Saint Arnold Divine Reserve #12 - Saint Arnold Brewing Company

HoustonZ33

Texas

5/5  rDev +34%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

If I could describe this beer in a single sentence it would be... "Angel Piss in a Glass"

Cold, Fresh and On Tap (keg), It has the perfect mouthfeel, the taste is slightly creamy and buttery...yeasty if you will and this bad boy packs a wallop!!! - Have a DD on hand if you're having more then 2. From Cask it's just a little sweeter and more lacing then a Victoria's Secret Catalog.

This is one of the best things to come from Saint Arnold and is hands down one of the Top 5 Beers in all of Texas, Ever. The only thing SA has done on par with this is Bishop's Barrel No. 1

With all of that said, From a bottle....it's not nearly as good - All the Cream and Butter is gone from it.

Serving type: on-tap

02-13-2013 08:27:04 | More by HoustonZ33

stumac

Texas

4.6/5  rDev +23.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I've already had a few beers in me and I've already let this beer warm up. So it's a clear orange-ruby color in this wacky light I'm in. It smells of Brett, dried red apple, sherry, my moustach, a lil alky, and lies. The flavor profile is full of exquisite dehydrated fruits, bubble gum, blush wine, a nice subtle hop-bittered finish, and deception. It's a moderately carbonated medium-leaning-on-full bodied brew. I've never had Divine on tap so this is quite the great as me and babe Amanda sipple off it's teet. Now I'm sure Saint Arnold Brewing Co. made a good sum of cash for the sales of this brew. Funny because this wasn't their recipe. They "allowed" a homebrew winner to have their beer made by this brewery for winning a local competition. Funny cuz to me that sounds like making money off of someone else's hard work. But thats just me

Serving type: on-tap

08-05-2012 00:28:18 | More by stumac

RonaldTheriot

Louisiana

4.38/5  rDev +17.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Saint Arnold Divine Reserve 12 has a thin, cream-colored head, a brilliant, yet somewhat murky, orange appearance with decent lacing and a lot of tiny little bubble steams. The aroma is faint, but one does pick up fruit juice of some sort. Taste is of fruit, with a surprisingly low bitterness, some faint malt, and that’s about it. Mouthfeel is medium to heavy, and Saint Arnold Divine Reserve 12 finishes semi-dry, mild, and drinkable. No real alcohol presence is detected here. Overall, it’s lovely, and I rate it highly. Get some!

RJT

Serving type: bottle

09-30-2012 15:05:31 | More by RonaldTheriot

acevenom

Louisiana

4.2/5  rDev +12.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured into a goblet. The beer pours a darker shade of slightly hazy amber with numerous streaming bubbles in the beer. There is a briefly lived thin off-white head. A pour of the entire contents leaves the beer slightly hazy. The beer smells very sweet from the abundant malt. There's a smell that reminds me of bubblegum. There's plenty of malt in this taste, bringing sweet qualities to this beer. There is that bubblegum I picked up in the smell and some bittering and earthy hops in the back end. This blends into a mildly sweet and earthy aftertaste, though it becomes more bready as it warms and the aftertaste lingers longer. I can also pick up the alcohol, but which also becomes more noticeable as it warms. The flavors are actually quite complex and well balanced. The yeast characteristics start to poke through more as the beer warms and more bready flavors appear. The body is medium with plentiful carbonation. The finish is slightly dry. For such a young old ale, this is very solid. It can only improve with age, so I'm glad I invested in a six pack.

Serving type: bottle

08-20-2012 23:03:56 | More by acevenom

elNopalero

Texas

4.2/5  rDev +12.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Bottle date on 7/12/12, if I read it correctly.

Thanks to XicanoBeerRun for this one. Imported from Texas!

This pours an amber-caramel color with a thin ring of foam.

The hops have faded on this, leaving behind a boquet of caramel and malt notes. It’s stickly piney, with a sweet finish.

The flavor is fairly mellow, with a rounded piney resin, and some light toasted coconut and almond notes.

The body holds up, and it warms well enough to savor for a spell. Certainly the Divine Reserve series is a high point of the St. Arnold stable and this does not disappoint.

