Allagash Odyssey - Allagash Brewing Company

homebrew311

Illinois

3.54/5  rDev -17.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

Deep purple color with white head. Nose is funky with farmhouse qualities and dry oak character. Notes of dark fruit present along with white oak. Taste is fruit forward with dry notes of oak and grape. Mouthfeel is relatively light with moderate carbonation. Overall, lots of Belgian esters here, not my favorite brew.

Serving type: on-tap

04-28-2013 00:49:30 | More by homebrew311

stephendedalus

Pennsylvania

3.53/5  rDev -17.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured from a February 2005 (750 ml) bottle. Poured a deep brown/caramel colour -- decent carbonation and a nice head (maintained head for several minutes). Smell is underwhelming -- expecting more -- just hints of vanilla and oak/bourbon with alcohol spiciness. Taste has the base notes of a dubbel acccented with the expected vanilla and oak flavors -- not much else going on. Pretty good mouthfeel and at 10.4% this is a very drinkable beer -- the ABV will sneak up on you. However, the verdict, unfortunately, is that this is less of an Odyssey and more of a (pleasant) three hour tour. Gilligan!

Serving type: bottle

12-27-2005 04:16:00 | More by stephendedalus

maximum12

Minnesota

3.53/5  rDev -17.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to ppoitras for shipping me this about a year ago. Bottle is from July '09 & has been resting in great comfort since it arrived. Split with my wife, who's making cheesecake for tomorrow. Love that girl.

Another thanks for taping the cage-and-cork: one gentle tug & the cork nearly levitates from the bottles. Pours such a dark crimson to be mistaken for black, until I hold it up to the light, twisting & turning, looking for a glimmer of color. There, yup. Deep red. Lots of Belgian yeast in the nose, along with clove, banana, this one sets up like a dubbel.

Odyssey warms the cockles of my throat immediately with it's 10% ABV. Beyond the alcohol, there's a strong Belgian yeast component that blurs everything else together, coming on a bit forward for my taste. Tics of dark fruits, wheat (?), & soft sweetness. But the yeast dominates, limiting both it's tastiness & drinkability into the "pretty good" range. A bit prickly; the avid carbonation was evident immediately in the ease with which the cork ended up in the garbage. If I hadn't read the "oak" on the label I might not have picked it out. Evident only in the mild drying on the end of a sip.

Good brew. Above average in all respects but nothing that stands out.

EDIT: just read the description & realized it's a Belgian "wheat" beer. Couldn't figure out where the wheatiness was coming from, now I know I'm not crazy.

Serving type: bottle

12-19-2010 03:46:08 | More by maximum12

kawilliams81

Illinois

3.53/5  rDev -17.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

On tap at Finnegan's

A- dark amber to brown, with little head or lacing

S- get some roasted malts and coffee, get the oak faintly

T- Almost like a light stout. Coffee, roasted malts, some chocolate notes. The oak is noticeable but not overpowering. Slight bittern finish.

M- Medium bodied, creamy semi-dry finish.

O- Again with Allagash I am not all that impressed. Not sure what I was expecting with this beer but not sure I would get it again.

Serving type: on-tap

06-05-2011 16:48:59 | More by kawilliams81

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

3.53/5  rDev -17.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to the BAer who brought this to the Nov. '12 Philly burbs bottle share. Ray (baybum) I think. I'm not sure what vintage this one was.

Dark brown pour, hazy, with a small off-white head that dissipated mostly, leaving some thin lacing behind. Caramel malts in the nose, stone fruits, herbal hops and a touch of smoke. I actually got quite a bit of oak up front in this one, pretty toasty at that, caramel, peach and pear, a little raisin, yeast, herbal hops; no vanilla detected. Medium body, moderate carbonation, drinkable, and decent overall.

Serving type: bottle

11-08-2012 09:27:15 | More by Rifugium

MisterClean

California

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

At Manderes' Allagash tasting

A - Dark brown, chocolate, lots of head, which dissipates moderately.

S - Very oaky, light malts, honey, and biscuit.

T - Oak, honey, with a light smokiness. The smell was great, but got lost in the flavor.

M - Sweet, yet bitter.

D - Not sure I can drink this beer on a consistent basis because, well, the beer isn't very consistent from smell, to taste, to mouthfeel.

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2008 00:58:19 | More by MisterClean

sidetracked

Illinois

3.5/5  rDev -18.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Bottle dated July 2009. Pours a ruby red/mahogany brown with a light brown head.

Aroma is sweet caramel and raisin with a faint alcohol heat.

Taste upfront is sweet brown sugar, caramel, raisins. Finish is sweet--raisin, apples, little wood and vanilla.

Medium body with moderate carbonation.

Overall a good beer, but kind of one-dimensional. Raisin and brown sugar sweetness most prevalent. Barrel-aging could be emphasized more. Not a lot to describe. Wouldn't have again at the current price-point.

9/3/2011

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2012 05:34:53 | More by sidetracked

jwc215

New Jersey

3.48/5  rDev -18.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

bottled in October, 2006 - poured into a glass chalice.

Pours very dark brown. The thin head soon becomes patchy.

The smell is winey/vinuous. Grapey with sugar candy sweetness. Subtle hints of oak.

The taste is of sugar candy, grapey wine, and vanilla. Sharp alcohol notes that smooth out over time.

The feel is creamy. A bit too light at first, but gains more of a body as it warms.

This one is different - I'll give it that. For me though, it's too sweet and wine-like.

Edit: Bottled in Jan. 08 - reviewed in Sept. 08:

Adjusted scores by .5 higher on all but drinkability.

