Arrogant Bastard Ale - Stone Brewing Co.

Phelps

Arizona

3.9/5  rDev -7.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Enjoyed on tap at the Mellow Mushroom, poured into a shaker pint.

Dark burgundy in color, with notes of burnt orange. Shadowy enough to almost completely obscure my fingers behind the glass. A frothy half-finger light tan head becomes a medium, fluffy ring. 4

The nose: caramel, toasty bread and nuts, orange, pine and grapefruit peel. It’s big, abrasive and arrogant for sure, but a little rough for me. 3.5

The flavor mirrors the nose pretty well: toasty bread, caramel, peanuts. It’s lightly sweet, and balanced by intense grapefruity, piney, heavily bitter hops. A powerful flavor, but in good balance. Alcohol emerges as the beer warms.

Prickly medium carbonation, lightly fizzy, with a hefty, kind of syrupy medium body. Smooth on the tongue, but bit hot. Pretty bitter, yet it finishes crisp.

Arrogant Bastard is an egotistical, condescending asshole of a beer, but like they say: it’s hard to be humble when you know you’re great. Though it’s definitely rough around the edges, AB always seems to deliver the kick in the ass my tastebuds crave.

Serving type: on-tap

04-12-2011 20:22:39 | More by Phelps

gatornation

Minnesota

4.22/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

on tap into pint glass

A- pours a mostly clear amber color with chestnut hues..it has a small off white head and a fresh staying cap

S-is citrus.pine and sweet floral hops with malts and caramel mixed with some fruit and spice

T- is awesome good its a dose of citrus hops mixed with a dose of sweet fruit/caramel finished with an herbal,spice some tartness and malt tastes a touch of baked bread

M- crisp and clean well carbonated a little tart with a fantastic hop profile

O- this ale has alot in the bottle and i found it quite tasty and a pleasure to drink it was sweet,hoppy and bitter ...just great

Serving type: on-tap

04-03-2011 00:11:29 | More by gatornation

DrinkinBoy

Georgia

3.35/5  rDev -20.2%
look: 5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3

Stone Arrogant Bastard pours a very clear dark amber color. The head is light tan and has great retention.

Its aroma has notes of caramel, roasted nut, and toffee.

The taste starts off sweet, but the mid palate is quickly passed by into a overwhelming hop bitterness. There are no distinct flavors just a tongue thrashing of bitterness. This taste lingers on the palate for minutes.

The mouthfeel is heavy and the carbonation is nice and subtle which helps balacne out the tanins from the hops.

Like any extrememly hopped West Coast beer I can't imagine drinking more than one without tongue fatigue more like exhaustion.

Overall it is worth a try to get a feel for what this really cool brewery can do.

Serving type: on-tap

03-27-2011 04:08:56 | More by DrinkinBoy

oldsailor

Nevada

4.38/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

They got this right when they came up with the name. This is one strong ale. I'm with most people when saying this is a beer that you start with and go nowhere else or end the night with it. It will linger with you and mess with whatever other flavors you attempt to put with it. Smooth feel, caramel flavors and moderate carbonation make this an exceptional beer.

Serving type: on-tap

03-22-2011 01:10:20 | More by oldsailor

birderbeerer

Virginia

4.33/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Mahogany beer with off-white, two-finger head. Creamy with good lacing.

Big hop aroma--tropical fruits and flowers. And a huge, dry malt surge behind it. Thick rye toast and dehydrated caramel.

Huge, fruity hops lead the taste with definite herbal and floral tastes as well. Right behind the hops is a surge of malts. Sweet and dry. Great and complex range of flavors. Caramel, dense toast, toffee, oats, tea, and some milk chocolate.

This beer drinks bigger than it actually is. It's a great presentation of a unique beer. Not a black ipa, not a double ipa, more than a big brown ale or double amber. It's a lot of ingredients that are blended together well to create a stand alone flavor.

Serving type: on-tap

03-20-2011 15:21:10 | More by birderbeerer

CharlesRiver

Connecticut

4.4/5  rDev +4.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I honestly forgot how good this beer is.16oz draft in a tall pint at the Hyatt SFO. Dark reddish brown with a creamy off white head. Smell is sweet goodness. More malt than hops coming through for me.

Taste is so balanced. Huge malt upfront followed by tongue sucking bitterness. Grapefruit and citrus, followed up with earthy maltiness. I honestly pick up no heat at all.

This is such a distinctive beer. I really can't compare it to anything else and I like that. To me, this is a world class beer.

Serving type: on-tap

03-11-2011 01:33:21 | More by CharlesRiver

paulginva

Virginia

4.18/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

APPEARANCE: Poured from the tap into a pint glass, by the time it reached my table, this brew had a 1/2" light tan rocky head with excellent head lacing that dissipated slowly. Body color was a nice chocolate brown that was cloudy with particulates and had a moderate amount of carbonation.

