Heavy Seas - Holy Sheet (Über Abbey Ale) - Heavy Seas Beer

Oakenator

Pennsylvania

4.33/5  rDev +18.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: Pours a medium to dark brown with surprising opacity. A decent head at pour persists fairly well. Some spotted lacing present on the glass.

S: Malty and sweet. Alcohol presence on the nose.

T: Really sweet and lots of malts. Taste of syrup but nice.

M: Thick with a creaminess to the carbonation.

O: Nicely done dubbel.

Serving type: bottle

06-14-2013 00:51:12 | More by Oakenator

ckollias

Maryland

4.39/5  rDev +20.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Enjoyed this bomber bottle out of a Belgian tulip glass.

A: Pours an opaque brown hue with red highlights and white head that quickly dissipates leaving a nice trail

S: Strong sweet malty aroma that is on the spicy side with hints of caramel.

T: Rich sweet ale with Belgian yeast and brandy background. Caramel with background with a slight alcohol burn.

M: Thick body and medium carbonation.

O: Phenomenal take on a abbey style Belgian Brew. Great flavors and aroma.

Serving type: bottle

06-08-2013 01:25:41 | More by ckollias

KajII

North Carolina

3.8/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

[Best served in a Trappist Glass]

The pour was a dark cranberry brown with a large (2-3 finger) light tan creamy head that diminished down to a thin layer and large collar of residue, thus producing some really good sheets of streaky lacing.

The aroma was of a dark bread malt and a sweet doughy yeast with notes of dark fruit (plums and raisins), brown sugar and a mild ruby port scent.

The taste was sweet, malty and a bit acidic with hints of port wine and brown sugar early on and then became sweetly acetic with a good strong note of dark fruit and a decent alcohol finish. The flavor lasted an average time proceeding the swallow with a nice fruity alcohol warming sensation at the end.

Mouthfeel was medium in body and creamy in texture with a mildly soft carbonation.

Overall a fantastic Abbey Ale with the fruit, malts and alcohol working very well together. YUM...

Serving type: bottle

04-18-2012 14:10:50 | More by KajII

bluejacket74

Ohio

3.78/5  rDev +3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22 ounce bottle, no date on it but I'm pretty sure it's about a year or so old since I know I've had this bottle a while. Served in a tulip, the beer pours a ruby red/copper color with about a half inch light tan head and some sediment floaties noticeable. Head retention and lacing are both good. Aroma is sweet and malty, it smells like dark fruit (raisins, plums), caramel, bready malt, and some brown sugar. The brew tastes like dark fruit (mostly plums), bready malt, caramel, wood, and a slight bitter flavor that I can't identify. Mouthfeel/body is medium, it's a bit slick and has good carbonation. I think it's a good brew, I enjoyed it.

Serving type: bottle

02-10-2012 22:37:15 | More by bluejacket74

TheCorkStopsHere

Connecticut

4.55/5  rDev +24.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Clipper city brewing, heavy seas, Holy Sheet uber abbey ale. Yep, that's a mouthful, and so is this beer.

Coming from just outside of Baltimore, Clipper City has made some serious headway in the world of craft beer. Their Loose Cannon has become one of the most popular craft beers in our store, and their seasonal are always worth grabbing.

This brew tonight is their limited Holy Sheet "uber abbey ale". At about 9% abv, its definitely going to be uber something. It pours out a dark amber color, with medium head. The foam is unusually tiny bubbles, but fades quickly. At nine percent alcohol, I'm not surprised by how quickly the foam disappears.

The Holy Sheet smells like a malt bomb, and I'm getting excited! My first sip reveals tons of complexity, malty goodness, and a little bit of booziness. I'm getting flavors of toffee and caramel, with plenty of sweet malty flavors like vanilla and honey.

The Holy Sheet reminds me of a blend of two of my favorite beers, the Chimay Grande Reserve and Delirium Nocturnum. Medium to full bodied, a bit on the boozy side, with just the right amount of malty sweetness. I'm a big fan of the Holy Sheet, I recommend it highly.

Serving type: bottle

01-14-2012 04:31:44 | More by TheCorkStopsHere

Kranders

Massachusetts

4.05/5  rDev +11%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Very interesting beer. Poured a muddy brown, with very thin head. Pretty unappealing from sight. Nice sweet overtones in the aroma that were very inviting. Really rich taste, complex and sweet with a lot of malt. Slight fruity hints in the back. Stays on the tongue longer than expected with some sweetness there as well. Very enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2011 18:49:45 | More by Kranders

11millsown113

New Hampshire

3.53/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured from a 22 ounce bottle into a large tulip glass

A: tan head on top of a beautiful dark red body. very very good looking beer. the head retained pretty well and left good lacing.

