Geary's Hampshire Special Ale - D.L. Geary Brewing Company

nixhecks

Rhode Island

3.58/5  rDev -9.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This ale poured a red-brown with a small creamy white head. The nose is full of malty sweetness featuring caramel and molasses. The taste was much milder than many of the strong ales I have had and only a bit of barley-wine sweetness showed through. As soon as I thought the sweetness might be too much, the hops kicked in and balanced the whole thing out. While I wasn't overly impressed by HSA, I would recommend it as a good winter ale.

Serving type: bottle

02-28-2003 16:36:32 | More by nixhecks

tavernjef

Minnesota

3.58/5  rDev -9.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Clear copper color with a one inch ivory colored head of smooth, thick fluff that faded super fast to a thick skim and fast dripping lace. Aroma is faint of woodish dryness with touches of leafy dry hops, light caramel, and dulled citrus. Taste is mild and subdued, with lightly sweet roasty/toasty breadish malts, lightly playing hop bitterness lending a bit of leafyness and citrus. Notes of dry wood. Malts build a bit more into the finish with some light chewyness and sweet tang of fruits that are hard to distinguish, pear maybe? Feel is quite smooth and medium bodied with an easy carbonation, finishes a bit crisp with lingering malted sweetness. An OK Old Ale if there ever was one. Thanks to mydeadguy for the bottle through BIF 4.0

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2003 00:43:57 | More by tavernjef

guinness33

New Jersey

3.58/5  rDev -9.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

i, for one, don't see what all the hype is about here. to preface, this is not a bad brew...at all. far from it, in fact. but what is also is not is the beer to end all beers like i've heard described. it pours a sloid dark amber colour with a moderate head that just doesn't last for very long and leaves almost no lacing. the smell is of butter, toffee, malt, and, along with in the taste, but maybe moreso here in the smell, is a weird rubber tire type presence. it's just a bit off to me and that alone knocks this one out of the '4' catergory for smell and taste. other than that, it is quite nice, with malt and alcohol dominating the flavour with that nagging rubber taste in the back. this is a moderately bold brew that i'd revisit again for sure, but would have trouble having more than 2, maybe 3, in a sitting. overall, i'd recommend trying this one at least once, but i'll stick to my favourite geary's brew (and one of, if not my overall favourite of the new england brews), their standard pale ale any day over this one.

Serving type: bottle

03-31-2004 02:55:48 | More by guinness33

bruachan

Rhode Island

3.58/5  rDev -9.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

i think i failed to adequately rinse my glass, as the beer had no head whatsoever. it's a fairly nice copper color, though

it's pretty highly carbonated, and that takes away from the malt experience. brown sugar aroma, with date and raisin. more darker fruit flavors in the flavor. strong bitterness

Serving type: bottle

10-06-2006 00:59:03 | More by bruachan

matty

Pennsylvania

3.58/5  rDev -9.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Amber colored beer with rapidly fading head.Aroma is dark fruit.Taste is dark fruit,caramel and toffee.This is one of the most aromatic beers I've had in awhile.Taste and smooth,you cannot tell this beer is 7% from just taste alone.I would recommend and purcahse again!!

Serving type: bottle

01-05-2009 04:34:52 | More by matty

ryrust5301

Louisiana

3.58/5  rDev -9.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance - Golden orange in color. Very thin but ample head with a moderate amount of lacing.

Smell - Deep sweet malt with a faint fruitiness. Besides that I couldn't really pick up much else.

Taste & Mouthfeel - Wow is this one sweet! Huge malt and honey sweetness give it a deep body. Apple accounts for some of the fruit flavor, but can't quite put my finger on the others. Very creamy and full in the mouthfeel, making it very easy to drink.

Drinkability - A little to sweet for my taste, but a very good stab at the strong ale style. Quite a nice offering.

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2009 22:27:07 | More by ryrust5301

jballeng

Florida

3.58/5  rDev -9.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured a dark amber with a relatively small, short-lived head. A sweet, malty aroma. Dry mouthfeel with a surprisingly thin body. A complex flavor of apples, pineapple, cedar, and woodsmokes. A slightly bitter finish with little presence of the alcohol.