AROMA: Aroma was a very nice moderate barley with a light floral and pine hops smell.

TASTE: The taste surprised me. The barley taste was quite light and the floral, grass and pine hops flavors were heavily prominent -- much more so than I would have suspected. Nonetheless, the brew was quite tasty.

MOUTHFEEL: This beer was medium bodied with a slick texture and moderate carbonation, a combination that was pleasing to the tongue. The initial flavor was moderately sweet and finished heavily bitter with a long finish. Body lacing was fair and dissipated slowly.

DRINKABILITY: This strong ale lived up to its name. It was certainly memorable, grabbing hold of the taste buds and not letting go. This isn't the kind of beer you select for a night of continuous drinking. It's a sipping beer, not an easy-drinking one. For a proper purpose, I'd definitely buy it again.

Serving type: on-tap

03-08-2011 00:02:49 | More by paulginva

HopHead84

California

3.8/5  rDev -9.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

2/27/2011

On tap at Stone.

A: Dark reddish brown with a creamy off white head. Good retention.

S: Caramel accompanies big pine resin notes. Grapefruit and earth are evident. Pretty aromatic.

T: Upper moderate bitterness with lots of resin and grapefruit. Caramel malt makes an effort to balance, but that tilts toward the aggressive hops. Alcohol is noticeable in the flavor.

M: Upper medium body with upper moderate carbonation. Mouthfeel is sticky and dry with some astringency.

Overall: An aggressive American Strong Ale. Nothing particularly special about it.

Serving type: on-tap

02-28-2011 01:25:05 | More by HopHead84

zrab11

Indiana

3.9/5  rDev -7.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A- Pours a Amber crimson red color with a nice head with good retention

S-Has a sweet but bitter maltiness smell

T-Has a strong bitter taste at the beginning but then blends well with some sweet carmel notes

M-Medium bodied with good carbontation

D-May be hard to drink for some but i love the bitter malty sweet flavors that come with this beer. Very good beer. Have a few of these and get pretty tipsy!

Serving type: on-tap

02-26-2011 18:01:02 | More by zrab11

ZenAgnostic

Texas

3.8/5  rDev -9.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Beautiful offwhite head that just doesn't come off the glass or dry out.

Smells moderately of herbs, smoke, and flora.

Has a strong taste of burnt tobacco and the blackest of coffee which is quickly masked by the aftertaste.

Extremely bitter aftertaste that stays with you for a long time. The after taste is harsh like eating a lime peel.

I don't think I could have more than one of these in a night unless I felt particularly aggressive.

Serving type: on-tap

02-26-2011 05:37:30 | More by ZenAgnostic

kwjd

Ontario (Canada)

4.18/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Had this on tap at Mr. Goodbar in Buffalo. I haven't had this for a while, so I had to order it when I saw it on tap. Pours an amber-brown colour with small off-white head. Some lacing down the glass, head remains the whole way. Smells of citrus hops with a huge caramel malt blast. Very sweet flavour, bitterness comes through more in the after taste. Smooth mouthfeel. This beer is a classic for a reason.

Serving type: on-tap

02-22-2011 19:51:02 | More by kwjd

IchabodcraneIpa

Illinois

4.65/5  rDev +10.7%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Had a few of these little devils served in mason jars at a bar in indiana.

The color of this demon of an ale was a nice clear dark brown with a head of heavy cream colored foam billowing up the top.

The smell of this ale was a strong smoky aroma with a nice malt and hop finish

The taste of this ale was like sipping a jar of pure power. A perfect blend of strong malty goodness with a powerful blast of smoky flavor. This flavor really can boast the arrogance of it's name.

The mouth feel of this one was pretty heavy as this guy tends to be on the darker side of beer.

The drinkability of this is pretty fantastic for as strong as it is, you can still taste the nice alcoholic power behind this one.

This is one of my favorites and to see it on tap was pure mind blowing goodness.

Serving type: on-tap

02-21-2011 07:49:05 | More by IchabodcraneIpa

leedorham

Washington

4.18/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A - Pours a darker copper color with a big fluffy head. Nice head retention. A layer stays throughout the glass. Good lacing.

S - Smells sticky & piney with a bit of acidity in the background. The aroma is a bit weaker than I expected but this was poured to the top in a pint glass so that may have contributed quite a bit.

T - The bitterness is definitely there. It grinds the tongue and the roof of my mouth a bit like a lemonhead or hot sauce. Full malt backbone and a nice herbal hop taste. Some acidity.

M - Slightly viscous with a medium-high level of carbonation. Full bodied. Very nice.

