V-Twelve - Victory Brewing Company

elgiacomo

Georgia

3.58/5  rDev -11.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

750ml bottle, date is missing but quite certain it is an '08 vintage. Served at cellar temperature.

Pours copper/amber with little bits of sediment, large fluffy off-white head that retains very well, leaving clumps of lacing and holding a good cap. Lighter colored than what I anticipated.

Aroma is very fruity, raisins, apples, pears, overripe bananas, creamed corn?, spices, caramel, brown sugar, and a strong bread and yeast. Very good strength.

Flavor is caramel, brown sugar, fruits such as green apples, pears, banana, some bubblegum, yeast & bread. Hints of alcohol but quite minimal for 12% ABV.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied, somewhat sticky & oily, medium carbonation.

Very good BSA (Quad?), but not my favorite in the style. Something is just a little off on this one which doesn't ruin the beer by any means as this is still quite enjoyable, just distracts a bit. I dunno. Good, but not great.

Serving type: bottle

03-27-2011 02:23:34 | More by elgiacomo

spw109

New York

4.25/5  rDev +4.9%

06-17-2013 21:32:33 | More by spw109

jaxon53

Connecticut

3.75/5  rDev -7.4%

06-17-2013 08:39:50 | More by jaxon53

JustCamIt

Virginia

3.25/5  rDev -19.8%

06-15-2013 13:03:28 | More by JustCamIt

doremite

Massachusetts

3.5/5  rDev -13.6%

06-13-2013 22:41:16 | More by doremite

robdip9

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +4.9%

06-11-2013 16:45:57 | More by robdip9

Rand_ale_Thor

Wisconsin

3.75/5  rDev -7.4%

06-10-2013 17:17:56 | More by Rand_ale_Thor

DeutschesBier

Maryland

4/5  rDev -1.2%

06-07-2013 16:06:48 | More by DeutschesBier

bluckbeyes

Oregon

4/5  rDev -1.2%

06-06-2013 23:17:16 | More by bluckbeyes

DilisioYCBC

Colorado

4/5  rDev -1.2%

06-06-2013 01:28:27 | More by DilisioYCBC

mquinn919

Pennsylvania

5/5  rDev +23.5%

06-05-2013 00:18:59 | More by mquinn919

bmoney

Ohio

4/5  rDev -1.2%

06-04-2013 03:35:39 | More by bmoney

jmtpi

New York

4.25/5  rDev +4.9%

06-02-2013 20:33:24 | More by jmtpi

Jeckel

Colorado

3/5  rDev -25.9%

06-01-2013 21:34:30 | More by Jeckel

Ish1

Minnesota

4.25/5  rDev +4.9%

06-01-2013 04:28:02 | More by Ish1

Lanstrum

Ohio

3/5  rDev -25.9%

06-01-2013 04:09:41 | More by Lanstrum

Beerdudenumberone

Indiana

3.25/5  rDev -19.8%

05-30-2013 23:39:59 | More by Beerdudenumberone

Mikkiicky

New Jersey

4/5  rDev -1.2%

05-29-2013 21:13:24 | More by Mikkiicky

CGAR

Florida

5/5  rDev +23.5%

05-26-2013 22:28:08 | More by CGAR

FirstBrewsoon

Ohio

4/5  rDev -1.2%

05-26-2013 21:15:14 | More by FirstBrewsoon

kojevergas

California

3.39/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

I'm aching for a good quad tonight so I decided to take on a 750 of this by myself. 12% ABV confirmed - God help me waking up tomorrow. No visible bottled on date; the label has a "Bottled on" section in the lower left but there's no date printed. Hm. I believe this sat around the bottle shop where I got it; I bought it last week. So much the better; I'd prefer it aged. 750ml brown glass bottle with hood and wire cap over a cork served into a Mitchells of Lancaster flared stem-tulip in me gaff in low altitude Los Feliz, Los Angeles, California. Reviewed live. Expectations are high; I've had some beers from Victory I've really taken a fancy to.

