Victor's MemoriAle Altbier - Two Brothers Brewing Company

falloutsnow

Illinois

4.08/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

From: Binny's, Schaumburg, IL
Date: None listed, arrived on shelves around early October
Glass: Ayinger willi glass

Two Brothers' Victor's Altbier finds itself a dark and toasted version of the style that lands itself in "sticke" territory. With a very nice expressive aroma and taste that features toasted bread and nuts, a bit of cocoa, and some nicely bittering European hops. Would definitely get again and would appreciate this being a seasonal or rotating release.

Pours a moderately dark tan, 2cm head of small to medium-sized bubbles, quite dense, producing quite a thick head. Head gradually falls to a thick ring around the glass Lacing is present, somewhat modest, small spheres of foam sticking to the sides of the glass and a few lines. Body is a very dark brown color, nearly opaque, with light bringing out orange-amber hues. Carbonation is not visible, but clearly present in supporting the head.

Aroma is of darkly toasted brown bread, toasted walnuts and hazelnuts, slight black tea, very faint herbal European hops, and general thick, malty sweetness. Overall impression is of toasted bread and nuts with some minor complexity added by the hops and tea scents.

Taste is influenced by the toasted walnuts and hazelnuts meeting modest cocoa. Front of palate picks up toasted dark bread and nuts, cocoa, even a bit of coffee and marshmallow. Mid-palate features these flavors alongside spicy European hops and tannins as from black tea. Back of palate continues spicy European hops alongside decreased toasted bread, nut, and cocoa presence. Lingering aftertastes of toasted bread and nuts, cocoa, even a bit of marshmallow: not a stout, but a heavy German-style brown ale that veers towards one.

Beer is medium to medium-heavy in body, with moderate to moderate-light carbonation. The resulting mouthfeel is smooth and creamy, with just enough carbonic pep to make this move across the palate smoothly and easily. Closes rather dry, with substantial stickiness around the lips.

Serving type: bottle

11-14-2012 02:30:27 | More by falloutsnow

spycow

Illinois

4/5  rDev -2.2%

05-01-2013 05:47:53 | More by spycow

stortore

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +3.9%

03-09-2013 03:33:50 | More by stortore

Hopheadjeffery

Illinois

5/5  rDev +22.2%

03-02-2013 16:43:12 | More by Hopheadjeffery

thinwhiteduke

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +3.9%

02-27-2013 01:51:48 | More by thinwhiteduke

matjack85

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -8.3%

02-03-2013 00:35:05 | More by matjack85

brandoman63

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +3.9%

01-16-2013 15:25:26 | More by brandoman63

PHBoiler

Illinois

2.5/5  rDev -38.9%

01-15-2013 22:20:57 | More by PHBoiler

EGolfer4

Illinois

4/5  rDev -2.2%

01-08-2013 17:54:54 | More by EGolfer4

SerialHiker

Illinois

4.2/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Appearance: Pours brown to dark brown…nice tan khaki head, a good inch wide…long lasting too, I might add…tons of good carbonation with this ale…(4.25/5)

Smell: Initially there isn’t too much smell happening…most likely because of the awesome head that sticking around…even after head recedes, there isn’t too much aroma…fruity and malty scents in there if I really dig my nose all up in there…(3.5/5)

Taste: Nice, smooth roasted malts…there’s an earthiness to it…hops shows halfway through and does a fantastic balancing job…piney and mildly bitter after taste…there seems to be a smidge of chocolate, cherry and creamy flavors in there as well….(4.25/5)

Mouthfeel: Great carbonation…fluffs up real nice and settles well on the palette…no bitterness or over-maltiness here…flavor and feel doesn’t last long…sorta entices the mouth for another sip…(3.75/5)

Overall: Two Brothers does it again…this is a great ale…the flavor is dynamic and well rounded…I know that there’s a bit higher ABV here, but it’s not overly dominate like some in this range…malts and hops balance so nicely…this beer is absolutely perfect while watching Tom Brady do his thing versus, well, anybody…great beer, hope I find another before it’s gone…(4/5)

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2013 23:39:00 | More by SerialHiker

Chaney

District of Columbia

4.43/5  rDev +8.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I had this on-tap at Hackney's in the Printer's Row area of Chicago.

Served in a pint glass.

A: Poured a dark brown, damn near black color (or at much, much darker than I was expecting), with some ruby slivers poking around the edges. The finger or so sticky, mocha head made my day.

S: The caramel delectableness made this totally special, along with the whole wheat toast and Rolo candy fumes. Very inviting indeed!

T: Wow, what full complex flavor! Caramel nougat, lactose, with a sort of candy coated booze that let you know this was a high octane brew with a flavor-infused purpose. I would best describe this as a cross between a Wee Heavy and a milk stout.

M: Thick, chewy, and sticky, without being cloying in the least. The carbonation level was spot on and the lacing was mildly splotchy.

O: Consistent from start to finish. This was truly one of the highlights of my holiday vacation, therefore, I went next door to a local wine shop and grabbed a bottle to bring back to DC to share at a future tasting.

