Winter Ale 2006-2007
Mendocino Brewing Company

Winter Ale 2006-2007Winter Ale 2006-2007
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From:
Mendocino Brewing Company
 
United States
Style:
Oatmeal Stout
ABV:
7%
Score:
87
Avg:
3.86 | pDev: 5.96%
Reviews:
30
Ratings:
34
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Oct 04, 2013
Added:
Dec 08, 2006
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
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Ratings by RBorsato:
Photo of RBorsato
Reviewed by RBorsato from Virginia

4.2/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Pitch black with a full pillowy brown head that leaves decent lace. Strong Dark Chocolate and roasted malt aromas. Strong Dark Chocolate and light espresso flavors; a very robust Oatmeal Stout. Medium-full bodied and smooth ... wonder if they used Oats ? Nice chocolate and coffee finish.

Yummy Robust OS !

Per Label: "Roasted Barley and Chocolate Malts" & "Warrior and East Kent Golding Hops"

2006-2007 version
Tasted: 03/29/07

($1.49 / 12 oz.)
($5.99 / 6-pack)
Apr 03, 2007
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.25 by ejimhof from Pennsylvania

Oct 04, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by cliff1066 from Virginia

Dec 11, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by imperialking from Illinois

Feb 20, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by ROGUE16 from Delaware

Dec 07, 2011
Photo of MuenchenerKindl
Reviewed by MuenchenerKindl from Germany

4.18/5  rDev +8.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Poured from a 12 oz bottle to a pint glass the liquid is blck this good carbonation. The head is tall fingers mocha brown and leaves good lace.

The smell is very nice chocolate coffee malts are just great.

The taste is also very good, Really a fine example of going the extra. The taste is double chocolate and lots of coffee notes. Slight metallic in the finish.

The mouthfeel is big bold full and nicely carbonated.

The drinkability is great. Too bad they are all gone.

Prosit, MK
Jun 21, 2008
Photo of Sammy
Reviewed by Sammy from Canada (ON)

3.8/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Pours dark dark brown, this was aged more than a year, virtully no head. Chocolate aromas. Very smooth and the mellowed astringency, and softened burntness of a formerly probably over-the-paate oatmeal stout. Full mouthfeel. Very drinkable. .Hops in the background.Superb.
Mar 13, 2008
Photo of dedrinker
Reviewed by dedrinker from Kansas

3.8/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Black, light brown head. Smells like roasty malts, chocolate and vanilla. Tastes the same. Full bodied with a slightly astringent finish from the roasted malts. I thought this was real good. Mendocino's regular lineup doesn't thrill me much, but at least once a year they will pull a good seasonal beer out of the hat that makes you wonder what went wrong.
Dec 18, 2007
Photo of ClassicBrad
Reviewed by ClassicBrad from Pennsylvania

3.84/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured an opaque dark brown body on the carbonated sign with a dark tan head that resorts to a thin bubbly layer. Smells faintly of oats and sweet chocolate malts. Tastes of sweet, dark chocolate with a thin refreshing mouthfeel that balances the robust flavor of the malts. Can drink a good few of these.
Dec 17, 2007
Photo of enfield249
Reviewed by enfield249 from Michigan

3.39/5  rDev -12.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
A - Dark black, with a ring of tan foam, some lacing.

S - Not getting much here.

T - Strong coffee and roast flavors. Very clean, doesn't hang around real long on the tongue.

M - Full, but not as full as other oatmeal stouts I have had.

D - Good coffee flavor, however I like my coffee beers to stick around more on the tongue. If you like a clean tasting coffee flavor, this would be it.
Dec 10, 2007
Photo of mrquartetman
Reviewed by mrquartetman from Illinois

4.1/5  rDev +6.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
A friend and I are getting ourselves ready to put on a winter/Christmas beer tasting in about 3 weeks. Tonight we brought our lists together to consolidate, winnow, and agree on 10 for the tasting. I had 2 of them out for taste-test, and remembered that I had the Mendocino, so brought it out too. It was not on my preliminary list because I forgot I had it on hand.