S: cherry scent with a dark malty aroma.

T: a cherry fruity taste with a bit of a bitter bite. very smooth but i would definitely like more flavor. for a beer this pretty I'd expect a great flavor. but it is definitely lacking. other then the initial cherry flavor it all just simply goes away. I was just expecting more. the 9% abv is hidden very well and is unnoticeable.

M: good full body with the right amount of carbonation. just right.

O: this beer has a lot going for it, good body, great appearance and a good scent. but unfortunately the most important part, the taste, is a let down. i expect more from a beer like this.

Serving type: bottle

12-24-2011 16:01:50 | More by 11millsown113

shanblur

Indiana

3.43/5  rDev -6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Purchased locally. No freshness date on bottle. Poured from 22oz bomber into a chalice.

A - Deep amber color color with an off-white head. Leaves sparse lacing.

S - Sweet and malty with caramel and dark fruit aromas.

T - Much like the smell with a strong presence of alcohol.

M - Medium body with a light carbonation.

Certainly a strong ale. Not overly complex but a nice beer.

Serving type: bottle

11-10-2011 22:34:56 | More by shanblur

SpeedwayJim

New York

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

Shared by schen9303. 12oz. bottle poured into a Darkness snifter.

Pours a .5 finger light brown-gray head with poor retention. Beer is a cloudy brown. Lacing is stringy and spotty with good stick. Nice, but average for the style.

Nose is raisin, brown sugar, and dates with a slight tartness. Moderately aromatic and appropriate but rather plain.

Opens raisin and a touch of sour red fruit. Some brown sugar and dried dates in the middle. Yeasty. More tartness towards the finish with a sharp aftertaste. Oddly nice.

Medium bodied with low carbonation. Oily and filmy in the mouth with some bubbles and liveliness going down. Not really to style.

While this one's completely not to style, the slight tartness and oilyness in the feel works for it. A surprising and enjoyable representation of the BSDA.

Serving type: bottle

09-17-2011 02:54:45 | More by SpeedwayJim

sixerofelixir

Ohio

3.7/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

22 oz bottle. No date codes that I could see. Poured into a snifter.

Pours a translucent, brownish, ruby-orange. A tan head soon becomes a heavy ring. Smell is peaty, and caramelized malt. Sweet. Taste is balanced well up front with some earthiness and slightly floral hops. More smoky, robust malt. A touch of sourness on the back. Feel is super creamy, but lively at the same time. Great feel. Finishes long and crisp.

Serving type: bottle

08-16-2011 17:10:25 | More by sixerofelixir

zaphodchak

Virginia

3.78/5  rDev +3.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Minimal head, very dark ruby body.

Dark raisin on the nose? Some malt and a bit of booze.

Dark grape in the taste, slightly vinous, malt and hop balance, but with a malty finish.

Thinnish mouthfeel, but not watery.

Overall fine, but unremarkable for a dubbel. Improves as it warms.

Serving type: on-tap

08-08-2011 01:17:41 | More by zaphodchak

cnally

Indiana

4/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I've always thought Clipper City is a massively underrated producer of the finest quality. Shocking that I have never had this beer, of my favorite style, from them.

The appearance is a deep mahogany, mostly opaque but along the edges a little light seeps through the deep amber. An off-tan head remains, and clings just a little to the glass.

A boozy trip in the aroma, firy. Highly bready and filled with a frontal malt nose.

Woody, boozy, bready flavor. Nice balance between that and the deep malts. The belgian malts really deliver a dark fruity flavor. Plum, cherry, a little sherry flavor...nice and complex.

Full mouthfeel. Creamy and full bodied. A little hot.

A pleasing brew and really reliant on Special B malt, I would guess. That mild pungency that arises from the beligian yeast and the fruity malt really makes up for the forward booziness.

Serving type: bottle

08-02-2011 02:43:31 | More by cnally

ellindril

Massachusetts

4.15/5  rDev +13.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

This beer took me entirely by surprise.

The look of the beer is a very dark and cloudy amber.

