Mission St. Anniversary Ale 2011 - Steinhaus Brewing Co.

Sorcerer

United Kingdom (England)

4.58/5  rDev +15.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Here it is, obtained at Trader Joes, a wonderful promise thrown into the cart without concern.

Poured into a 0.5 liter hefe glass.

Not much head, about 1/4' on a careless pour. head dissipated quickly.

Sediment in bottle surprise.

Drank a quarter cup in one draught to make room for the swished sediment.

Flavor impression immediate peaty scotch malt comes on strong. Alcohol is not diguised. Hops to the third row seating, with big heads of malt, smoke, and alcohol hiding the stage.

Served with a sun dried tomato quesedilla appetizer after a hard day of work.

A strong drink.

Delicious.

This is a great style of beer. A friend brew something similar, but not as strong at the Los Gatos Brewery. Distant bitter chocolate and burnt coffee in the mix from a porter.

Remark that the label says this is a blend. A strange thing to drink.

8.5% ABV!

Very good.

Serving type: bottle

04-02-2011 03:17:15 | More by Sorcerer

blackie

Virginia

4.05/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

a: have had this one around for 8 months or so, served in a unibroue branded tulip, deep, opaque mahogany brown in color, head light with only a thin ring retained

s: the nose features rich semisweet and milk chocolate, sweet toffee and brown sugar, lots of smooth roasts and a slight touch of char smoke, toasted dark bread, mild earthy hops, pleasantly complex - even some hints of bourbon and tobacco here

m: carbonation light-moderate, body moderate with a nice weight

t: lots of notched up brown ale flavors - rich chocolate coated toffee, dark fruit and brown sugars, sweet to begin, with drier, more intense roasts pushing in after the swallow as a chocolate sweetness continues to linger, a nice bitterness creeps slowly into the finish, earthy, with lots of lingering malt character, tobacco, the sugars are prominent but not tiring, alcohol presence light to moderate

o: a deal at $2.99 per bomber, rich and satisfying, more than would typically be expected for the price

Serving type: bottle

04-09-2013 04:22:43 | More by blackie

BoRaeCho

California

3.5/5  rDev -11.4%

09-19-2012 17:08:18 | More by BoRaeCho

UncleBuccs

Arizona

4/5  rDev +1.3%

08-10-2012 12:11:14 | More by UncleBuccs

IKR

California

3.85/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Appearance: Dark brown with red overtones with a modest light beige head.

Smell: Mild brown sugar and bready yeast notes.

Taste: Mild roasted malt notes, brown sugar and toffee notes. There is also some mild hop bitterness.The beer finishes fairly dry with the mild hop nod faint brown sugar notes.

Mouth-feel: On the light side of medium-bodied with a modest level of carbonation.

Overall: This is a fine example of a beer that eliminates any excuse not to drink craft based on price. This is a beer that can proudly hold it's place among craft beers and is priced as cheap or cheaper than BMC. `$3 for a 22 oz Bomber, it's definitely one of the best bang for the bucks I've run across.

Serving type: bottle

07-20-2012 03:24:29 | More by IKR

draheim

Washington

3.93/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

22oz bottle into a tulip. Pours a murky brown mahogany w/ a 1-finger khaki head, not much lacing.

Aroma is heavily malty up front. Toffee, caramel, rum-soaked fruit, and some aromatic hops in the background. Dominant aroma though is almost cloyingly sweet.

Taste is, not surprisingly, sweet and malty. Brown sugar, figs, booze, and a nice roasty quality. Bittering hops balance things out somewhat, but the fruity malt remains front and center.

Mouthfeel is thick and coating.

