Terrapin The Iron Tankard - Terrapin Beer Company

jeffthepony

Georgia

4/5  rDev +2.6%

09-21-2012 04:05:35 | More by jeffthepony

Keith_R

Georgia

4/5  rDev +2.6%

05-08-2013 22:33:54 | More by Keith_R

Zach136

Georgia

4/5  rDev +2.6%

05-08-2013 03:12:31 | More by Zach136

mikeincharleston

South Carolina

3/5  rDev -23.1%

04-24-2013 00:07:41 | More by mikeincharleston

jsanford

Georgia

3.5/5  rDev -10.3%

03-01-2013 01:53:09 | More by jsanford

t0rin0

California

4/5  rDev +2.6%

02-27-2013 13:00:46 | More by t0rin0

rolive

3.75/5  rDev -3.8%

11-28-2012 20:53:52 | More by rolive

bamadog

Kentucky

3.83/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Terrapin is a great brewery, probably one of my all time favorites so I'm pretty pumped to be cracking this. Review is from notes taken on 8/23/2012 and poured from the bottle to a snifter.

Appearance: Looks good on the pour -- a little viscous (hoping it's got a chewy mouthfeel); body is a nice deep caramel brown with a touch of ruby to it; body is murky and cloudy; starts with a short 1/4 finger head that is a light and creamy tan; thin streams of carbonation bubbles up near the sides keeping the thick ring at the surface alive and well.

Smell: Smells good enough to drink -- plenty of sweet, sweet caramel with some hints of butterscotch; a warm spiciness lingers in there as well; smells kind of like a target candy with those awesome creamy centers; slight whiff of alcohol.

Taste: Not bad, but it's slightly disappointing as it falls a touch shy of what the nose presents to me; flavors are a touch watery, but they do match up with the nose in terms of sweet caramel and a sweet creaminess as well; there is still a fair bit of bitter, slightly citric hoppiness in it; alcohol provides a bit of a bite in the back as well. Solid overall, just not as good as I had hoped. Better than average, still.

Mouthfeel: Body is a touch lighter than medium; has an ever so slight watery aspect to it -- reminds me of my stouts when I homebrew -- just doesn't come out quite like I'd like it to; carbonation is spot on -- lively, prickly, but not sharp; alcohol provides a warming sensation through the slightly thick and moist sticky coating sticking around on the palate.

Overall: I wouldn't turn it down, and honestly, if Terrapin put it out annually in four or six pack format, I'd age it for a few years and do a vertical to see how it does with some more time on it. I think with another year under its cap, the hoppiness would round out a bit more and make this beer a solid B, B+.

Serving type: bottle

08-24-2012 00:39:52 | More by bamadog

imperialking

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -3.8%

05-11-2012 03:22:13 | More by imperialking

billn3

Georgia

4.25/5  rDev +9%

04-24-2012 18:18:47 | More by billn3

MrHolland10

Georgia

4/5  rDev +2.6%

03-02-2012 02:25:12 | More by MrHolland10

GeezLynn

Minnesota

3.7/5  rDev -5.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bottle 1869/4884

A: Dull, rusty brown body with a short-lived white head.
S: Smells very sweet, heavy on the caramel malt. Fruity, like apple pie apple sauce without spices.
T: Very malt-driven and fruity. Shows apple/pear, with some tartness and a touch of roasted malt. There is also a brief sweetness and a flash of pine somewhere in there. The light roast mentioned carries through the slightly dry finish.
M: Medium bodied and sticky. Carbonation is small but still plenty of it.

Pretty good beer for a worthwhile cause (Athens is an awesome place). Not an amazing beer, but plenty interesting. To me this tastes like it could still go a few more years.

Serving type: bottle

02-22-2012 04:46:21 | More by GeezLynn

ltdantheman

Georgia

4/5  rDev +2.6%

02-20-2012 23:14:56 | More by ltdantheman

TheBeerologist

Rhode Island

3.23/5  rDev -17.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

22oz bottle that I received as a Secret Santa gift - poured into a pint glass

This beer poured a beautiful reddish amber hue with virtually no head and seemingly little carbonation.
Smelled very sweet and quite strongly of caramel.
Tasted overwhelmingly of carmel and brown sugar, almost a hint of molasses, but overall very sweet with a hint of alcohol. For the most part though the 9.4% is hidden under the sweetness. Little carbonation present in this bottle, almost flat, which was unexpected though actually seemed to help me enjoy this a little more than is typical for sweet beers like this.