Served cold, straight from the refrigerator, and allowed to come to room temperature over the course of consumption. I like my quads a little below room temperature, but with a 750 I'm content to start cooler and see how it develops. Side-poured with standard vigor as no carbonation issues are anticipated.

Note that this is, probably, my favourite style of beer - and I'm intimately familiar with good beers in the style. I may nitpick.

Yield a satisfying pop upon removal of the cork, but no beer surges upwards in the neck. Carbonation seems good.

A: Pours a 1.5 finger beige colour head (or ecru for the pretentious). Slight cream. Decent thickness. Above average retention - about 3-4 minutes. The colour is not at all what I'd expect in a good beer of the style; it's a transparent orange-red. Translucent as well. No yeast particles are visible. No bubble show. Really not looking like a good quad ought to. Both the head and colour should be better - the head darker, creamier, thicker, and with better retention; and the colour darker, nontransparent, and more delicate. Misses the mark already, but I'm hoping the taste is far better. In fact, given that this comes from Victory, I'm expecting it to surprise me with its quality.

Sm: Light cherry. Biscuit malt. Peach fruit. Lychee. Light raisin. Nuts. Where the hell are the luscious dark fruits - the very reason I drink a good quad? Noticeable floral hop character. Bright malts. Lychee is dominant - lychee? In a quad? Apricot fruit. Flowers. Sweet candi sugar. Heavily fruity - but bright. No subtlety at all here. But there's nice balance and good complexity; it's just completely wrong for the style. I'm content to abandon judging this as a quad at this point and just let it take me where it will; it's definitely in no way shape or form to style, but I can't deny that in a general sense it's quite pleasant and inviting. No yeast character or alcohol is detectable. Reminds me of a wheatwine, actually. I get some mango. There's no luxurious delicacy here, but it's intriguing.

T/Mf: Interesting fruity notes - orchard mango, apricot, light orange, lychee, and peach. Nice soft mouthfeel with sufficient coarseness to coax more of the lighter notes out. Some sweet cherry in the background. Body is comprised of grainy malts - not much in the way of bready malts. Some biscuit and amber malts, sure. Hop character is way too pronounced for a quad; floral in nature. It's also got (non hop derived) flowery notes, giving it a light and surprisingly refreshing taste and feel. Some bright raisin. As it warms, more and more of that lychee fruit kicks in - joined by some white plum. I wanted dark plum from this quad, but I'll take what I can get. Juicy throughout. Smooth, wet, and refreshing. Clean and enjoyable. Lacks the delicacy and fragility of superior quads, but it's nice for what it is. On the sweeter side of the sweet/bitter scale, but it's never too sweet. Alcohol is well concealed here; drinks like it's about 9.0%. Not getting any yeasty character.

Just like I noticed from the aroma, it seems more like a wheatwine than a quad (even though I don't get any actual wheat notes). I hate to rely on comparisons to other beers as a crutch, but the juicy fruit character reminds me of Marin's Star Brew.

Overall, it's a balanced beer with decent complexity but no real subtlety. I do like it, but I don't consider it a quad. Good carbonation, body, and thickness. It almost makes me want to smack my lips drinking it; fairly luscious.

Dr: It doesn't scratch my quad itch, but it is quite nice for what it is. Hides its ABV pretty well and even comes off refreshing somehow. It's a solid brew from Victory, and now that I know what to expect I'd probably get it again in the right mood. I'm confident I'll enjoy finishing this 750 alone. Very drinkable for the ABV, but you wouldn't want to quaff it. At the same time, it's far from a sipper. Just a tasty all around brew that really misses the mark of the alleged style. Style aside, I consider it a success.

B-

Serving type: bottle

05-26-2013 05:12:24 | More by kojevergas

Photekut

Azerbaijan

4.25/5  rDev +4.9%

05-26-2013 00:25:22 | More by Photekut

2GOOFY

California

4/5  rDev -1.2%

05-25-2013 14:49:25 | More by 2GOOFY

jkane101

New Jersey

4/5  rDev -1.2%

05-24-2013 02:10:16 | More by jkane101

InspectorBob

New Jersey

4/5  rDev -1.2%

05-19-2013 15:44:03 | More by InspectorBob