Maniac Alt
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant

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From:
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant
 
United States
Style:
Altbier
ABV:
6.8%
Score:
88
Avg:
3.92 | pDev: 8.93%
Reviews:
9
Ratings:
15
Status:
Active
Rated:
Sep 22, 2014
Added:
May 28, 2006
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  1
No description / notes.
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Ratings by bros:

  None found.

 
Rated: 3.5 by mpalestino from Pennsylvania

Sep 22, 2014
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4 by SeanyK12345 from Pennsylvania

Sep 17, 2014
 
Rated: 3.25 by Rifugium from North Dakota

Oct 28, 2013
 
Rated: 3.25 by Sammy from Canada (ON)

Aug 08, 2013
Photo of tobelerone
Reviewed by tobelerone from New Jersey

4.18/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
A terrific take on the altbier style, on tap at Iron Hill in Media, PA.

Pours a clear, dark amber color, with a big, slowly settling eggshell head. Excellent, creamy-looking lace clinging to the glass in sheets.

Sweet toffee and bready caramel malts in the nose, a good dose of herbal, citrusy hops emerging underneath as well as a light fruitiness. Flavor follows the aroma; big and flavorful malt character; sweet caramel and nutty, toasted bread; herbal, fruity, earthy hops; lingering aftertaste of sweet malt and lightly bitter hop notes.

Medium body with smooth carbonation; creamy feel with some heft but still went down very easily. I enjoyed the heck out of this one, loads of flavor to satisfy a malty craving. A real eye-opener; I didn't expect to get as excited as I did about this. One of the better alts I've come across to be sure.
Nov 01, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by GreatPumpkin from Pennsylvania

Jan 01, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by jniagar1 from Pennsylvania

Dec 06, 2011
Photo of pburland23
Reviewed by pburland23 from Pennsylvania

3.85/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Picked up a growler to go after dinner at Iron Hill Media.

Poured into a standard shaker pint glass.

Beer pours a pretty ordinary looking dark brown with a thin layer of light brown head. Head dissipated quickly and there wasn't much lacing.

Smells of sweet malts and not much else. Nutty and some hints of fall fruits. Taste is similar. The sweetness of the malts really shines through. Every once in a while, I'm in the mood for a malty beer and Maniac Alt hit that spot. Nice, mellow sweetness through and through. No noticeable hops bitterness.

Mouthfeel is a little sticky. Light carbonation but pretty good drinkability. ABV is on the high side for an alt, but the alcohol is well cloaked in this one.

Overall, I don't drink alts very often, but perhaps I should. Nice malty beer that proves you don't need a ton of hops to make a flavorful beer.
Nov 08, 2011
Photo of Kegatron
Reviewed by Kegatron from Pennsylvania

4.3/5  rDev +9.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
On tap @ Iron Hill Media on 10/16/11. Served in a tulip glass.

Pours a deep brown in the glass, possibly more along the lines of a dark ruby, topped with a ½ finger cap of bright-white froth. This retains with a rich foaminess, leaving back a smattering of robust lacing. The aroma is rich and sticky feeling in the nose, with chocolate, toffee, ripe citric fruit, and burnt toast character that surrounds the other flavors on the edges. It’s those citrus flavors here that are really making the nose work for me.

The taste is equally rich, with caramel, ripe dark fruit, and a flush of cocoa and dark roast across the back. An earthy and citric bitterness adds some zip to this but the overall impression here is ripe, roasty, and sticky feeling on the palate, with a finish that is dry and bitter, with a burnt feel that lingers. The mouthfeel is medium bodied; with a prickly feel up front that then smoothes out considerably across the rest of the mouth. The alcohol is well hid here, with a touch of lingering warmth after each sip. This is a deceptive drinker for sure.

Wow. This has got to be probably the single best Alt that I’ve ever had, with a delicious depth of flavor that you don’t usually find in the style. I dare say even call this a little bit decadent feeling, with all of that sweet malt and juicy dark fruit. And then the easy sipping body only added to this. I decided to give this one a go based on the good reviews on here and I was pleased to find that they didn’t disappoint.
Oct 19, 2011
Photo of SolipsismalCat
Reviewed by SolipsismalCat from Pennsylvania

4.23/5  rDev +7.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Served in an oversized wine glass.