It does have some chocolate notes that I picked up this time to add to complexitity. Body is still creamy, but yet sharp. Alcohol sharpness, oak/vanilla and vinuous (with some sourish grapey notes), in a red wine way, dominate. An interesting brew - a slow sipper. I enjoyed this bottle more than I did the first one I reveiwed. I noticed a few more subtlties and some more creaminess, but still not overly thrilled.

Serving type: bottle

03-26-2007 14:57:10 | More by jwc215

jujubeast6000

Texas

3.48/5  rDev -18.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Reviewed 8/19/2009 (Bottled January 2008):

Pours a very dark brown colored body, with a big creamy tannish color head. Lasting. Fruity aroma, some dark fruit, and some lightish fruit too. Some fig, and some alcohol too. Some roasted notes, and maybe some chocolate. Very strong aroma, kind of funky. Roasty, woody taste. Some wood taste, probably the oak barrel. Some smoke too. This could age in taste very well. Very carbonated. Not sure I really like the taste. A little harsh now, maybe in a few months or years it would taste better.

Serving type: bottle

11-05-2009 22:40:40 | More by jujubeast6000

slentz

Pennsylvania

3.45/5  rDev -19.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

January 2010 bottling. From notes.

First of all if you have a bottle of this batch heed caution. This bottle was a head hunter and almost committed murder on kiddynamite920. I only twisted the cage a few times and the cork shot across the room with gusto. Watch out!

A: Poured at about 45 degrees into a huge wide mouth Belgian glass from iron hill. Slow pour down the center of the glass leads to a thin head after two minutes only a thin ring remains. Wow this one has really tight bubbles and awesome legs. When held up to light it is a beautiful glowing red. 4.5

S: Smell is really muted but picking up cherries with bready and yeasty undertones. Only a hint of alcohol. Smell is definitely lacking. 3.0

T: Taste is also somewhat bland but picking up cherries, molasses and brown sugar. This one is very sweet. All in all pretty smooth but maybe this one is passed its prime. 3.5

M: Lively carbonation leaving a sweet coating on the teeth. Goes down pretty smooth. 3.5

O: Overall not too bad I'd like to try a fresher bottle next time. Appearance is where this beer really shines. All in all I'm glad I got to try this one. Again heed caution with the cork! Sorry Billy! 3.5

Serving type: bottle

08-21-2011 13:47:04 | More by slentz

TMoney2591

Illinois

3.45/5  rDev -19.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

Served in a snifter at Bigby's Pour House.

Quick poll: Ulysses or Odysseus? Anyway, this stuff pours a lightly-hazy sienna topped by a finger of glowing off-cream foam. The nose comprises earthy berries, light maple syrup, and dry biscuit. The taste brings in more of the same, though now the berries are less tart, everything is generally sweeter, and some strong notes of oak make themselves more than known. The body is a lithe medium, with a light moderate carbonation and a drying finish. Overall, an alright beer, but one that just seems too scattershot, too schizoid, to be truly effective to my tongue. Frankly, I'm glad I've held off on buying bottles of this in the $15 or so range...

Serving type: on-tap

04-07-2013 20:11:37 | More by TMoney2591

doubleipa

Georgia

3.4/5  rDev -20.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

I've been waiting since February to drink this. I love Allagash brews, but maybe my expectations were too high. Anyway, aroma was about what I'd expected. Definitely could smell oak and vanilla. The oak seemed more pronouned then others have noticed. To me this didn't have the mouthfeel of a Strong Dark Ale. Didn't really notice the alcohol. I brought this to our neighborhood New Year's Eve party as I'm the beer geek in my neighborhood. I thought this was my chance to convert some of them Mick Light drinkers. We had started with a St Bernardus Tripel, which every one enjoyed. "Wow, this stuff is really good, what else did you bring?" Unfortunately, the Odyssey didn't go over that well. Maybe it was the oak, but I was underimpressed, as well. Not a bad beer, but not great.

Serving type: bottle

01-03-2006 16:06:51 | More by doubleipa

Phyl21ca

Quebec (Canada)

3.15/5  rDev -26.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Bottle (February 2005 drank in January 2006): Poured a deep ruby color ale with a quite large off-white foamy head with better then average retention. Aroma of alcohol is detectable with some sweet malt. Taste has definite bourbon presence with some semi-sweet malt. Body is definitely thinner then expected. I was expecting a bit more complexity from this beer – no yeast signature, alcohol taste too evident, thin body.

Serving type: bottle

01-13-2006 18:14:51 | More by Phyl21ca

BobZ

Massachusetts

3.15/5  rDev -26.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

25.4 oz. bottle poured into a .4L Weizen/Pilsner glass.

Appearance: Deep, dark, amber but not quite brown. Nice initial head of about 2” which quickly recedes to about 1/2”, decent lacing.

Smell: Some floral hops surprisingly, with some hits of malt underneath.

Taste: Interesting, malty almost nut brown-like nut flavor, no dark fruit at all and a nice hoppy bitterness on the finish. The beer matches some of the nutty characteristics of some Belgian Quads (Val-Dieu Grand Cru) but lacks the depth and complexity that the Belgian beers offer. No real flavor development beyond the bready malt and nutty flavor. The bitterness on the finish does provide a nice balance. The alcohol is completely masked. The effects of Oak aging are not noticeable.

Mouth feel: Very smooth pleasant mouthfeel, the hops clean the palate on the finish.

Overall: Not a bad beer; however, as an attempt at a Belgian Quad it again (for most American brewers) misses the mark, matching some of the flavors but missing many major components (dark fruit, Belgian candy sugar, etc.). The price point is another negative as there are much better options out there.

Serving type: bottle

11-21-2012 01:31:35 | More by BobZ