Serving type: bottle

04-11-2013 06:41:35 | More by elNopalero

grittybrews

Washington

4.13/5  rDev +10.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured a ruddy orange amber with two fingers of eggshell head. Relatively mild aroma of caramel, pine, and dark fruit mixed with booze.

Moderate carbonation and a full, rich mouthfeel. Grapefruit and orange up front followed by sweet caramel and toffee. Sugar cookie and dark fruit mingle on the finish, which features some bitter pine.

Interesting mix of strong hops and figgy sweetness. Not overly boozy. Looking forward to seeing how my other bottle develops.

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2012 15:23:49 | More by grittybrews

MutualAid

Texas

4.03/5  rDev +8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Pours a deep amber, with a thin white head that doesn't stick around for long. The smell is one part crystal malt and one part mysterious funk, something I haven't noticed in any Saint Arnold brew before. The flavor is much more complex: dark rum with hints of toffee up front followed by dried apricot and alcohol. This definitely has the flavor profile of a autumn/winter seasonal. There's a long funky aftertaste that I don't know if I like. The mouthfeel is rather slick and accompanied by alcohol warmth. Overall, this is pretty good but rough around the edges. I think a year or two of in the "cellar" will turn this into an excellent sipping beer.

Serving type: bottle

08-01-2012 03:35:39 | More by MutualAid

DRyan

Texas

4.03/5  rDev +8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Served in a Rager Creek Tulip.
Bottle dated 7/19/12

A: Ruddy orange color, that is pretty transparent. There is a thin white head that dissipates pretty quickly and doesn't lace very much. The color on this old ale is pretty different from any other I've had.
S: It's you regular "old ale" scent, but a bit lighter. There is some malty sweetness, a little bit of hoppiness, but very little of the dark fruit type flavors you'd expect from your average old ale.
T: It tastes a lot darker than it looks; the taste is almost your average old ale, but a bit lighter and a bit easier to drink. It is almost like an "old ale light," and brings a much more easily downable taste to the old ale canon.
M: Thin, but not too thin, and smooth. The carbonation is pretty light, as you should expect from an old ale, and the bubbles are pretty mild.
D: It goes down easy, amybe TOO easy for a 10% ABV beer. This one could get people in a lot of trouble. I see the DR#12 as a great way to get friends that are into milder beers introduced to the old ale genre of beer, and follow it up with something heavier like a Curmudgeon.

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2012 01:36:30 | More by DRyan

Boto

Connecticut

3.94/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12oz. bottle: Thanks, Kevin! This one pours a slightly hazy, lighter orangish-amber color. The aroma is a bit light for a 10%er, but good none the less. It’s a bit musty, with caramel and citrus notes. Also a bit of breadiness, spices and grassy notes. The taste is good. Body is more towards medium. Slightly bitter/sour taste. Some caramel and spice, as well as some faint fruits. No evidence of the alcohol. Very nice!

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2013 22:06:25 | More by Boto

Ranz

Texas

3.83/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: Poured in my Duvel tulip. Copper-red with a nice, thick head that unfortunately doesn't retain as much as I had hoped. No lacing that I see until I start punching through the beer about a quarter of the way.

S: Figs, raisins, dry earth, with a malt backbone. Pungent and dense.

T: Candied raisins first kick in with sweetly alcoholic tinge. The finish is long and thick, molasses in quality. Warm and succulent.

M: Incredibly creamy mouthfeel.

O: While I can't deny that it's pretty good, I had honestly expected a bit more. Still, it was worth a purchase. I bought three: one for me, one to share, and one to age, so I'm hoping that the third proves its worth.

Serving type: bottle

09-25-2012 03:12:30 | More by Ranz

jlindros

Massachusetts

3.79/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Also thanks to thanks to ApostleBrewing as well as dcloeren for this one as I just had a Jester King beer that came from them as well, coincidence.

Pours a decent fizzy almost 1 finger head, not bad for 10% abv, fades at a med pace with little lacing, hazy, slight suspended particulate, amber nectar orange color.

Nose starts like candy, butterscotch toffee, slight peanut brittle, candy syrup, sweet malty, reddish malts, hint of clean booze, light fruity touch as well, not much else though.