A delightful little ale.

Serving type: bottle

06-13-2009 02:00:46 | More by jballeng

BuckeyeNation

Iowa

3.6/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

None other than JohnnyP himself says that HSA is better the fresher it is, so I'm drinking this bottle within 10 days of receiving it in a trade. Thanks mikeys01.

Clear red/orange/amber, mostly orange. The head is medium tan and on the small side. It falls to a uniform, thick film and leaves small sheets of lace. The nose is interesting; malt-dominant with sweet, spiced dark fruit and hops. It's pretty complex and it's beyond my ability to pick out all of the various contributors.

The flavor follows the nose pretty closely. Sweet, toasted caramel malt, dried fruit (raisins, cherries), hard apple cider and spicy hops are the main elements. It's also a little vinous with a wee bit of evident alcohol. The finish is long and warming and the beer seems to drink higher than the stated ABV. The mouthfeel is an uncreamy medium-full and the initially exuberant carbonation settled down nicely by the second half of the bottle.

I'm not a big fan of strong ales, but this one is actually drinkable and enjoyable. Many of them are too solvent-like for my tastes. HSA is complex and tasty; too bad it doesn't have a wider distribution. I'd love to have the opportunity to try it on-tap some day.

Serving type: bottle

04-15-2004 20:49:55 | More by BuckeyeNation

TheTrevor

New York

3.6/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

This beer poured a dark copper color with very little head. It smells of toasted malts and a hint of sweetness. The taste is pleasant with a sweet tartness followed by a little bit of hops. This is a very easy drinking beer with a pleasant crisp mouthfeel. I expect I may be picking it up again in the future.

Serving type: bottle

12-07-2007 04:37:36 | More by TheTrevor

Durge

Connecticut

3.6/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Encountered this specialty brew at The Great Lost Bear in Portland, ME. It has a dark clear copper color with a scanty white head and fair lacing. The aroma captures plenty of woodsy malt and light floral hops. The flavor declares a smooth fruity malt that harbors just a hint of wheaty alcohol. There's a touch of bubblegum and more of that floral sweetness. After the initial acclimation you pick up the dry hop aftermath. I don't feel this is very complex, there's not much to say. It's medium drinkable, not something I would rave about, OK, that's about it. Malty alcohol and some dry hop. Just not winning me over.

Serving type: on-tap

09-04-2009 03:00:16 | More by Durge

DavoleBomb

Ohio

3.6/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a pint glass.

A4.5 : Must say that this is a fine looking beer. Crystal clear amber in color. Off-white (with a touch of yellow) creamy as hell head with above average retention and tons of lacing.

3.5 S: Nose is full of sticky sweetness and a touch of graininess. No sign of hops as malts dominate. Crystal malts.

3.5 T: Way more balanced that I was expecting. There is a pleasant hop bitterness that I wasn't expecting. Buttery diacetyl accompanies lots of sweet caramel malt flavor. A touch grainy as in the nose.

4.0 M: Medium body. Good creaminess. Could use more carbonation, but carb is fine for the English style.

3.5 D: Not a bad brew, but not really my cup of tea. I'm not a big fan of English styles.

Serving type: bottle

09-09-2009 03:29:52 | More by DavoleBomb

koopa

New Jersey

3.6/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Bottle brought back by a buddy who went snowboarding up north.

Appearance: Pours a transparent "dark iced tea" color with a 2 finger slightly off white crown that shows good retention and lace.

Smell: Metallic macro like suck ass smell when poured cold. Notes of caramel and molasses make a tiny appearance as it warms.

Taste: Malt centric with decent fruity notes...figs dominate. A touch of bitter herbal hops in the finish as well.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, decent carbonation, and a touch syrupy.

Drinkability: The flavor profile, the 7% abv, and the syrupy quality lower the score for me.

