Fantabulous Resplendence XI Anniversary Ale

Reviewed from notes, just getting around to entering the review.

Pours a vibrant orange color, clear, shimmering, with no head. Minimal looking carbonation.

Aroma has a lot of maltiness, slight twinge of sulfur. Very very light hop aroma.

Quite malty taste, sugar sweetness as well. Seems to be very one-note, no hop flavors to speak of. Quite bland, almost like an oversized pale ale. Slight bitter finish helps it out a bit, but definitely underhopped. Disappointing.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 03-07-2010 21:51:18 | id: 1122457

As I opened the bottle foam started gushing out and spilling over the sides. Once it settled down a little I poured it from the 22oz bottle into my Southern Tier tulip glass. There was a lot of bubbly foam and it took me several pours to get a full glass of beer instead of head. The head did stick around pretty well and left some moderate lacing.

The aroma has a lot of pine and lemon rind citrusness to it. it's a very sharp lemon bite to it, but there is a little sweet malt coming through in the background. The taste is a lot milder in the citrus department then then nose. The malt plays a bigger part in the taste with a sweet flavor. There is still a moderate pine and citrusness to it but not a lot. it also has a more sweet finish rather then a bitter one.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied with above average carbonation. Drinkability was alright, I enjoyed drinking it but probably was better with less age on it.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 03-06-2010 23:46:31 | id: 1121559

Poured from 22oz bottle.

A- Pours a semi-hazy golden yellow color. Two finger light tannish head sticks around for a little while before dying to a cap on the beer. Big streaking lacing left on the sides of the glass.

S- As I expected this beer is a little muted in the aroma department. Sweet malts make up the backbone of this beer. There is some citrus hops that are still here trying to take charge but are just muted. This beer was not meant to be ages this long I think. Some light apple like notes..almost a cider like quality to this one.

T- This beer has gone through a lot of changes from when I had it fresh. There is a light citrus hop in the front...very little to be exact. The sweet malts come through for pretty much the rest of the beer. There is a sweetness to this beer..almost like I am drinking a liquid lollipop. I don't know how else to describe the sweet factor. It wasn't terrible just a little interesting.

M- Medium light mouthfeel. Carbonation still was going good for this beer. Sweet malts were left on the tongue and well into the aftertaste. Not much going on in the mouthfeel department. Still clean tasting which I expected a little metal tinge but never got one.

D- I enjoyed this beer when it first came out. Although it is a former shell of itself it was still a good beer. Amazing that a brewery has a better tasting aged IPA than some breweries who can't seem to get a fresh IPA to taste right. Glad I tried this one with a little age on it. I think it will all go downhill in flavor if you wait to much longer to drink one.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 02-15-2010 04:43:19 | id: 1106754

Got this from infextation, very cool & busy artwork on the bottle

Pours an effervescent copper/orange with 1+ finger of sand colored head. Hazes a bit at the bottom the bottle. Above average head retention & lacing

S: Much orchard fruit & a bit of leafy hop

T: Citrussy & leafy hops, along with oaky dryness & slightly boozey pears. Dryness & leafy hops assert as this warms, along with some more orchard fruit, honey & brandy flavors too, plus a bit of toffee. Finishes dry & boozey with some honey & herbal hops

MF: Fairly chewy, but still fairly assertive carbonation, started to seem a bit watery once warm & then thickened up again

Drinks really easy for the abv & style, but terribly interesting, I would like to go in a time machine & try fresher, otherwise, meh. Not bad, but a bit past its prime. I guess not all FFF products are gold...

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 02-01-2010 03:28:20 | id: 1096238

Acquired in a trade with bulldogp04 awhile back...

A- Beer is a hazy golden color with tons of head. Actually, it was a gusher which was really the only negative I had about it's appearance. There was at least 5-6 inches of head that took about 10 minutes or so just to dissipate down to a reasonable level. Good lacing, though.

