The Worthy Adversary - Fulton Beer

mwilbur

Minnesota

4.35/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured from 750 mL bottle into snifter.
A: Pours an opaque black (no light comes through with backlighting) with 1/2 inch dark mocha head that quickly recedes.
S: Dark roasted caramel malt, chocolate malt, fig and other dark dried fruit, and a whiff of grassy hops.
T: Dark bitter chocolate, dark roasted caramel malt, spicy rye, toasted grains, and grassy hops. Excellent balance and solid complexity. Dark dried fruit emerges with warming.
M: Medium-heavy feel and full-bodied. Starts bittersweet and fairly smooth, then shifts and finishes dry and bitter. Slightly sticky sweet feel.
D: Not as in-your-face as a lot of RISs out there...which in my book is a good thing. The ABV is a bit restrained 9.5% which avoids the overpowering boozy blast that can occur. A very solid brew...definitely recommended.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2012 05:41:37 | More by mwilbur

Gamblor14

Minnesota

3.75/5  rDev -11.8%

05-11-2013 02:05:51 | More by Gamblor14

shawnp

Minnesota

4.25/5  rDev 0%

05-09-2013 23:57:01 | More by shawnp

nramaker

Minnesota

4.5/5  rDev +5.9%

05-08-2013 20:51:25 | More by nramaker

Danielr26

Michigan

4.25/5  rDev 0%

05-06-2013 20:30:53 | More by Danielr26

ryancl

Minnesota

4.5/5  rDev +5.9%

05-05-2013 03:26:19 | More by ryancl

Danegerous123

Minnesota

4.5/5  rDev +5.9%

05-04-2013 10:21:48 | More by Danegerous123

sacrelicio

Minnesota

4.5/5  rDev +5.9%

05-03-2013 19:02:03 | More by sacrelicio

wordemupg

Alberta (Canada)

4.01/5  rDev -5.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750ml bottle poured into tulip 1/5/13 cheers Rutager for yet another bottle of goodness

A I'm sounding like a broken record but its black liquid with a deep cola edge, two fingers of mocha foam with lots of unorganized lace, ends up as a paper thin film that still leaves lace

S straightforward but solid, dark fruit, coffee, milk chocolate, faint licorice and char

T chocolates slightly darker and I'm getting less dark fruit, a little booze and espresso compared to the coffee I was smelling

M not overly thick for the color but the bubbles give it some body, a little char and chocolate covered coffee beans on the finish

O dark fruits and dark roast, a good example of the style but nothing to really make it stand out, worth trying for sure but nothing about its going to change your life

I've been drinking so many great stouts lately its going to take something amazing to blow me away this week. Solid beer and one could call it a "mellow" RIS, hits all the spots though I suppose price would determine if I drank it on a regular basis or not

Serving type: bottle

05-02-2013 02:36:59 | More by wordemupg

ant880

New York

4/5  rDev -5.9%

04-26-2013 19:20:19 | More by ant880

BushwyckCraft

New York

4.75/5  rDev +11.8%

04-25-2013 11:40:52 | More by BushwyckCraft

Fargrow

North Dakota

4.5/5  rDev +5.9%

04-25-2013 06:02:20 | More by Fargrow

Rutager

British Columbia (Canada)

4.39/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Thanks for yet another new one Steasy66 and another from Maximum12. Two fantastic traders from MN!

Appearance. Pours thick and black with half a finger of light brown head.

Smell. Dark chocolate, caramel and vanilla, some dark malts, and a little bit of roasted nuts, cherry and raisins.

Taste. Dark bittersweet chocolate, some dates and a bit of coffee. Some dry roasty bitterness and a bit of smoke in the finish and quite dry throughout.

Mouthfeel. On the low side of full bodied, medium-low smooth carbonation.

Overall. A very nice RIS that isn't too sweet or sticky. I appreciate that and am enjoying this very much.