Taste starts with more candy, sweet slightly syrupy candy, light toffee and brittle, light apple fruit and candy apple flavor. Booze cuts in and let's you know with warming tingly booze but clean, some nutty caramel with the syrupy sweetness, rich buttery toffee comes out more on the back end. Finish is semi syrupy sticky with an anesthetizing booze feel, lingering nutty and buttery toffee, caramel, just a touch of earthy bitterness even slight creamy caramel and creamed honey.

Mouth is med to fuller bodied, plenty of warming tingly booze, decent carb.

Overall not bad, but nothing special. It's more like a big candy beer than anything, with the sticky sweetness, syrupy flavors, lots of toffee and brittle like flavors, pretty sweet as expected. Not much for the nice malty flavors though, esp aged soft malt characters I expect in a good old ale, but otherwise not too bad.

Serving type: bottle

04-22-2013 14:04:51 | More by jlindros

brentk56

North Carolina

3.68/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: Arrives with a clear amber color capped by a nice head that leaves a curtain of lace

Smell: Caramel, figs, raisins along with hints of candied orange and vanilla

Taste: Caramel and dark fruit, up front, with a developing herbal, candied orange aspect; after the swallow, the sweetness becomes a bit cloying, though there is some offset from the herbal flavors

Mouthfeel: Medium to full body with moderate carbonation

Overall: This beer has some interesting elements bu the full package clashes rather than complements

Serving type: on-tap

10-04-2012 02:31:22 | More by brentk56

rhoadsrage

Illinois

3.65/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

(Served in a teku)
A- This beer pours a hazy dark orange body with a thick ring of bubbly beige and a very faint pfsst hint is all that was heard when I twisted the cap off.

S- The woody caramel aroma has a slight sweet wort note to it with a sweet ester sugar note in the finish. The aroma is very light but also quite mysterious.

T- The slightly dry caramel turns to a sweet candy hint. There is some wet wood oxidation taste and some slight tartness in the finish. A light citrus juice note comes through in the aftertaste. There is an alcohol taste that grows and cuts the sweetness quite a bit as it opens up.

M- This beer has a medium-light mouthfeel with a full alcohol warmth and a fizz in the finish that gives a fullness texture without being fizzy.

O- This has some characteristics of a miabock and hints of a light barleywine with a soft sweetness and a full alcohol. The flavor and aroma were both pretty soft and I just couldn’t get behind this beer. There were moments it was tasty and then it was more odd characters like the oxidation or the tartness or citrus that outweighed the tasty. Thanks to Thickfreakness for sending to me it was fun to try.

Serving type: bottle

04-25-2013 20:38:51 | More by rhoadsrage

whoneeds8

Texas

3.63/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a tulip glass a golden amber with barely any head. I had to agitate it a little to get a head and bring out a scent. I can't get much of a scent off of it, but my nose is weak. I sence some sweetness. The taste is rather weak for the style, some sweet carmel and that's about it. There's a very slight licorice after taste. The mouthfeel is low in carbonation, medium bodied, and high in alcohol.

Yeah, this is not Divine by any definition of the word.

I'd rather wish SA would stop using the winning home brew recipies for every other DR, because they're NEVER as good as what Brock can come up with on his own.

Serving type: bottle

08-11-2012 00:23:40 | More by whoneeds8

Ford

Texas

3.63/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottle poured into pint glass.

I'm not really sure what all is going on with this beer. There seems to be a lot. Very different from anything I"ve had before.

I picked up a six pack and a bomber. This was my first bottle to open. I think I'm going to age the rest for the next year and see where it goes.

There were a lot of different flavors going on and I had some trouble differentiating... I don't claim to be an expert.

Overall I liked this beer, but I want to see where it goes.

Love Saint Arnold as a brewery.

Serving type: bottle

10-07-2012 14:25:49 | More by Ford

FosterJM

California

3.6/5  rDev -3.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

1533rd Review on BA
Bottle to Snifter
12oz

2012 Release
Thanks to Lnashsig for this

App- A vibrant glowing orange with a big clear density in the glass. A small 1/2" of off white head that fell quickly. More bubbles around the edges.

