Tannen Bomb - Golden Valley Brewery and Pub

ccrida

Oregon

3.9/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle poured into my large St. Feuillien goblet, TB is a clear garnet with an off-white head that settles to a thick skim and leaves decent lace.

Smell is sweet grains, caramel, maple sugar, pine resin hops, a bit phenolic.

Taste is pretty strong on the caramel, with some toffee and vanilla, caramelized sugars

Mouthfeel is sharp and creamy, with sticky malt and a spicy, bitter finish.

Drinkability is pretty good, a nice full flavored winter warmer that satisfies without beating up the palate. The well hidden ABV makes it a good value and a sure-fire way to spread the yule tide cheer!

Serving type: bottle

12-02-2008 00:12:48 | More by ccrida

uturn

Florida

3.9/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12oz capped bomber poured into a Stone IPA glass.

A: This beer poured a deep amber with a finger and a half tan head which thinned quickly leaving almost no lacing in the glass.

S: The nose was sweet with malt and caramel and a hint of spicy hops.

T: The taste was sweet with caramel and malt notes and finished with some hop bitterness.

M: The mouthfeel was of a medium body with some sharpness in the feel at the end

D: The drinkability was good as it had a mildly pleasant alcohol warmth which makes this a very good winter warmer.

This beer really improved as it warmed in the glass.

Serving type: bottle

10-02-2010 22:42:23 | More by uturn

Jgcarrick

Oregon

3.9/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A
Thin head off tap yielded minimal, buy solid lacing. Caramel hazy orange in color.

S
Complex toasty malts and some fruity hop nose

T tastes like it smells sweet front end, toasty offer caramel and a bitter obviously chinook induced finish. I noted a alight
Astringent alcohol burn that I did not like.

M

Okay, a little thinner than it should be. Smooth and light on palate, bit letting it's "winter warmer" label influence my review. It's bit hefty in the mouth.

D
Meh. Decent beer, but overall small bang for the
Buck. Alcohol comes through in the taste
Solid beer I may try again but alcohol shines through and it's astringency turns me off.

Serving type: on-tap

02-17-2011 23:27:19 | More by Jgcarrick

dabudah

Oregon

3.68/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

12 oz. bottle from Cost Plus "Winter Brews" mix pack.

Appearance: Clear red, almost amber in color. Firm head with decent lacing

Smell: Rich toasty malt aroma, hints of plum and raisin.

Taste: Firm bitterness to match the copious alcohol. Slightly warming. Rich dark malt flavor with some hoppiness.

Mouthfeel: Well carbonated with a big body reminiscent of a barleywine.

Drinkability: Overall a solid effort, seems more like a barleywine than a winter warmer (or are these not mutually exclusive categories?). A bit heavy and very fresh, I think this beer would really shine with some aging.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2008 05:05:41 | More by dabudah

tpd975

Florida

3.63/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Thanks goes out to gunhaver for this one.

A: Pours a nice golden hue with a very small head. No lacing noted on my pour.

S: Aromas of sweet malt, brown sugar, dark fruit, and caramel.

T: Flavor very much like the aroma. Brown sugar and caramel up front. A touch of roasty malt with a bit of dark fruit in the finish.

M: Medium in body, smooth and creamy.

D: Pretty tasty.

Serving type: bottle

02-16-2009 21:16:55 | More by tpd975

Thrasher

Oregon

3.55/5  rDev -8.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Sampled at the 2003 Holiday Ale Festival, Portland OR. A robust English style winter ale with woody, buttery malts (a hint of varnish). Hops include Chinook, Liberty and Fuggles, creating a hop flavor that is sharp but doesn't overwhelm. Mouthfeel very smooth and pleasing, aroma equally good. The beer may be a bit in the raw, unrefined. It's certainly solid but maybe a little boring.

Serving type: on-tap

12-08-2003 04:22:43 | More by Thrasher

velosuds

Oregon

3.53/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This seems to have hit the stores this week. Saw a bomber of this on sale for $3.49; regularly $3.99. Poured into a clear pint glass.