Serving type: bottle

04-19-2013 02:31:26 | More by Rutager

Flapinux

Missouri

4.75/5  rDev +11.8%

04-16-2013 20:04:32 | More by Flapinux

emottram

Massachusetts

4.25/5  rDev 0%

04-13-2013 21:54:06 | More by emottram

smonice

New Jersey

3.75/5  rDev -11.8%

04-03-2013 23:08:29 | More by smonice

garymuchow

Minnesota

3.9/5  rDev -8.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

One of the last bottles I picked up at Lowry Hill before #2 moved on to other things.
From the distance of pouring had a really nice light fruity quality. Closer to the glass it became more rich, a little boozy, soft but prominent roast (coffee), and some darker fruits. Luscious.
Poured with minimal head. Very dark and black - hard to find any color on the edges.
For a fresher RIS has pretty good blending and some maturity to it-however it still has a little bite to it. Roast flavor and dryness on the finish. Even a little spiciness in time blending through the drink. Some darker fruits that seem to come and go.
Pretty heavy (both in appearance with pouring) and a reasonably chewy body. Carbonation is done nicely and doesn't take away from the smoothness of the drink. Feels a little bigger than the 9.5% and the alcohol flavors and nip seem a little bigger than that too.
Largely malt with even a fairly fresh bottle shows little hop flavors-although some appears to show later with a light "green" freshness. In time there is a vegetable quality to the aroma in particular that isn't so pleasant, but then it moved to some real deliciousness when I poured the bottom of the bottle. In sum an overall enjoyable beverage. Good to a little more than that.
I hate to say it but at $10 per bottle when there are (much) better others at that price for a 4-pack this one won't be at the top of my list of must buy beers.
This is the 100th review for this beer.

Serving type: bottle

04-02-2013 04:24:25 | More by garymuchow

SpdKilz

Illinois

4/5  rDev -5.9%

03-30-2013 01:58:03 | More by SpdKilz

match1112

Illinois

4/5  rDev -5.9%

03-24-2013 13:23:42 | More by match1112

Mbrown44

Delaware

4.25/5  rDev 0%

03-21-2013 23:48:45 | More by Mbrown44

blakelive784

Colorado

3.91/5  rDev -8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Thanks to maximum12 for this bottle!

750 ml brown glass bottle served in a snifter, reviewed live:

A - Pours an opaque black color with a rich, tan, thick and creamy head of three fingers. Retention is absurdly good for the high ABV (it didn't move for a good 10 minutes), and the head leaves sticky lacing as it recedes.

S - Rich chocolate malts alongside restrained coffee. Plum, licorice and raisin. Sweet chocolates are prominent. Deeply roasted malt body. A moderate strength and sweet aroma.

T - Forceful roasted malts and the same dark fruit notes I'd found on the nose dominate. ON the sweeter side, but surprisingly well balanced. Milk chocolate heavy. Subtle coffee when I look for it. A touch bitter on the finish. No alcohol presence whatsoever. Very well built but not entirely complex.

M - Creamy, thick and silky smooth. Perfect carbonation.

D - High quality and insanely drinkable. I'd love to have it again (or the BA version). I'd look forward to trying other Fulton beers if I'd be so lucky.

Serving type: bottle

03-20-2013 01:02:28 | More by blakelive784

vicsju1991

Pennsylvania

5/5  rDev +17.6%

03-14-2013 18:39:40 | More by vicsju1991

kawilliams81

Illinois

4/5  rDev -5.9%

03-14-2013 17:09:05 | More by kawilliams81

Phillyz

Pennsylvania

4.61/5  rDev +8.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Thanks so much to Audiophile for sending me this local goodie. I have to start this review with: OH MY GOD! This beer is amazing. I've drank a lot of renowned stouts lately, and this one is in my top 3.

A: Dark, completely opaque, but not quite oil-black. Nice tan coffee head, and beautiful lacing.

S: Dark fruit. Raisins and plums. But not too sickly sweet, but very sweet. Quite different smelling then tasting.

T: Oh man, this one is special. It follows the nose - dark fruits. Raisins and plums. However, you get that sweet coffee bite at the end of the sip, and chocolate and toasted malts. The 9.5% ABV is nearly invisible in this stout. Once again, this beer is a treat. The after taste is almost purely roasted malt. I need Audiophile to send me more!

M: This is by far the best mouth feel of any stout that I've ever had. I have drank BCBS, BCBCS, Dark Lord '10, Lil' B, and Williamsburg Cafe Royale in the past month. This one is sweeter than saccharine (not literally). Medium feel, not too heavy, not too light, just perfect. It's still full, and leaves a little 'thickness' in your mouth a few minutes after a sip. Once again, near impeccable.

O: This one is a rare one. Find anyone you know in Minnesota and beg them to search all their bottle shops for this. I'm not quite sure why I've never heard of it before, I asked Audiophile to find me a rare, local stout, and he couldn't have done any better. This beer deserves to be a hit. Out of the 5 aforementioned stouts, this one easily takes second behind BCBCS. If anything deserves to be named worthy adversary, it is this.

Serving type: bottle

03-14-2013 06:34:23 | More by Phillyz

RedneckBeerz

North Carolina

4/5  rDev -5.9%

03-13-2013 12:46:10 | More by RedneckBeerz