Serving type: bottle

04-09-2010 22:29:29 | More by koopa

capeannbass36

Massachusetts

3.6/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A- Had on tap at Mac's Grille in Auburn, Maine.
Arrived in a pint glass. Sort of ice tea color, one finger off white head.

S- Some sweet malt. Some fruit.

T- Flavor is similar to smell, but less intense.

M- Unfortunately this draft was pretty flat. Minimal carbonation. Huge disappointment. Slightly warm, boozy feel.

O- Didn't even bother to finish. Too flat. Temperature was fairly cold. That felt right. Flavor and carbonation did not cut it for me.

Serving type: on-tap

08-05-2011 21:45:43 | More by capeannbass36

GuyIncognito

Maine

3.6/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Popped one of these open tonight, and poured it into a pint glass. It has a beautiful reddish-brown hue, with a light fizzy head that disappeared almost immediately. Wonderful malty aroma, and plenty of malt taste, but with a decisive bitter finish. Good solid beer, but a little flat. Geary's beer always reminds me of when beer was beer, if you know what I mean. A strong old school foundation. This is a good beer, but not really my style.

Serving type: bottle

09-18-2012 00:36:57 | More by GuyIncognito

Indybeer

Indiana

3.63/5  rDev -8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle courtesy of JohnnyP. Poured a copper/red color with a moderate head that quickly faded leaving a fine lace ring on the glass. Aroma is sweet and malty with a shot of hops. Taste starts off sweet from the malt and then you get that hop twang, and the alcohol warmth. Nicely carbonated. Thanks again JohnnyP for the chance to sample this great brew.

Serving type: bottle

01-21-2004 01:37:11 | More by Indybeer

andyo

Ohio

3.63/5  rDev -8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Interesting beer. I am not all that familiar with this style, so my review will not be all that in-depth.

poured an orange/brown, with almost no head. The smell of this beer shows hints of spice and alcohol. Taste is butterscotch, brown sugar, bitterness, a little spice, and faint alcohol. Nice bold malty flavor comes through really nice.

This is a very smooth beer, and would warm me up just nice in the winter.

Serving type: bottle

05-22-2004 22:47:05 | More by andyo

Naes

New York

3.63/5  rDev -8.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This is amber in color with a tall cream colored head.
Its aroma is a mix of toasted malt with a mild hop presence.
The flavor has a bit more hops than the nose with a solid malt base. It’s semi bitter near the finish, though the maltyness becomes dominant as it warms. Quite sweet.
Mouth feel is a bit oily and actively carbonated.

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2006 02:24:58 | More by Naes

jamie2dope

Massachusetts

3.63/5  rDev -8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This brew poured a very nice red/copper color with a thick white head that died down very quickly. Smell was somewhat medicinal with toasted malt and grain along with some cherry and wine aromas surfacing as well...kind of barleyine like. The taste had a good deal of complexities to it; namely burnt grain and some biscuit in there also. Funny how the smell differed so much from the taste. Mouthfeel was very medium bodied and prickly. Although none of the flavors were overpowering, I don't think I could drink more then one or two of these beers. A very interesting offering....seemed very similar to an altbier in the taste and mouthfeel. Definetly a beer worth trying.

Serving type: bottle

02-07-2006 02:29:52 | More by jamie2dope

Dogbrick

Ohio

3.63/5  rDev -8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a mostly clear reddish-brown color with a medium thick and creamy light tan head that has good retention. Patchy lacing on the glass. Equal parts toasted malt and hops in the nose. Medium, smooth body with a moderately hoppy character supported by sweet caramel and malt flavors. Mild spice and alcohol are present too. The finish is hoppy with touches of toasted malt and fruit in the aftertaste. Straightforward and easy to drink, this is a pretty good session beer.

Serving type: bottle

11-02-2007 20:27:52 | More by Dogbrick

PhageLab

Virginia

3.63/5  rDev -8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a chalice of power.

A - Ruby brown coloration, thin bot of froth, nice swirling effects on the top, fine lacing.

S - Roasted toffee and plum. Notes of toasted nuts and a hint of booze.