When I poured it into my glass it was very cold (and also possibly quite old) so the carbonation was low. There was little to no lacing.

The mouthfeel of the beer was a little too gritty and hars given the mellowness of rich smell.

The taste struck me. I was expecting something less rich and deep. The rich sweet malt is the first thing that reaches your tongue. After the malt passes rich hints of plum or similar fruit can be detected. This fruity flavor stays with you in the aftertaste with just a hint of bitterness to balance and offset what would otherwise be a cloying sweetness.

Serving type: bottle

07-28-2011 01:32:45 | More by ellindril

Hopfenpeter

Maryland

3.85/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

The beer poured a clear mahogany and rapidly builds a off white bubbly head which dissipates very fast into nothing. No lacing!
The smell is malty sweet and hints dark fruit , honey, caramel and fig. There is also a earthy feel to it like a whiskey barrel wooden undertone.
The taste is pretty much confirming the flavors. Upfront we have the dark fruits and fig, being sweetened in the middle by caramel and brown sugar notes, bitter malty notes adding into balance.
At the end the bitterness mellows again and those earthy wooden whiskey barrel undertones will give the finish.
Interesting brew. Might have to revisit this beer at a different time. Winter for example!

Serving type: bottle

07-19-2011 03:51:52 | More by Hopfenpeter

AgentMunky

California

3.35/5  rDev -8.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Poured from a 22 ounce bottle into a BrewDog cervoise glass. No visible best before date.

A: Nice tight head churns slightly before fading. The beer is a clear, if dark, beautiful brown that turns brilliant ruby in direct lighting. Some slight bubbles. Good lacing.

S: Some sweet yeastiness. Akin to whisky wash. Fruit (apples and pears) is noticeable.

T: I've been looking for this one for a while, well before Clipper City changed their name Heavy Seas. I had held off on buying it a couple of times because of the lackluster reviews...it seems they were sadly accurate. A sort of sour/tart fruitiness is the single best part of the beer, and is actually quite nice. Unfortunately, it's the only thing really going on. Aside from that, the beer is almost characterless except for a *slight* yeast and alcohol presence.

M: A bit of puckering from the unripe fruit, some nice carbonation, and an acceptably full body.

O: Disappointing, but not bad. I won't be having any more. I recommend Clipper City's Mutiny Fleet, but not this bottle. Still, I'm determined to enjoy finishing it now that I've opened it. It shouldn't be too much trouble.

Serving type: bottle

07-13-2011 03:09:12 | More by AgentMunky

beerprovedwright

Georgia

3.9/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Just an one finger head, not a good start, but the color is nice, rating a 19 on the SRM beer color chart. Clear and lots of micro bubbles. Smell is that of caramel, pineapple, mango, raisins, butterscotch, and malt. The taste is rich and full, with flavors of raisians, mango, pineapple, caramel, toffee, coco, butterscotch, figs, molasses, lime, and malt. Mouthfeel is good with a full body and creaminess. Overall I like this beer, although a little syrupy and a little sweet. Would make a great desert beer, or a welcome to my place offering.

Serving type: bottle

07-07-2011 19:03:02 | More by beerprovedwright

robbrandes

Oregon

4.15/5  rDev +13.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

reviewed from notes.

5oz taster, poured @ northern virginia brewfest.

pours a deep brown, almost hints of purple. lots of dark fruit - raisins, figs, some cloves... nice full body on this one. not sure how the bottle holds up, but the keg was excellent. glad i tried it early in the day!

Serving type: on-tap

07-01-2011 00:49:28 | More by robbrandes

nickthetick

Maryland

4.38/5  rDev +20%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: pours a clouded mahogany into an american shaker with two inches of khaki hockey puck for a head.

S: heavy malts, biscuit, toffee, prunes and figs.

T: right up front there is prunes, figs, and rum soaked raisins. There is an earthy malt and biscuit backbone with a bit of citrus and heat behind it all.

MF: heavy, great effervescence and a bit dry at the end.

O: amazing beer, but I like it fresh from the tap or bottle as a personal preference. The cask doesn't do a whole lot to help this beer.

Serving type: cask

06-27-2011 22:15:16 | More by nickthetick

jsanford

Georgia

3.53/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

On-tap at the Distillery in Savannah, GA as part of Maryland night. As a proud Terrapin, I was happy to be here, enjoying the hell outta some UTZ Crab Chips!