We tried the other two. I opened the Mendocino and got a chocolatey aroma immediately, even before pouring it. Now, I wasn't ready for the aroma because I had not read the bottle or, for that matter, even looked at it much. I expected something like last year's brew, an IPA, so was more than surprised when this wonderful looking almost black, thick beer swirled into the glass.

My friend and I were then surprised even more by the aroma off the top of the glass - very chocolatey, and no discernible hop, just great malt.

We took a taste and we must have looked like little kids opening presents. This is one big, sweet oatmeal stout - one of the best I've ever tasted, and it has a terrific persistence across the palate: complex, coffee/chocolate (just as the label says) and very creamy (just as the label says).

This beer might be getting toward a year old, but it's done well since it fell into the bottle. A most drinkable, friendly beer for a winter night.
Nov 11, 2007
Photo of mikesgroove
Reviewed by mikesgroove from South Carolina

4.03/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
This was stashed away on a shelf with the Oktoberfest in Knoxville. Figured I just had to pick it up. Poured a very dark brown, very thick with a two finger tan colored head. Very good retention held the head up for a while before finally releasing it to a thin film across the top.The aroma was very rich, full of sweet lactose and a touch of caramel and roasted coffee. The flavor followed suit nicely with a rich texture of coffee and sugar with the slightest touch of chocolate blended in. Very rich and creamy feel made it a sipper even though the ABV was not that high. Overall this was an excellent beer and something I would have to highly recommend. If you can find it, go out and get it, its defintly a winner!
Nov 10, 2007
Photo of kimcgolf
Reviewed by kimcgolf from Georgia

3.6/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Poured from the bottle to a jet black, with medium thick tan head that hung around awhile, but then dissipated fairly quickly to leave little lacing. Aroma was a nice strong mix of chocolate and toffee with coffee undertones. Mouthfeel was a bit on the thin side, but the flavor followed the nose exactly, leaving a nice sweet, somewhat warming finish, as the 7% abv began to make itself known.

A good offering by Mendocino.
Oct 27, 2007
Photo of TheManiacalOne
Reviewed by TheManiacalOne from Rhode Island

3.98/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Poured from a 12oz. bottle into a US tumbler pint glass.

A: The beer is a deep black color with a large foamy light brown head that fades slowly and leaves a very thick lace on the glass.

S: The aroma is of roasted malt, oats chocolate and coffee.

T: The taste is very rich and creamy with flavors of dark chocolate, roasted oats, coffee and a touch of dark fruit. The malt character is very malty as you would expect and the there’s a very mild hops presence. The after-taste is slightly bitter from the chocolate & coffee.

M: Very smooth and a little crisp, medium-to-heavy body, light-to-medium carbonation, dry and sticky finish.

D: Tasty, goes down easy, slightly filling, good representation of style but seems to flirt with leaning toward being a Baltic Porter, it’s a good beer, but it’s one that is better to drink one or two of slowly.
May 13, 2007
Photo of macster
Reviewed by macster from Florida

3.87/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
Pours an inky opaque jet-black color. Creates a fluffy, pillowy coffee colored head with minimal retention other than some isolated wisps of foam with spotty lacing.

Nice aromas mostly of dark roasted malts, espresso beans and dark chocolate. Some aroamatic notes of cocoa powder, vanilla bean and smoke faintly linger in the background.

Palate was a bit disappointing, being a touch too thin and fizzy for this style. Also possesed a slightly watery texture to it.

Flavor profile however was quite impressive leading off with a big hit of burnt malts and dark coffee beans initially, followed by a pleasant caramel, mocha, toffee sweetness. Flavor finishes with a moderate charcoal-like dryness.

Easy enough to drink and enjoyable, but the body could use a bit more muscle.
Apr 16, 2007
Photo of mntlover
Reviewed by mntlover from Tennessee

3.8/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Pours a dark black some red around edges when held to the light. Sports a nice coco colored head that falls slowly and leaves behind a decent supply of lacing.