T - Rich and flavorful, dark fruits with a sufficient malty backbone. Gets a bit sweet at parts, but I can deal with it here, as this is a finely balanced brew.

M - Full bodied, nice carbonation level, and a nice aftertaste that lingers for several moments after a sip.

D - A very tasty brew, and one worth seeking out. I've yet to experience many in this field, but I must say, this has certainly sparked my interests.

Serving type: bottle

04-02-2008 02:59:04 | More by PhageLab

Beastdog75

New Jersey

3.63/5  rDev -8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Got this one in a Geary's sampler pack. Geary's H.S.A. was a surprising brew for me, as I was pretty much just expecting a run of the mill ale, but this one was pretty nice.

H.S.A. pours a slightly murky brownish copper color. A healthy head of foam forms and lasts for several minutes. A nice malty aroma hits the nose, with dark fruits and caramel being present. Some woody aromas and some hoppiness are smellable as well. The mouthfeel was a bit sticky with a low-moderate amount of carbonation present. As for the flavor, it is indeed a bit on the sweet side with a big malty flavor present bringing with it some dark fruit/raisin taste. The hop bitterness hit me a bit unexpectedly, and I can only describe it as woody/citric/herbal/spicy. The beer ends up feeling in a word, "warm." This hop bitterness lingers on in the aftertaste along with some of the sticky maltiness. The warming sensation from the alcohol is nice and brings the beer to a full conclusion.

I would definitely recommend this. The brew is surprisingly complex and is quite drinkable for an ale of its strength.

Serving type: bottle

06-24-2009 01:56:53 | More by Beastdog75

donkeyrunner

Massachusetts

3.63/5  rDev -8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3

"New Hampshire's alright if you like fighting." - Scissorfight

Paired with a crappy New England winter.

Dark amber color with a pristine off-white head. Thick skim retention leaves a few lacey fingers.

Intense fruity aroma: cherries and candy apple primarily. Some toasted malt seeping out from the candied sweetness. Taste has the candied fruit carryover but with and underlying swampy bitter and cherry wood polish booze. A little slick on the tongue. Buttery Ringwood aftertaste.

Cough drop--ish at times, earthy at others but consistently approachable and warming.

Serving type: bottle

03-15-2010 23:55:55 | More by donkeyrunner

silver0rlead

North Carolina

3.65/5  rDev -8.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours a nice amber with a descent beige head that recedes quickly but leaves some lace. The aroma has a nice caramel sweetness, along with some buttery diacetyl. Some berry and cherry fruits, honey and a touch floral hops and a hint of alcohol...subtle and british. The flavor starts of with some big malt; caramel, toasted bread, berries and cherries, and honey. Also a fair amount of diacetyl, as well as some esters and alcohol. The mouthfeel is big and slightly chewy with subtle carbonation and drinkability is descent. An enjoyable english strong ale, but a bit much on the diacetyl for my tastes.

Serving type: bottle

02-14-2006 03:15:55 | More by silver0rlead

NJpadreFan

New Jersey

3.65/5  rDev -8.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Geary's- Hampshire Special Ale

A- Deep clear amber with a huge frothy head. Good chunky lacing.
S- Sweet buttery toffee with hints of vanilla and oak?
T- Big buttery toffee malt with a creamy vanilla touch. Chewy bready malt dominates with slight earthy woodsy tones in the back half.
M- Thick and buttery. Huge malt with a slight metallic alc. tinge.

Overall- Big buttery and sweet make this a bit cloying. alc., eventually, smoothes out.

Serving type: bottle

12-27-2008 22:13:59 | More by NJpadreFan

tigg924

Massachusetts

3.65/5  rDev -8.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: clear, amber, 1/2 inch head, high carbonation

Smell: toasted malt, sugar, and spices

Taste: sweet malt, caramel, raisins, and a touch of hops on the finish

Mouthfeel: sweet, smooth, sticky, with a slightly bitter aftertaste

Drinkability: I think this one hid the alcohol fairly well. I could have a couple as I enjoy the sweetness, but not more.

Serving type: bottle

07-06-2009 17:17:01 | More by tigg924