Overall this a slow sipper of a beer. Not sure I'd drink it again, even if I could.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2012 03:46:50 | More by draheim

El_Zilcho

Virginia

3.5/5  rDev -11.4%

05-15-2012 03:15:13 | More by El_Zilcho

1Adam12

Indiana

4.25/5  rDev +7.6%

05-11-2012 23:52:55 | More by 1Adam12

JimGlonke

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -5.1%

05-07-2012 03:13:29 | More by JimGlonke

bsuedekum

Missouri

4/5  rDev +1.3%

03-24-2012 02:03:52 | More by bsuedekum

InfernoBoss

California

4.25/5  rDev +7.6%

03-23-2012 07:05:51 | More by InfernoBoss

carrollmel7

North Carolina

3.5/5  rDev -11.4%

03-06-2012 20:40:15 | More by carrollmel7

Exiled

Texas

3.75/5  rDev -5.1%

02-07-2012 02:28:47 | More by Exiled

ithinkimasofa

Washington

4/5  rDev +1.3%

01-11-2012 05:31:03 | More by ithinkimasofa

leprakhan

California

5/5  rDev +26.6%

12-08-2011 05:40:52 | More by leprakhan

DoubleSimcoe

New York

5/5  rDev +26.6%

11-28-2011 04:14:51 | More by DoubleSimcoe

nmann08

Maryland

4/5  rDev +1.3%

11-24-2011 19:51:42 | More by nmann08

I2uss

Minnesota

3/5  rDev -24.1%

11-18-2011 17:57:02 | More by I2uss

KevSal

California

5/5  rDev +26.6%

11-17-2011 04:15:08 | More by KevSal

thekevlarkid

Maryland

3.95/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Out of a bomber I picked up at Trader Joe’s in Santa Fe this beer was a very dark brown, almost black color but when it was held to sunlight it revelad ruby highlights. The head was a towering pile of tan foam. The retention was good and it left clumps of lacing. The aroma was of caramel, toffee, dark fruits and some chocolate. The flavors were good, I kept thinking “This beer was $3.99?” I tasted lots of caramel and toffee along with dates, figs, cocoa and behind that alcohol. The mouthfeel was smooth, the body medium/full and the carbonation appropriate. A total bargain for the quality.

Serving type: bottle

11-04-2011 11:55:32 | More by thekevlarkid

Thorpe429

Illinois

3.15/5  rDev -20.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Thanks to deftim13 for this bottle. Served in a Mikasa tulip.

Pours black with a very thin off-white head with no retention. Thin collar. There are some dark fruits and light chocolate. Moderate brown sugar. Faint sweetness in the body. Nothing really going on. Some chocolate. Medium body and a dry finish. Just okay.

Serving type: bottle

09-20-2011 10:46:21 | More by Thorpe429

Gueuzedude

Arizona

4/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

An aggressive pour into my Lost Abbey Teku glass produces a four-finger thick, pale brown tinged, tan colored head that just barely crests the rim of the glass; te head leaves lots of lacing on the sides of the glass as it slowly subsides. The beer is a dark, concentrated brown color that shows a brilliantly clear, ruby-brown color when held up to the light. The aroma smells of roasted, dark coffee and raisins up front and picks up a browned, toasty, whole grain character through the middle that then finishes with fermented dried fruit notes and more roast grain burnt notes. Despite my noticing the roasted character in this beer, it is not overly strong or even on the level of a stout. The nose really has quite a bit of fruitiness to it and I am actually surprised that it doesn’t smell more distinctly of crystal malt (but it doesn’t really, so this must have been used pretty sparingly).

Slightly creamy textured up front, a touch of prickly carbonation adds some livliness as it slides across the tongue, but the finish sees the beer becoming quite creamy textured and smooth; the body actually has a decent viscosity to it, though I wouldn’t say it was overly heavy for a beer of this strength. The finish has some acrid roast malt character to it, just a touch, as well as a firm bitterness. There seems to be a bit of hop character here that contributes quite a bit of fruitiness to the flavor with the focus initially being on berry notes, but now that I know it is hops, a definite citrus hop character here as well; flavors of tangelo, grapefruit marmalade, blackberry-orange juice and currant jam are all noticeable hop contributed.

Speaking of which, when armed with this knowledge and I go back and smell the nose I am realizing that a lot of the fruit character in the nose is from citrusy hop notes. There are even some herbal aromatic notes here that contribute notes of pine. The bitterness in the finish can be almost raw at times, though it is never overly aggressive (at least from the hop head perspective). I had this beer once before when I just wanted a beer to drink, so I didn’t think about it too much, but hadn’t realized at the time how hoppy this beer actually was. The malt character provides a nice foil to the hop character (the latter seems to be the dominant character in this beer, though the malt certainly plays a significant role here); it provides a nice toasty, brown bread like character, in combination with the hops an almost spicy rye-like note and a fruit accentuating, caramelized malt character that contributes some nice level of crystal malt flavors to support the hops. This is quite a nice beer and I would love to buy a bunch of this to drink, the only problem is that this hop focused beer needs to be drunk fresh (at least for my tastes).