A: Dark brown with a half-finger, off-white head that diminished to a nice film for the duration. Some bits of lacing.

S: Rich malt aroma. Fruity and nutty. Very appetizing.

T: Sweet with some hop bitterness to balance. Very rich and roasted flavor. Coffee. Nutty. Nice.

M: Medium bodied. Thick and creamy. Smooth and slightly dry. Soft carbonation.

O: This was awesome. Smelled and tasted wonderful and very drinkable. Will definitely try again.
Oct 10, 2011
Photo of boatshoes
Reviewed by boatshoes from Massachusetts

3.98/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Stopped by Iron Hill for a visit this weekend and thought I'd give the alt a try. Hadn't seen it on tap before, and it is one of my favorite styles that I don't often see on tap.

Appearance- Came off the tap with about a half finger of creamy looking white head sitting atop a dark chestnut brown body that lets in some ruby highlights. Head dies back to a ring around the edge after a couple of minutes. Some mild lacing left as I drank as well

Smell- Smells of mild roasted malts, some caramel and brown sugar sweetness. Very mild alcohol bite coming through on the nose as well. Not overly complex but smells nice and easy drinking all around.

Taste- Rich roasted malt and some brown sugar again up front. Some bready notes and a mild nuttiness as well. A touch of warming alcohol on the finish. Flavorful and easy drinking if again not overly complex.

Mouthfeel/Drinkability- Mouthfeel is substantial and adequately carbonated. I actually found that the drinkability on this one was quite good though. Flavors were rich but not overwhelming and before I knew it the beer was gone.

Overall, one of the better random seasonal offerings I've had at Iron Hill. If not for the slightly high ABV, this one would make a great session beer.
Apr 14, 2010
Photo of mempath
Reviewed by mempath from Pennsylvania

4.42/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
just bought the growler last night...already had a few then...today it still pours a nice bright deep reddish-amber. off-white thick head that laces a little. but the vigorous pour keeps the head thick for some time.

smell is nice and rich. alot of alcohol mixed with fruity-nuttiness and deep malts. yeah, seems maniacal.

comes across like a barleywine in its intensity. very nutty. and roasty-toasty. and malty. sweet with a sour alcohol note. wow.
lots of depth and finish...still quite drinkable due to it's fireworks. be careful. for all it's flair, the body is thin enough to keep things from getting cloying. i'd session 3 of these with a nice sandwich if i was at the restaurant. nearly 7%, be careful. especially with the enticing taste!
Apr 03, 2010
Photo of MmmIPA
Reviewed by MmmIPA from Pennsylvania

3.63/5  rDev -7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
Dark cola looking body with a small tan head that fell pretty fast.Small amount of bubbles,very scotchy smell and taste.Nice caramel taste there as well.A bit on the harsh side bit really tasty.Good beer none the less and my first beer of this style.
Sep 09, 2007
Photo of WonderWoman
Reviewed by WonderWoman from Pennsylvania

4.03/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
The beer poured a cherry wood color that looked much like the bar counter were I was sitting. There was some foam that quickly fizzled to a fine rim around the glass.
Smells of barley, concord grapes, and a hint of hoisin surfaced when smelt.
I could taste the alcohol in this one, but it wasn’t over powering. Chocolaty hops and ginger snaps is mainly what clung to my palate.
The mouth feel was syrupy yet creamy and smooth with bits of carbonation.
This was the first Alt I’ve tried, it reminded me of a barley wine. I really liked it.
May 29, 2006
Photo of DarkerTheBetter
Reviewed by DarkerTheBetter from Minnesota

4.23/5  rDev +7.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
This beer came a dark cola with some gold highlights. The pale tan oatmeal head fell to a creamy film in no time.

Smelled of slightly smoky, gooey barley with hints of melon and red grape.

Tasted light and smooth with a deliciously subtle anise and sweet prune that falls into a woody vegetable (lettuce and celery) hop.

The mouth feel was light to medium bodied with a crisp and tingly small bubbled carbonation.

I really enjoyed this beer. It was big and sweet, but clean hoppy in the finish.
May 28, 2006
Maniac Alt from Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant
Beer rating: 88 out of 100 with 15 ratings