

sweemzander

Illinois

3.08/5  rDev -19.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3

22oz. bottle poured into a taster glass. Thanks to Chris for sharing!

(A)- Pours a cloudy orange color with plenty of sediment floaters. Some white froth formed but dissipated quickly.

(S)- A zesty spice up front. The coriander and cardamon are obvious with bits of a grassy lemon and orange zest.

(T)- A zesty spicy orange and a clove/ginger kick. A yeasty profile overall just with an extra citrus and spice punch to it.

(M)- The carbonation level has held up nicely with still a crispness to it. The spices definitely liven things up. Does get a touch bitter for me as it warmed.

(O)- I like the play of spicy esters with the citrus. Perhaps the better of the "lighter" vertical epics at this point, but debatable.

Serving type: bottle

03-12-2013 16:09:48 | More by sweemzander

gmcfarre

Colorado

3.1/5  rDev -18.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

22 oz bomber poured into snifter
Decanted at approx. 52 degrees

A - Pours a clear copper color with an admirable 3/4 inch off white head. Lacing is moderate, but pretty much only when tipped.

S - Clearly the brewers were not lying when they listed the spices on the label - ginger and cardamom are strongly apparent here, with the three peels (grapefruit, lemon and orange) forming a blend of citrus zest. Ginger is the strongest scent here, which is unfortunate for me because its one of the few flavors I don't enjoy.

T - Really similar to the scent. Ginger and cardamom out front with a bit of citrus. Slight malt sweetness and not much hop activity to detect. It's almost like the spices and citrus combine to give this a slight pumpkin flavor, resulting in something very interesting but not great.

M - Smooth with low carbonation and a light/medium body. Finish is chewy and slightly sticky with little dryness.

D - Not my favorite stone brew right now, but I have couple that will be aging for a couple of years (till 2012?!) so we'll see what happens. Hopefully the spices will calm down and let the malt and hops shine through.

Serving type: bottle

10-04-2007 02:04:01 | More by gmcfarre

SMADMS

Massachusetts

3.1/5  rDev -18.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

poured from a 22oz bottle

no chance this is waiting til 12/12/2012 as botle recommends

A-- very nice apricot color with fine bubbly 2 finger head
S-- wonderful fruity tones, flowers, slight spice
T-- follows the nose, fruit (pears) and the spice are there but the zest and peels are lost in the body. nice earthiness
M-- wonderfully clean and light
D-- very nice BSA well balanced flavors (lots of them)

this is my first of the veticals but with only 11 days to go looking forwards to 08/08/08

Serving type: bottle

07-28-2008 13:34:39 | More by SMADMS

sinstaineddemon

Connecticut

3.13/5  rDev -17.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A - this installment of the vertical epic series pours a light orange/brownish color with a thin cream colored head with plenty of carbonation to keep it alive

S - saison style spices and citrus peel dominate the nose with a yeasty background, the bottle says its a blend of a saison and a belgian, so far so good

T - more bitter and dry than i expected, almost a champagne like flavor like grapeskins, citrus is present but again more of a bitter citrus like the peels again, some cloying background spices especially cloves

M&D - dry mouthfeel, again like that of champagne, but not hard to drink, perhaps this could use to age more as is suggested

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2007 16:59:03 | More by sinstaineddemon

warmstorage

Georgia

3.15/5  rDev -17.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

22 ounce bomber, purchased 7/5/07 at Metropolitan Market in West Seattle for $5.99. Poured into goblet at cool cellar temp (probably ~50*F.)

Visual: bright, clear, deep orange. Creamy dense white head, light, dense lace.

Aroma: bright Belgian yeast, phenolics, hints of clove, little else.

Taste: spicy Belgian yeast, and tons of spices. I'd guess at coriander, clove, nutmeg, maybe a little cinnamon. Spices overwhelm everything else, including the Belgian esters and phenolics, which are basically the only other thing I get out of this. Just enough hop body to carry it through, and little else.

Mouth: sweet and medium thick, limited alcohol burn, certainly the 8.4% listed on the bottle is not evident.