Serving type: on-tap

12-27-2012 11:48:46 | More by Chaney

JimmyFlatRock

Ohio

3.75/5  rDev -8.3%

12-25-2012 19:48:29 | More by JimmyFlatRock

sgoro

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -8.3%

12-22-2012 01:55:04 | More by sgoro

BlakeAM

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +3.9%

12-19-2012 16:39:15 | More by BlakeAM

RichH55

Illinois

5/5  rDev +22.2%

12-17-2012 14:38:33 | More by RichH55

olafphysics

Illinois

4.5/5  rDev +10%

12-12-2012 02:39:06 | More by olafphysics

sprucetip

Alaska

3.8/5  rDev -7.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Looks good enough in low light. Guessing mahogany, and definitely red highlights. Nothing exceptional otherwise.

Not a whole lot going on in the nose. What I get is faint and nearly benign. A little grainy and a little malty. Not much else.

Not bold or complex, but well balanced. It tastes grainy, malty sweet and has faint bitterness that mainly balances.

Low/medium carbonation, medium body, clean finish.

I haven't explored the altbier style much, so thought I'd give this one a go. It is smooth, balanced, easy drinking and has some flavor. I think it is pretty well to-style. It is definitely not complex or boundary pushing. But it is a tasty, balanced, well made beer.

Serving type: on-tap

12-11-2012 19:20:09 | More by sprucetip

TheSSG

Illinois

4/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a thick, dense, light-tan head. Aroma is sweet malt, floral hops, and a slight touch of acidity. Deep burnt umber color. Starts off with sweet malt which quickly is blended with a warming booziness as the hops start to come out in the middle. Peaks into a medium-low bitterness with a short burst of floral notes as a toastier malt character comes in for the finish which lingers with toasted malt and hop.

This is pretty well balanced. It's very pleasant. I'm maybe not the biggest fan of the style, and I find the explicitness of the booze character to not agree with my palate, though the hop/malt combination is very well done.

As it warms, the toasted malt character becomes more dominant, to its advantage.

Serving type: bottle

11-30-2012 05:21:17 | More by TheSSG

Bung

North Carolina

4/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22oz picked in Columbus OH. From the re-release series.
A sturdy mohoghanny pour, about a finger of cream colored head.

Aroma, quite malty, toffee. Herbally notes, tea, leather.

Taste, Peaty, tobacco, leather up front. Toasted malt and toffee. Pretty strong walnut. A faint anise and cocoa.

Maybe a little lighter than mid body, a nice amount of carbonation. A tad watery may be the only flaw. Drinks get easily.

Not as good as the Sticke brews from Germany, but it is close. Very well done.

Serving type: bottle

11-12-2012 03:39:41 | More by Bung

illini4x4

4.5/5  rDev +10%

11-12-2012 00:59:28 | More by illini4x4

Stevie_Janowski

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +3.9%

10-27-2012 02:34:04 | More by Stevie_Janowski

TMoney2591

Illinois

3.58/5  rDev -12.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Served in a Gale Sayers shaker pint glass.

I wanna see if we can get a count of the number of new portmanteau words coined by brewers over the years for their beers' names... Anyway, this stuff pours a clear deep garnet topped by a finger-and-a-half of sandy tan foam. The nose comprises earthy greens, toffee, tea, and a kiss of clove. The taste holds notes of light tea, dry caramel, light earthy greens, light brown sugar, minerals, and a splash of cola. The body is a light medium, with a very light moderate carbonation and a generally smooth feel. Overall, this was a pretty enjoyable alt, though it did at times come to resemble a dark mild that had been mixed with a cola. Still, not a bad combination in practice...

Serving type: bottle

10-09-2012 14:20:02 | More by TMoney2591

barnzy78

Illinois

3.95/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

#12 of 15 Beers for 15 Years series
22oz bomber poured into a 25oz snifter is darker than expected - dark, dark brown and opaque topped with a bubbly ivory head that holds excellent retention and leaves good lacing on the glass. Aromas are fruity, malty, woodsy. Tastes are pleasantly complex with notes of dark fruits, plum, rich dark malt (but not roasted), apple, earthy, tobacco, tea leaf, faint anise and toffee. Mouth-feel is velvety smooth, creamy, nice carbonation allowing flavors to meld on the palate. Overall, I really enjoyed this one for its uniqueness. I wish this was a year rounder - or at least a seasonal offering. Very well crafted!

Serving type: bottle

10-08-2012 02:42:07 | More by barnzy78

WoodBrew

Illinois

3.58/5  rDev -12.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

I'm glad I have a chance to taste how this beer is supposed to taste. I left my original post below which I rated 1.5 or so. With the #12 of 15 retro release the beer is quite drinkable. Great malt character and easy to drink....love those retro releases.

Found a bottle of this in Indianapolis...no date on the bottle, so I have no idea how old it is...yeah....overprimed....smelled like fermented milk...the appearance was nice very dark with red hughes....tasted awful. Perhaps it was good when fresh....but nasty now!

Serving type: bottle

07-29-2012 00:48:15 | More by WoodBrew

imperialking

Illinois

4/5  rDev -2.2%

02-21-2012 05:04:13 | More by imperialking