D - I could drink it all night. Great on tap. I'd like to have it in a better glass.

Serving type: on-tap

02-11-2011 23:01:58 | More by leedorham

dbmernin83

California

4.53/5  rDev +7.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

pours a deep mahagoney with a thick head and excellent lacing
hops and booze on the nose and a caramel malt.
toasted caramel sweet malt sets in, and finishes with a hop bite, and alcohol warmth. flavor combos change with every sip, sometimes hop front with malt-booze finish. sometimes the first description.
the booze makes itself known, but isnt overpowering. everything i would want out af a strong ale

Serving type: on-tap

02-10-2011 06:26:32 | More by dbmernin83

CheckmateBrew

Georgia

4.25/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Nice beer that has the right to be arrogant!

Nice 2 finger head on top of a pint glass, dark amber, great lacing.

Not an overwelming smell, but not bad either, light hops and malty goodness.

Taste was very good. Slightly bitter, malts and slight hops, and overall good beer.

This was a very drinkable beer, wish that I was not driving and could have had another.

Serving type: on-tap

02-06-2011 19:57:35 | More by CheckmateBrew

Satchboogie

New Hampshire

4.22/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at Strange Brew in Manchester, NH 2/2/11:

A: Pours a light amber, on the verge of yellow. Hazy and slightly opaque, good 1 1/2 inch white foamy heat. TONS of lacing.

S: Pine and floral hops with a hint of citrus (mainly lemon), pale malts slightly toasted, a little caramel.

T: Pine and floral hops hit the pallet first with a good helping of bitterness. There's a bit of citrus in there too. This is balanced with a fairly strong pale malt character that has a good bit of caramel sweetness. Fairly bitter and dry finish.

M: Carbonation is fairly high and crisp, body is solid but not very viscous. Fairly stick and just a little chewy.

D: They served this in a 20oz pint so I took a decent amount of time with it, but it's a very easy drinker at this point for me.

Serving type: on-tap

02-03-2011 07:02:55 | More by Satchboogie

bbb099

California

4.28/5  rDev +1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Served in a pint glass on tap at Burgers & Brew.

A - Clear, pretty dark amber color with a light brown head.

S - Great aroma of grassy hops and considerable amount of malt.

T - Flavor was very rich and complex. Fresh hop taste rushes in followed by the sweet caramel malt, nutty taste. Delectable dry finish that is a perfect combination of the bitter hops and sweet malt.

M - Medium bodied and high carbonation. Not too oily or creamy, goes down very smooth.

D - Tasty finish that makes you want more and no detectable alcohol presence. It tasted absolutely delicious with the burger I had.

Serving type: on-tap

01-26-2011 02:47:52 | More by bbb099

brewerburgundy

California

3.9/5  rDev -7.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

20oz pour in a large shaped pint-like glass at the Standard Pour, Standard (Sonora), CA.

This bastage is deep candy apple red, a little redwood and coppery. Its head is nice, it's a very nice pour by the nice young lady tending bar.

The nose isn't super harsh; hits of bitter citric hop, grapefruit rind, orange oil, and bitter alcohol. Yeah, it is a bit coarse.

The flavors are equally rough, with caramel dropped on top of bitter alcohol. Orange oil is bitterly fruity. Simple but tasty.

The mouthfeel is a little bit of a bastard, but the beer goes down smooth. It's expectedly rough with bitterness and alcohol but that's just part of it's character.

I still find the drinkability a bit dangerous, possibly more dangerous, on-tap. I do like this beer but it really isn't a favorite of mine. If I give the bottle another go I'll re-review because I think my score is a little high.

Serving type: on-tap

01-08-2011 22:38:31 | More by brewerburgundy

FosterJM

California

4.22/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

151st review on BA
On draft to pint

App- A nice dark amber/light brown with a 1 finger head that was a little darker than white.

Smell- Its a big scent to take it. Hits me each time I have drank this. Its very hoppy with citrus and some floral. Matly spiciness as well.

Taste- It's been a long time since I had one of these and it's a lot better than I remember. Its strong and it's meant to be as the flagship beer. Hoppy strong and a little spicy with some nice undertones.

Mouth-Medium bodied and medium carbed. Nice aftertaste.

Drink- It was very good especially paired with a green chili burger. Last beer of 2010. Thanks Stone for a great sendoff!

Serving type: on-tap

01-01-2011 19:34:35 | More by FosterJM

Enigmaticgesture

Oregon

4.43/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Experienced both on-tap and bottled. The difference between the two is staggering beyond what is normally expected.

Bottled: I would be tempted to rate the beer almost half a point lower in almost ever category, especially taste. The hazy bite of this potent beer seems to be somewhat lessened, but the bottled version retains the same strong malty smell and spiciness.