Eh. Like many of Stone's beers, I really think this one is really quite overrated, due to beer geeks' (which I consider myself one) almost culti-like devotion to all things Stone. It's good, drinkable beer, but is it all that? No. Do I expect it to improve? Yes. Do I expect it to improve to the point of being all that? No.

Basically, it's a standard, overspiced, underwhelming Belgian strong ale, and not really distinguishable from hundreds of beers available in any decent supermarket in Belgium, or dozens available in any BevMo for that matter.

Serving type: bottle

07-06-2007 21:55:18 | More by warmstorage

BadBadger

New York

3.15/5  rDev -17.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

This Belgian Ale pours a copper to amber color, frorm the bottle and into the glass. The head was minimal, even with a vigorous pour. The smell is faint, not really indicative of anything. The taste is bland and nonpleasing, being overwhelmed by a sticky sweetness. There is a bitter, metallic, taste at the end of the sweet. This is not really a pleasurable offering, by Stone's usually standards.

Serving type: bottle

10-20-2007 23:55:24 | More by BadBadger

BeerAdvocate

Massachusetts

3.18/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Beer review from BA Mag Sep 2007.

Like past VE releases, this one is another strong Belgian-style ale; but this year's twist is that it's a Saison/Tripel hybrid, brewed with four malts, Glacier and Crystal hops, and spiced with ginger, cardamom, grapefruit peel, lemon peel and orange peel.

Deep golden, with rich, bright amber hues, topped with a healthy-looking creamy white foam head that laces and sticks well. Smells like a fruit cup, with a powdery, slightly metallic background note, soft floral bouquet and some distinct cardamom. Creamy on the palate, smooth and medium-bodied, rounded, but a bit plain due to a thin carbonation edge. Up front there's a nice ginger zing and a smack of citrus. Kind of sweet, with some toasty and bready malt notes, a hint of caramel and a light fruity ester that sits on a somewhat tamed cardamom base. Some gummy notes in the middle. Spicy, peppery alcohol bite and warmth. Finish is really dry with a bready and earthy linger.

A most interesting combination of two very distinct styles--but not the strongest out of the series. Though the cardamom was probably used gingerly (sorry about that), it just doesn't work for us--cardamom is pretty damn aggressive. Removing it and allowing the nuances from the Belgian yeast to shine would have worked better; which, in turn, would have given the ginger and citrus more of a presence. It's also lacking the light-bodied effervescence and dryness found with both styles. Aging could prove beneficial.

Serving type: bottle

07-07-2010 00:18:21 | More by BeerAdvocate

sfoley333

Brazil

3.2/5  rDev -16%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Poured from a 22oz bottle into a Duvel Snifter.
The color is a wonderful golden orange with a nice lacy head that retains for a few minutes. The citrus hoppy aroma is mixed with a hint of spice but followed by strong presence of alcohol ( even though some stone beers have a higher alcohol content this one is more apparent). Taste at first overpowering citrus peel esters, with a warm alcohol aftertaste. Very bitter but not because of the hop flavor, needs more malt and hop flavor to support the flavored bitter effect of the oils of the citrus peel. Dont get me wrong this beer is meant to age, and out of all of the vertical epics I believe this one will benefit the most and might be mind blowing in 2012.

Serving type: bottle

09-11-2007 08:26:00 | More by sfoley333

domtronzero

California

3.2/5  rDev -16%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Pours a nice copper color with an effervescent appearance and a fizzy white head. Some lacing left. Aroma is very Belgian-ish. Some fruity and malty smells are coming thru. Taste is bold, but too many flavors are running through my mouth. Sweet maltiness, with the typical Belgian banana spice flavor. Hops are slightly noticeable as a grassy presence. Not light and fizzy on the mouth like I thought it would be. The label indicates that the inpiration is from Saisons and Golden Trippels. I think it was a decent beer overall, especially for an American interpretation of a Belgian beer. But I still prefer my Saison DuPont.

Serving type: bottle

09-22-2007 00:44:15 | More by domtronzero