Victory Harvest Ale - Victory Brewing Company

RonfromJersey

New Jersey

4.2/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Part of my Harvest Beer Adventure, which confirmed that I should never go Beer Hunting without a navigation system.

Bright new penny copper body, fairly clear with a hint of haze. Smallish white head (though to be fair, this is the third glass poured from the growler, over a ten hour period). Some nice stretchy lacing.

Inviting, and yes, fresh hoppy and piney aroma clears out the nose.

Caramelly sweet malt beginning is almost sneaking about on the tongue, like slipping into a bed beneath a billowing comforter of hops. The hops aren't abrasive, just a gently floating raft. Getting an earthy/herbal vibe, more than the pine in the aroma. A definite sense of "freshness" to the taste. Very mild sensation of alcohol at the finish. Long hop tingle aftertaste.

Solid medium plus mouthfeel. Good drinkability, I found the listed abv of 7.7% surprising.

Very enjoyable and very interesting. There does seem to be a different sort of hop character with the various fresh hop beers, at least the few I've tried so far. Further study is warranted.

Serving type: growler

10-28-2006 04:33:43 | More by RonfromJersey

AzAleC

Arizona

4.1/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: A glowing amber color with a loose head (approx. 1/2") diminished quickly.

S: Somewhat earthy - perhaps roasted malt, mildly fruity (citrusy).

T: Mildly malty-sweet on the tongue with a crisp and citrusy hop brightness. Roasted malt is very prevalent throughout. Very little alcohol taste for the ABV. So many flavors exist, but are all very well balanced.

M: Smooth and full, nearly creamy.

D: Very easy to put down at the ABV. Amazingly balanced yet complex flavors.

Serving type: on-tap

10-26-2006 01:16:11 | More by AzAleC

foggylovesbeer

Delaware

5/5  rDev +26.9%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

This is a great fresh-hop beer. Have had this on tap at Victory twice in the past month and the second time around was better than the first. This beer has a wonderful, hoppy aroma and goes down really smooth. Both times I have had this on-tap, in a 22oz Willi Becher glass.

Serving type: on-tap

10-20-2006 19:51:36 | More by foggylovesbeer

feloniousmonk

Minnesota

4.18/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Clear, amber/reddish toned appearance, slim whitish head...nice enough...

Aroma: very caramel malt-y, with classy noble hops speaking up...a crisp, floral aroma, crystal clean.

Taste: alive with hops, but on the mild side. Nice caramel malt, a smooth English style of ale here. Biscuity, caramely, toasty malts, nicely done texture, with hop bitterness riding on the top. Nice hops, balanced extraordinarily well with delicious malt. Yum.

Somehow, though, especially from Victory, I expected/anticipated more...and this, after having some Town Hall Fresh Hop and, just previous, some Masala Mama IPA. A bit disappointing...but expectations are false premises, so forget about that.

and big thanks to stewdawg for providing!

Serving type: growler

10-19-2006 08:45:16 | More by feloniousmonk

baldmasterflex

Pennsylvania

3.73/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Thought a cold, crisp fall nite in the middle of WCU's fall break would be a great time to pick this up.
Pours a really rich pinkish-orange-red color with very little head at all it. My roommate asked if i was drinking wine, which makes alot of sense because it definitly reminds me of a pink sangria. As i stare at the beer there really isnt much carbonation other than some that builds up around the rim that lightly sticks to the sides of the glass.
I have a cold which is killing my senses but the nose of the beer definitly has a sweet aroma with easily detectable very citrusy hops, similar to the kind used in Hop Wallop if my memory is correct (the release of which is about a mere month away).
The taste is very much like the smell, but the hops dont bite the way i expected them to. They really seem to fade very smoothly into a malty sweetness.
The body is medium and the lack of carbonation makes it very smooth going down without any detection of alcohol bite (even tho i know 7.7% isnt dangerously high).
I can see how the use of malt sweetness in this could possibly classify it as something other than a type of IPA or DIPA as the Strong Ale catogorization suggests. But, for clarification and comparison for people who wont have the opportunity to try this brew, i find it to be somewhere halfway between Dogfish's 60 and 90 minute IPAs.
After im finished with the next 50 ounces, Im gonna find the person that stole my victory growler.

Serving type: growler

10-16-2006 00:11:02 | More by baldmasterflex

akorsak

Pennsylvania

4.13/5  rDev +4.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Served on tap at Victory's Fall Fest as well as the restaurant.

A: The ale is a deep copper red color with a small ring of white head.

S: A hoppy citrus flavor with earthy hints comes out of the nose.

T: The hops have a very subtle taste, the result I believe, of wet hops. The flavors that do come through are grapefruity and earthy, a very nice taste that is not overhopped.

M: The hops are flavorful without stripping the taste buds, the wet hops make a big difference.

D: At 7.7%, the drinkability is limited, but this is a good ale for a cool crisp football tailgate.

Serving type: on-tap

10-01-2006 16:48:48 | More by akorsak