Aroma good supply of roasted malt, lots of chocolate malt some light coffee notes and light sweetness noted.

Taste is nice roasted malts, nice supply of chocolate some light coffee notes some light sweetness mixed in from oats but not too much oats just a slight increase in feel. Some hops show up in the finish and blend with what tastes like watered down coffee. Overall not bad but was expecting more as Mendocino's other Winter Ales have been there best offerings by far.

Mouthfeel is good pretty smooth big medium carbonation mellow to aide in the smoothness.

Drinkability is good, a good example of a oatmeal stout not superb but defiantly worth picking some up.
Mar 27, 2007
Photo of jcdiflorio
Reviewed by jcdiflorio from West Virginia

4.32/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
poured into a nonic glass from a 12oz brown bottle with a crimped on cap. The bottled was dated 06-07. The style of this winter beer seems to change from year to year. I had to rewrite my review for this beer I originally put it under winter ale not 06-07 over a month ago. Todd had me change the review to where it belongs. Thanks,Todd

Opaque,black color.Thick pillowy mocha head with very good retention and some spotty lacing.

Very complex malty aromas,all the malty aromas are in there.Roasty,coffee aromas with lots of chocolate. Some vinious aromas and some oaty aromas.
Very nice pleasing aroma.

Great malty taste,intense roastyness with coffee and chocolate. Strong burnt tastes,also nutty with a sweet carmell/toffee taste. Very tasty beer.

Very full mouthfeel,robust and very creamy. Good drinkability for the thick body the great taste makes you want to keep drinking it anyway. Feels very light going down i'm sure it would get filling after a while. Reminds me a lot of the Troegs oatmeal stout. Would love to try them side by side. One beer worth a try if you can find it.
Mar 25, 2007
Photo of MmmIPA
Reviewed by MmmIPA from Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Black body with a 2 1/2 in. brown head that looks like soap.It looks amazing.Nice lacing on the glass.I can smell the oatmeal.Taste is of oatmeal and roasted maltsThe head fell to a ring around the glass.Mothful is sorda slick and very smooth and the carbonation is downright smooth,almost like a coca cola but easy going.I would have again for sure.
Mar 18, 2007
Photo of biegaman
Reviewed by biegaman from Canada (ON)

3.83/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
I like oatmeal stouts, especially stronger ones, for the winter. I enjoy this one thanks to my good friend Harry on the eve of a gastly snow storm... the first day of March!
Pours opaque, black like the eight ball. Varying degrees of head depending on the glassware, mine was rather flat although I can see head as thick as to leave dense lacing in others' glasses. I'm still able to generate some on a swirl, dark, deep brown it turns out. A bit of something to the aroma, hard to say exactly what. They seem to have used a little spice to give it a little distinction. A little asphalty roast. Mouthfeel continues long after the swallow with a roasty bitterness and some sweet malt. The alcohol seems to have thinned out the flavours a little, but lends it a different drinkability; makes it a little more interesting. Between sipper sweet stout and sociable dry stout. Neat enough.
Mar 02, 2007
Photo of markgugs
Reviewed by markgugs from New Jersey

4.23/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
poured from a 12oz. bottle into a tulip pint

A: Pours a ruby-tinged, inky, black, with a 1-finger, rich, creamy, dark tan head. Head mostly goes away quickly, but a nice ring of foam & lacing sticks with the beer to the finish.

S: Rich wafts of cocoa, cookie dough, and maple brown sugar make their presence known right away. Very malted aromas.

T/M: Big, chocolately sweetness up front, nice roasted bitterness on the finish, very burnt coffee-ish, which stays with me for minutes. Lots of dark fruit sprinkled throughout too, namely raisins, cherries & plums. Each sip feels like a slightly carbonated raspberry chocolate root beer float.

D: I loved this beer, and would like to find a few more! Recommended.
Feb 28, 2007
Winter Ale 2006-2007 from Mendocino Brewing Company
Beer rating: 87 out of 100 with 34 ratings