On-Tap: Wow. A solid and awesome beer that lives up to its name! The flavor is much stronger on the front end when consumed on-tap, the spices and malt practically kicking in the face of any bastard lucky enough to drink a sip. The hops wash away the spice toward the end, leaving just a trace of malt and hops on the tongue. Extremely drinkable!

Serving type: on-tap

12-30-2010 02:05:34 | More by Enigmaticgesture

GarthDanielson

New Hampshire

4.13/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured on-tap at the Stone Brewery. The beer is a beautiful red-copper color, with a thin ring of head. It has a malty smell with hops undertones. The flavor is initally a spicy-malt blast, followed by light bitter hops. The flavors are very strong and full, and very well balanced. There is a spicy, bitter aftertaste to the beer, with a hoppy finish. Great beer with heavy, non-apologetic flavors. Kudos!

Serving type: on-tap

12-29-2010 06:18:56 | More by GarthDanielson

mikeg67

New Jersey

4.68/5  rDev +11.4%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Tried it on-tap in a bar. The beer is deep mahogany in color. Aroma is all hops with a slight hint of malt. When you smell it you'll know what's going to hit you: hops, hops, hops. Earthy, woody hops assault the palate right away. Felt like my mouth is burning. Finish is long lasting and all hops. Wow, so good.

Serving type: on-tap

12-17-2010 22:28:12 | More by mikeg67

xnicknj

Pennsylvania

4.35/5  rDev +3.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

on tap at the spot in point.

Pours a deep red with cherry and burnt hues. A larger off-white head bubbles up, retains well, and leaves crazy amounts of lacing on the glass.

A nice bouquet of dark dried fruit, burnt sugar, hop bitterness, and a hint of alcohol in the nose.

Begins with a nice punch of hop bitterness, followed by a faint sweetness due to dark fruit. An earthy malt backbone supports the beer with brown sugar and caramel. Hints of cherry peek through. Another wave of bitter hops continue towards the end, along with a faint bite of alcohol.

Fuller medium body, a little dry and sticky feel, but very drinkable. The alcohol is masked really well, and you can easily have a couple of these before feeling satisfied. One of my favorite regularly available strong ales.

Serving type: on-tap

12-05-2010 05:36:04 | More by xnicknj

elton044

Florida

4.08/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

This particular brew itself proclaims "you're not worthy." We'll see.

This proclamation should be respected. I have taken the Stone Brewing Company tour in Escondido, California and I am his.

My Los Angeles-transplant brother, Nick, opened my eyes to this bit of hops enlightenment. While on the brewery tour at Stone, I had the dubious pleasure of being the "lucky" soul singled out to ingest the concentrated hop pellet that they utilize, in front of all my fellow tourmates no less. Arrogant Bastard? Yeah, something like that.

The hop notes of this take-no-prisoners creation permeate all aspects from smell to aftertaste. Is that a bad thing? No, I say!

The pour into my less than ideal pint glass was pleasantly dark and full of a rich, hoppy aroma with just a hint of roasted barley. The somewhat thin, light tannish to beige head spread its legs down the rim of my glass wholly without shame. Get the idea?

The smell? Hops. Fruit notes? No. Hops. Citrus notes? Not really. Hops. Caramel notes? Nope. Hops. Savvy? This offering will arrive at your nose with an unkempt gang of hops in tow and will NOT apologize for doing so... and I wouldn't have it ANY other way!

The mouth feel and taste are both quite aggressive, as advertised. The hoppy flavor will latch onto your palate and won't let go. Delightful. However, this is a product you must be in the mood for. What it lacks in sheer drinkability, it more than makes up for in "shock value" and intensity. I find that one to two 22 ounce bottles are more than enough to satiate my beer desires in a given session.

This level of brew could only benefit from barreling/aging. Thankfully, the good folks at Stone have concocted the Oaked Arrogant Bastard Ale varietal. I look forward to trying this particular creation soon...

Serving type: on-tap

11-28-2010 21:26:41 | More by elton044

bboelens

Florida

4.22/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Had on tap at world of beer, poured into a pint glass

So after reading all the rave reviews, I had to try this bastard they speak of, I went in feeling skeptical (things always turn out better that way) and wow were they right.

A- Red khaki color, medium visibility, nice head that stays long enough for you to ponder your worthiness.

S- Hops, hops, hops, light malt, very slight citrus smell, and hops

T- Similar to the smell, the hops hit you in the mouth in the best kind of way, slight citrus taste (grapefruit or orange perhaps) and a longing for another sip

M- Bubbly and tangy

D- One or two is going to be enough for a night, the high bitterness and medium to high ABV are enough to keep you humble. Overall a great beer though

Serving type: on-tap

11-19-2010 08:08:24 | More by bboelens