Brooklyn Monster Ale - Brooklyn Brewery

Displayed for educational use only; do not reuse.

BA SCORE
84
good
-
1,463 Ratings

rAvg: 3.7
pDev: 13.51%
Reviews: 1016
Hads: 447

Ratings Help

Brewed by:
Brooklyn Brewery

New York, United States

Style | ABV
English Barleywine | 10.10% ABV

Availability: Fall. bottle (970), on-tap (42), growler (3).

Notes:
ABV varies a bit year to year.

View: Beers (51) | Events (0)

Reviews

Sort by: Latest | High | Low | Top Reviewers |

Alström Bros | Show Hads:

« first ‹ prev | 1-25 | 26-50 | 51-75 | next › last »

Reviews by JamesMN:

JamesMN

Minnesota

3.98/5 rDev +7.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This Monster Ale was born in 2012.

Appearance: Beautiful golden amber hue with stunning clarity. Thick streams of effervescence ascend towards a one finger foamy off-white head.

Aroma: At first wiff it is oddly skunky… something I've never experienced with a craft beer or an ale for that matter. However, upon digging deeper into the aroma I'm finding that what I thought was a skunky smell is actually the culmination of a huge amount of english barley. Really smells quite nice when you stick your nose in the glass. Like sugar coated grains mixed with some earth and pine from the hops.

Taste: Right away I'm getting piney hop bitterness with a touch of alcohol. The bitterness magnifies the entire time as caramel malt cascades over the palate. Not quite as robust as I was expecting but does the job. Finish is smooth with some heat from the 10.1% ABV (as marked on the bottle). Bitterness lingers but is never overpowering.

Mouthfeel: Just above medium bodied which is a little thin for a Barleywine in my opinion. Very smooth (four months of aging will do that). A little over-carbonated and yet has good drinkability.

Final Thoughts: I've been really getting into Barleywines lately but unfortunately Monster Ale is not one of the better ones. There is just something a little 'off' about it. Would I drink it again? Maybe, if it was on sale I'd cellar some.

Serving type: bottle

01-29-2013 03:06:01 | More by JamesMN

More User Reviews:

mikeincharleston

South Carolina

3.75/5 rDev +1.4%

05-22-2013 01:11:16 | More by mikeincharleston

seplo

Connecticut

3.25/5 rDev -12.2%

05-21-2013 16:48:11 | More by seplo

Mish

Texas

4.75/5 rDev +28.4%

05-21-2013 16:28:00 | More by Mish

jibjib513

Ohio

3.75/5 rDev +1.4%

05-21-2013 12:45:07 | More by jibjib513

Benny3000

Michigan

3.5/5 rDev -5.4%

05-20-2013 22:38:48 | More by Benny3000

CraftBeerTastic

Pennsylvania

3.73/5 rDev +0.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Ba Review #272
Served On: 5/20/2013
Glassware: Duvel Glass
Labeled ABV: 10.1%
Date/ Code: 2012 Release

This was a 12oz bottle from a 24 bottle case I snagged at North York Beverage in York, PA ($34.98).

Look: The aggressive pour rendered a thin beige head comprised of tiny bubbles. Lacing was minimal. Carbonation level was low with a small but steady stream of bubbles rising up the middle. The color was brilliant copper color with surprising good clarity.

Smell: Heavy sweet plum and raisin notes. Heavy candy sugar with some very faint biscuit in the background.

Taste: First up was a cloyingly sweet burst of caramelized winter fruits and brown sugar. Then a roasted note set in towards the middle, like burnt sugar in a frying pan. Then a quick bitterness hit, but nothing that contributed to any balance to the heavy malt sweetness. The finish was some lingering biscuit and raisin notes. The aftertaste had the sweetness moving into some bitterness again. 10.1% ABV gave a warming sensation but was note a big factor on the palate aside from some metallic notes.

I found this brew to be a solid English Style BW. I don’t know that this one would age very well. I’m afraid the high level of sweetness would just become more intense.

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2013 16:08:14 | More by CraftBeerTastic