Serving type: bottle

08-03-2011 22:48:58 | More by Gueuzedude

Slatetank

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to my Mom for bringing this back from CA for me-enjoyed in a tulip chilled, shared with my wife octopus87.

This is a very dark brown color bordering on black, translucent clarity and a thick smooth cap of tan which settles to about 1/4 inch and an atoll formation in the center. The bead is very fine and the lace sticks in spots. The smell is decent with some strong toffee/caramel aromas which come off sweet and slightly buttery with a slight vanilla from the wood. The feel is sweet but not quite cloying it has some girth and heft with a full round creamy texture and semi-sweet as it finishes with mild carbonation and slight alcohol presence throughout.

I enjoyed the first sip while it is cool it seems slightly fruity like dates or ripe banana, but it becomes more caramel and almost cocoa influenced as it warms with some toasted graininess and light brown sugar element. The alcohol is noticeable which holds it back a little, but there is a nice mild yeast flavor and mostly malt and wood flavors which bring out the vanilla character in this. I had no idea it was a FW blend of bw, porter and stout, but I enjoyed the way the malt presence unfolds and found the gentle tannic quality from the wood to add to the complexity slightly. I wood drink this again. I know the description says it was not barrel aged but there is definitely some wood flavor in this which is mild and enjoyable. I recommend this to anyone based on value for what you get I got this as a gift, but I was told it was reasonable.

Serving type: bottle

07-08-2011 18:45:11 | More by Slatetank

HoopTime

Pennsylvania

3.95/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A- Poured from a 22-ounce bomber into a Sam's perfect pint glass, it has a rich, cola color with hints of ruby when held to a light. The tan head formed about 1/4 inch thick and quickly dissipated into a thin layer of lace on top.

S - Caramel, coffee and chocolate give way to a deep almost brandy scent. There is some fruit there – maybe dark red grape or plum in the nose. The malts definitely dominate the smell of this one.

T - Malty, with a oaky, coffee finish. This is sweet without being annoying. The hops are not real present in the nose or on the tongue, but there is enough to give it balance, just enough bitterness.

M - Medium body with enough carbonation to tickle your tongue. The carbonation, though mild, is deep, retaining its tingle as you roll the beer across your tongue.

D - At 8.6 abv, and with its strong taste and finish, this is no session guzzler. This is a sipping beer, at home with a strong rich food like tomato sauce and Italian sausage, or ribs. try it as a nightcap with a little well-aged sharp Canadian cheddar.

This is a nice cellarable beer. My only regret is that I didn't load up on this at $2.99 at Trader Joe's. This is a very good beer, forget the price. I will be interested in seeing how the other bottle of this I bought holds up a few months from now.

Serving type: bottle

07-02-2011 23:27:45 | More by HoopTime

peacebone116

California

3.83/5  rDev -3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Picked up this bottle from Trader Joe's in February (I believe), but did not have the occasion to enjoy it until 5/20/11. Poured from a 22-oz bottle into Delirium snifter.

A: Dark brown body with tan to white head that slowly recedes to the sides of the glass leaving a white haze to swirl in the middle.

N: Not an intense smell, but a subtle scent of wet cereal & chocolate & coffee.

T/M: Sweet, creamy, cocoa up front with a light bitterness in the back. The body is thick with light prickliness on the tongue from the modest carbonation.

Not an overwhelmingly awesome beer, but a really tasty brew nonetheless. I have always really liked the the beers from Mission St. (especially for the price) and they were a constant staple for me during my late years of college and first years out. I will admit that I am swayed to give the beer better ratings after reading that it is a blend of FW's barley wine, imp. stout, & porter....but, I will stick to my original opinion of the beer. I hope they put this one out again, especially at the modest price (~$4) I got it for.

Serving type: bottle

07-01-2011 15:01:12 | More by peacebone116