S- Quite a mix here. A bit of hops, but they have faded a bit I believe. Good blend of tropical fruits perhaps? Pineapple, orange, other citrusy fruits. A bit of a sweet malty backbone. Aroma is sort of muted.

T- A bit drier than what the smell portrays. Has a bit of fruits and hops to it. The sweetness from the aroma isn't as pronounced as in the smell but it is there. Finishes off sort of like tea, a bit dry and bitter.

M- Smooth, medium bodied. Too much carbonation in my opinion.

D- Definitely drinkable once the head died down.

This was different from most IPA's that I've had, although I wouldn't expect to get a normal beer from Three Floyd's. Should have had it when it was a bit fresher. Thanks again Dean, it was truly appreciated!

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 01-31-2010 02:57:14 | id: 1095204

Poured from a bomber into a pint glass. A 1/8 inch off-white head forms and reduces quickly to a mild over-the-top lacing. It pours a hazy copper color with no sediment and visible carbonation.

The aroma reminds me of cider. This is an interesting blend of piney hops and malty sweetness. There is a fruitiness to it as well.

The taste includes a bready and caramel malt sweetness that is stronger than the hops. There is again an herbal and fruity component.

This beer is medium bodied with an adequate level of carbonation that balances nicely with the flavor. It is fairly crisp and leaves a mild dryness at the end.

Overall, this beer is quite drinkable. The flavor leaves a little to be desired, but when combined with the aroma and feel, it goes down fairly well and leaves me satisfied.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 01-29-2010 03:54:55 | id: 1093494

Split this bomber with BeerFMAndy. I'm reviewing this with an open mind since the bottle has some age on it.

Poured into my pint glass the beer is crystal clear golden orange with an inch of beige head. The head settles leaving just a touch of lace.

The aroma is rather muted. What is there is malt, pineapple, slight citrus fruits, and just a hint of piney hops. This beer probably smelt great fresh.

The flavor is mostly malt. Some faded hops can be picked out but nothing like what a FFF beer would normally have. Apple and light lemon are present as well. Once again age has put a damper on this one.

Medium body with moderate carbonation.

Overall a fairly easy drinker. I look forward to the next anniversary beer from FFF. I will make sure to pick it up fresh.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 12-06-2009 03:21:22 | id: 1053072

22 oz bottle split and poured into an American Tumbler. No date or info.

Thanks to Beerwolf77 for sharing this bottle with me!

A - The color is a lightly hazy orange/ light amber with a thin off white head with low retention and no lave left on the glass.

S - The aroma hints at hops being there in the past but have since faded with time. Pale malts with a little sweetness but it's certainly plain.

T - The hops are more prevalent on the flavor with a light pine and citrus flavor with pale malts in the background. Not bad but the age doesn't do this beer justice.

M - Smooth and crisp with a citrus and light bitter finish. Medium-light bodied and refreshing.

D - It may be a bit of a disservice to review this beer with the amount of age on it, but it's not bad at all.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 12-04-2009 02:14:39 | id: 1051570

22oz bomber bottle pours a dark hazy amber. The taste was smooth and had a nice amount of hops with a hint of grapefruit riding out the finish. Very easy to drink and no hint of the abv%. Definately would have drank another bomber that night if I had one. Pretty decent beer overall. Would have loved to get my hands on a real fresh bottle. Oh well.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 11-14-2009 16:43:06 | id: 1037967

A: Pours a pretty hazy dark amber/ruby color with a very thin off white head on top. Not much lacing and not very active carbonation.

S: Smells like figs, grapefruit, and bready caramel malts. Smells a lot like Arrogant Bastard.

T: Nice bready sweetness up front with some mild grapefruit and grassy hops in the middle. The fig/dark fruit flavor lingers throughout. The finish is more sweet breadiness with some herbal bitterness.

M: Well carbonated, crisp, sticky, bitter, medium bodied.

D: An interesting IPA, it has held up pretty well, but I'd probably go for something else.

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 11-08-2009 22:07:18 | id: 1033893