A - Dark brownish-orange with a thin head that recedes to a slight haze and ring.
S - Caramel malt, spicy Belgian yeast, and a touch of sweet bubblegum. Pretty mild nose, can't tell what this is trying to be.
T - OK, a BSDA. Lots of dark malty flavors of caramel & toffee, figs, raisins, and a touch of that 9% ABV.
M - Creamy mouth-feel with a medium-full body and sharp carbonation.
O - Notes say it was pretty good, but I didn't find it to be too memorable. A solid American example of a BSDA.

Serving type: on-tap

06-06-2011 23:27:15 | More by jsanford

Knapp85

Pennsylvania

3.03/5  rDev -17%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

This beer poured out as a dark reddish brown color. With a decent head on it. The smell was a little citric smelling. Some Belgian yeast aromas too. The the taste was a little strange to me, kinda got a little funky on me. The mouthfeel was ok, overall I would have to try this one again.

Serving type: bottle

05-28-2011 22:33:31 | More by Knapp85

bum732

Maryland

1.95/5  rDev -46.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 1.5

S: Heavy dark fruits, figs mostly, some rich caramel, spicy alcohol.

L: Cloudy reddish brown, light tan head that dissipates.

T: Dark fruits with some citrus followed by a medium high bitter, slightly lemony component. Mild rich breadiness melds. Quite acrid in the finish, drying slightly with some spiciness. An off compound i can't nail down, almost bleach like.

M: Hot, alcoholic, medium bodied, medium carbonation.

A really terrible beer, aroma was good. But there is a an acrid, bitter component that is very unappealing. Couldn't finish this one and ended up drain pouring it.

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2011 01:28:17 | More by bum732

kirkpjr

Alabama

3.08/5  rDev -15.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Tried this at a tasting @ HiPS. Picked up a growler a couple days later.

Poured into a chalice.

A: Pours a deep amber/brown with ruby highlights. Half finger of head with minimal lacing leaving a small ring around the top of the beer.

S: Dark fruits - raisins & figs - and brown sugar or cinnamon. Also a little green apple.

T: Light dark fruit flavors and sweet malts, with a little bit of molasses. Mildly hot in the finish.

M: A bit short on carbonation for what I was expecting in an Uber Abbey Ale. Feel is somewhat thin as well.

O: Nothing outstanding, but worth a try.

Serving type: growler

05-16-2011 01:26:30 | More by kirkpjr

bucklemyshoe

Georgia

3.73/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

22 oz bottle at 48 degrees into a St. Bernardus chalice.

A: It pours a very dark red color with a finger of off-white head that holds very well at first, but then suddenly dies and does not lace well.

S: Sweet figs dominate with grape peel, clove spice, and a little banana flavor.

T: Sweet berries, figs, dates, some clove spice, and some dry graininess in the finish.

M: The body is medium-thick with average carbonation and a little stickiness in the finish.

O: This is better than the typical bastardized American attempt at a Dubbel. It fortunately avoids the artificial-tasting fruit flavors of some of the other American version of abbey ales.

Serving type: bottle

05-04-2011 04:09:21 | More by bucklemyshoe

coasterfreak75

North Carolina

4/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Pour was dark chocolate with a one finger head. Great lacing on the glass that held throughout the drink.

Heavy malt smell at the front of the nose. Hints of florals and hop spice in the rear.

The drink starts with a heavy kick of malt sweet in the front. Around mid tongue there is a quick kick of hops with that standard Belgian finish.

Easy drinking beer, and incredible from a cask. I look forward to trying it on regular tap or in a bottle.

Serving type: cask

05-02-2011 17:53:13 | More by coasterfreak75

mikesgroove

South Carolina

3.33/5  rDev -8.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Poured a deep dark brown, big thick brown creamy head faded quickly leaving a thin 1/2 inch clingy lacey gooey head that stuck till the bottom of the glass. The smell was classic belgian, sweet, dark cherries, but hints of caramel, even maybe chocolate, very full and nice bouguet. Maybe even a sherry or bourbon smell as well. Taste was wonderful, dark fruity flavors right up front, apricots, bananas, cherry, a bit of a bready taste and a nice dry finish. The feel was so much lighter tehn I though basedd on appearence, and that is a good thing in this case. Not thick at all, very nice light and lively consistency, nice carboination, dances around in the mouth, beautiful.

Serving type: bottle

04-30-2011 04:26:57 | More by mikesgroove