Smell- This is a prickly smelling beer. Its very boozy with a big citrus and grass note. A full hop note with a big bitter aroma to back it up. 

Taste- Well I had much higher hopes for this one. Its a good malt base with a thick citrus and boozy addition as the backing flavors. It feels like an old ale but very bitter and prickly with a dish soap flavor.

Mouth- A big thick medium body with a prickly medium carbonation. Its a bit too bitter and citrusy and needs to mellow out. 

Drink- I believe this is a good beer. Its just too fresh right now and needs to mature as a beer. Prickly and boozy but the flavors need time. Malty and citrusy like an old ale but just lacking right now.

Serving type: bottle

09-29-2012 04:18:43 | More by FosterJM

Mora2000

Texas

3.58/5  rDev -4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

The beer pours an amber color with a white head and a lot of bubbles. The aroma has some cherry and grape notes, as well as some caramel, toffee and alcohol notes. The flavor is very similar. The caramel and dark fruit notes are very heavy up front, with a little bit of toffee and some earth notes hidden in the background. I also get a little bit of cinnamon and some other peppery notes in the flavor. The alcohol is noticeable, but not overpowering. Medium mouthfeel and high carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

08-01-2012 04:35:13 | More by Mora2000

Brabander

Netherlands

3.58/5  rDev -4%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

I got this beer from my dear beerbuddy Robert (Torino). Thanks Robert. Poured this one in my De Molen tasting glass. Nice golden yellow fluid. Got some heavy pouring to do to get some head. Very light carbonation, little lacing.

Floral smell far away with some anice hints. Good mouthfeel. A decent drinkable beer but not too spectacular. The alcohol is pretty well hidden.

Serving type: bottle

04-28-2013 20:15:50 | More by Brabander

mcanderson0

3.48/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Casked DR12 tapping at Hay Merchant

A: Not perfectly clear, a bit murky. Copper in color with a creamy off white head. Slightly different character than when i had it from the keg.

S: Fresh, lemon grass, hoppy, fruity. A touch of pickled ginger.

T: Taste follows the smell. Hops are present. Citrus, crisp, and refreshing. Undoubtedly smoother in flavor out of the cask. Reminds me of Endeavor a bit. Mild bitterness in the aftertaste.

M: Smooth as silk from the cask. Markedly different than the keg offering.

O: A good beer. The ratings are weak but i still came out for the cask tapping because its a decent brew. Reminds me of an IPA overall.

Serving type: cask

11-17-2012 17:30:56 | More by mcanderson0

turfy

Texas

3.45/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

I, like many other Texas BA's, spent the time to track down and purchase the latest DR release from St. Arnolds. I stashed away all I purchased with the intent of aging for at least one year per SA's advice, and forwarded that advice to my trading partners to whom I had sent some bottles. I was not interested in trying any 'fresh' until receiving one in a local trade, which I had stashed away in the fridge. Well, tonight I decided to open one up and see what the (non)fuss was all about.
The beer poured a copper-amber color with about a 1/4 inch off white head, which lasted a bit longer than expected. The aroma was one of sweet malts, I swear a touch of bubblegum, some breadiness and a slight metallic note.
The taste followed the nose, which was a slightly sweet, malty, bready taste with a touch of dried fruit. Mouthfeel was perfect...medium body and spot on carbonation.
Overall, this was very acceptable. It is not BAD. It is drinkable at this stage. Although not an expert by any means, I can see where this beer develops over time into a very nice ale. But if you can't wait, it is enjoyable at its young age.

Serving type: bottle

08-24-2012 01:14:33 | More by turfy

GregSVT

Texas

3.43/5  rDev -8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12oz bottle into a tulip

A: Pours a clear amber with a white head that fades to a ring and leaves a bit of lacing on the glass.

S: The nose is full of caramel, toffee, vanilla, and sweet malt. The nose is actually pretty nice on this one.

T: The taste is a bit weaker than what the nose lead on. There are faint notes of caramel, vanilla, and sweet malt but they are no where near as pronounced as I thought they would be.

M: The feel is medium bodied with a decent creaminess.

O: This isn't exactly the best Old Ale I've had but it's not too bad. Hopefully given some time this will develop into something better. I'll be visiting this again in a year or so.