Overall this was a fairly sweet drink that was pleasant but not one to search out again.

Serving type: bottle

02-17-2012 00:21:24 | More by TheBeerologist

Brianito

Tennessee

3.5/5  rDev -10.3%

02-08-2012 08:39:13 | More by Brianito

TheGordianKnot

Tennessee

4.03/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Shared at a Nashville tasting, thanks John! Poured into DL snifter...

A- Dark murky amber into the glass. Poured a cm head that died quickly leaving no lacing behind. Fairly basic.

S- A lot of caramel and toffee, like a ton. Very sweet, but soft and not in your face. Has a hint of playdoh as well that I assume is oxidation? Earthy tones with a little musty aroma that adds depth to the nose.

T/M- A little thin, but much like the nose this is sweet and not overpowering. Flan flavored with some ethanol tones. The caramel aspect really reminds me of one of those chewy caramels cubes thats wrapped in clear plastic. Mild plastic flavors, some chocolate milk, and raw cocao. Not much carbonation, but smooth feel; just wish body was a little bigger.

O- This was surprisingly very good. It was sweet, buy not cloying or overly boozy as some of these come off to me. I wouldn't mind having one of these myself , probably wouldn't hold on to for much much longer, but its a tasty beer! Not sure the $15 price tag will make me get it right away though, as I'm told these are still on Athens' shelves...

Serving type: bottle

01-09-2012 21:27:29 | More by TheGordianKnot

opwog

Minnesota

3.5/5  rDev -10.3%

12-21-2011 07:46:28 | More by opwog

dowen44

Georgia

4.5/5  rDev +15.4%

12-21-2011 03:38:39 | More by dowen44

billab914

Virginia

3.78/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Reviewed from notes. 22oz bottle shared at a recent tasting. It poured a hazy, caramel brown color with a thin white head barely covering the top of the beer.

The aroma had notes of brown sugar and caramel malts mixing with some darker fruit and cherry flavors. The taste follows up with more malty, caramel and brown sugar notes. A little bit of the cherry like ark fruits are there as well.

The mouthfeel is medium bodied with carbonation being moderate. Overall it was a pretty good beer, but not an outstanding one of the style. It was flavorful and drinkable, but it also felt a little unbalanced towards the sweet, fruity, malty side of the spectrum at times. Pretty good tasting beer overall though.

Serving type: bottle

11-30-2011 19:58:41 | More by billab914

Exiled

Texas

4/5  rDev +2.6%

11-25-2011 20:31:28 | More by Exiled

brandoman63

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +9%

11-19-2011 03:27:59 | More by brandoman63

richbrew

New Jersey

4.5/5  rDev +15.4%

11-15-2011 20:38:42 | More by richbrew

freduardo

Alabama

4/5  rDev +2.6%

11-14-2011 22:09:27 | More by freduardo

jophish17

Georgia

3/5  rDev -23.1%

11-14-2011 21:38:04 | More by jophish17

claspada

New Jersey

3.85/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle shared by hoppymcgee at our most recent tasting.

Pours dark amber/mahogany color with very little head on it that recedes immediately.

Aromas begin with a great deal of fruity strawberry, blackberry and some other dark fruits. You get some more of the caramel and toffee maltiness as it warms a little

The tastes begin with huge amounts of sweet, toasted bready malts. Caramels and toffee jump in followed by the dark fruitiness once again. As it warms the sweet, sugary malt flavors become a bit too dominant overall and the fruit notes become lost.

The mouthfeel is full bodied with low carbonation. Quite slick overall but seems to work for the style.

Overall this was a decent beer but a little too sweet in the end for my liking. Maybe a few more years of cellaring would allow the sweetness to mellow out but I have my doubts. Thinking this was just a tad heavy on the medium caramel malts and not enough of the darker/higher lovibond caramel malts that add the nice balanced dark fruitiness. More hops would have also helped the balance and allowed this to age gracefully, alas...

Serving type: bottle

11-14-2011 17:19:32 | More by claspada