A-Pours a deep amber hue with a two finger, light tan foamy head. Modest retention and lacing.

S-Somewhat subdued malt aroma that is biscuit like with caramel. There is also a very faint floral hop presence in the nose. Expected more from its supposedly "massive malt complex."

T-Toasted caramel malts with some hop bitterness. Fruitier more than sweet. Not nearly robust enough to "take the chill off the cold winter months." Thankfully, it is still early autumn in the PNW.

M-Smooth, but the mouthfeel is too light for style.

D-This is nothing to get excited about. Winter Warmer is one of my favorite styles, and at 8.0% ABV this is very welcome for winter, but I have a hard time believing it since this beer goes downhill after the pour. Overall, lackluster.

Serving type: bottle

10-16-2010 02:37:12 | More by velosuds

unclederby

Oregon

3.45/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

poured out relatively vigorously yet no head formed and the beer appeared a little lifeless. hazy amber in color, while caramel malt and prunes predominated the nose. flavor is much the same, with a slight bit of funky, yeasty notes detected. really, kinda boring... but mouthfeel is this beers best quality; creamy with ample carbonation. i don't know what the hell "winter warmer" means in terms of style, but this is essentially a strong red ale... nothing special. i could drink a few of these if i wanted to, but it's just so much an underwhelming experience that i wouldn't (wan't to).

ok, so i'm editing my review a few minutes later and as the beer has warmed it has also become a little more flavorful. and i'm not so sure it's a strong red ale anymore but it is didtinctively English... something like an English strong ale.

Serving type: bottle

11-06-2006 08:10:33 | More by unclederby

beernut7

Massachusetts

3.4/5  rDev -12.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Pours a deep, dark amber with a thin lace on the glass. The aroma is strongly of sweet toffee and roasted malt. The predominant introductory flavor is of sweet, sweet candy on top of a heavy body with a building big hop presence. Both spice and bitterness present simultaneously and add to the complexity of the warming alcohol finish with a hint of sour tang.

Serving type: bottle

01-03-2004 15:31:51 | More by beernut7

nvsblman

Arizona

3.3/5  rDev -15.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Dense brown in color with some fizziness, but not much of a head. Pretty nice aroma with toffee and caramel and some fruit, maybe even a little cinnamon. The sweetness in the flavor is a little overwhelming. Stonger fruit notes come out as it warms. Medium bodied, for some reason I thought it was going to be more full bodied than this. I think I'd have to be in the mood for this one since the sweetness was so strong. Not an everyday beer.

Serving type: bottle

11-30-2005 19:51:28 | More by nvsblman

tompearson

Oregon

3.18/5  rDev -18.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Every year now I pick up a couple of these because I kinda of like this beer. It never really lets me down. However this is the only beer from Golden Valley Brewery I like. The brewery is near by and I should go for a visit.

A: Pours a nice clear reddish color with a good sized frothy white head and good lacing down the glass
S: Smell is sweet and malty also some caramel scents in there
T: Caramel and toffee sweetness up front followed by a grassy/herbal hop presence
M: Medium bodied beer finished a little dry
O: Maybe not as good as last years concoction. But I'm a fan.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2011 01:40:01 | More by tompearson

beercollector

Oregon

3/5  rDev -22.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

This was a bottle of the 2004 version of Tannen Bomb. I live about 2.5 hours from McMinnville and drop in often. I remember this being better on tap.

The beer poured light brown with a off white creamy head. It had good lacing but the head dropped pretty quick.

The nose was a caramel. It was rather light. It was a thin ligt bodied mouthfeel. The flavor was moderately sweet and slightly malty. There was a moderate bitterness and a bit of acholol bit. I remember earlier versions being more of a warmer with more alcohol and more malt. This years version is not holding up as well as prior years. The early 2000's editions could age over a year and were rich and thick. Hopefully next years will return to the full winter warmer this used to be.

Serving type: bottle

05-09-2005 02:38:25 | More by beercollector