Serving type: bottle

08-08-2012 02:43:21 | More by GregSVT

cosmicevan

New York

3.23/5  rDev -13.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

massive thanks goes out to chf64...brad is the man. sent me a few bottles of this just because i mentioned in passing that it interested me. that's advocacy. enjoyed from my SH snifter.

a - brew poured a semi-transparent ruby mahogany orange. a thin skin of white bubbly head was gone almost as soon as a set my glass down post pour leaving a small ring around the surface of the beer and a cluster of bubbles in the corner. lacing was spotty and slippery and didn't cling to the glass much at all.

s - some zesty autumn spices and sweetness. hints of bubblegum and almost belgian yeast. caramel vanilla. very malt forward. cereal...corn pops to be specific. not very old ale like, but not bad.

t - again, cereal...corn pops to be specific. some vanilla and caramel. fairly unique, but at the same time fairly mediocre.

m - medium bodied...you can feel the heat in the mouth. tingles nicely. medium to light bodied.

o - overall, not a bad beer...this is not the best old ale in the world, but for just being a beer. this isn't bad at all. slightly festive. seems like a fall beer despite the cap saying "Happy Holidays" but Halloween is a holiday.

Serving type: bottle

09-20-2012 04:12:39 | More by cosmicevan

cbeer88

Massachusetts

3.2/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Big thanks to raffy313 for blindly dropping a pair of these on my porch to attempt to prove to me how not awful this beer is despite the iffy ratings for a barleywine. :)

12oz bottle poured into Duvel tulip

Appearance: Color is a deep orange, thinnish off-white head that goes about a finger deep on an aggressive pour. Very nice lacing.

Smell: Boozy, bread, caramel malt, and a bit of earthy/grassy odor.

Taste: Alcohol, lots and lots of alcohol. There is a nice body here with caramel, and even a decent little bitter pine-y hop punch, but really this beer is all about the booze at the moment.

Mouthfeel: A bit thin for the style, but still medium. Carb level is nice.

Drinkability: Average. ABV is on the high side, and the beer is hot, but it goes down fairly easy, all things considered.

Overall: I'm glad I have another bottle of this, because it really needs some time to knock the edge off. I do actually think this beer will be better in a year or two, as what lies underneath is not bad. It's just not ready yet.

Serving type: bottle

12-01-2012 03:55:01 | More by cbeer88

TX-Badger

Texas

3.05/5  rDev -18.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

I opened a 12oz bottle poured into a snifter glass.

A - This pours a hazy orangeish amber, not much head to speak of on the pour.

S - On the nose I get some light spice, small amount of hops, caramel malt.

T - On the palate I get the same as what I was smelling. The spices are very subtle, you almost have to be looking for them. The hops aren't overly noticeable, but the caramel malt gives way to toffee and caramel flavors. Sweet on the finish.

M - Medium-bodied and it seemed to be noticeably carbonated

O - This is interesting, it is only my second time trying a Divine Reserve from St. Arnold. I think that this beer tastes extremely young and age will do it wonders. I have another five bottles from a six pack that I purchased and plan on letting them sit for quite a while before opening another one. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either.

Serving type: bottle

08-02-2012 01:33:19 | More by TX-Badger

Omightytolkien

3.03/5  rDev -18.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

A good beer, but not worth the ado that--like me--you probably went through to find it. At 10% alcohol, it has a nice wallop to keep you awake during your mid-morning "nip" at work. Also if--like me--you never eat on an empty stomach, it makes for a nice breakfast before you chase it down with food. It is however (alas) much like drinking a Belgian beer without the sweetness; as such, there was no "finish." Don't drive 40 miles round-trip on your lunch hour to find this. If you want a more wonkish review with descriptions of how its body is "infused with hints of pepper-bark grated from a Peruvian nutmeg tree whose delicate nuts were first lovingly crushed with an ivory mallet," then move along, because I speak plain English: the color was dark-reddish-brown; it will wake you up proper when you open your eyes to the harsh and unfriendly light of another blasted day, and the bottle is purple.

Serving type: bottle

08-02-2012 19:07:56 | More by Omightytolkien