Avancé
Allagash Brewing Company

AvancéAvancé
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From:
Allagash Brewing Company
 
Maine, United States
Style:
Wild Ale
Ranked #416
ABV:
9.7%
Score:
92
Ranked #5,169
Avg:
4.13 | pDev: 9.93%
Reviews:
86
Ratings:
338
Status:
Active
Rated:
Jan 24, 2024
Added:
May 12, 2010
Wants:
  118
Gots:
  47
Avancé is a strong, sour ale with aromas of strawberry preserves and toasted oak. Berries and more oak continue in the flavor, which concludes with a warm, sweet finish. The beer is brewed with multiple sugars including molasses, date sugar, white cane sugar, and dark rock candi. It’s then fermented with three different yeast strains and aged in oak bourbon barrels for a year with Lactobacillus and Pediococcus. After transferring the beer to stainless we add one pound per gallon of fresh, locally picked strawberries and age it for another six months.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by starrdogg:
Photo of starrdogg
Reviewed by starrdogg from District of Columbia

3.97/5  rDev -3.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
On-tap at Max's Allagash Event

Beer pours a fairly nondescript reddish brown with a fluffy white head. Smells largely of lacto-sour and oak with a hint of strawberries. The flavor is interesting and not quite what I had expected. It's sweeter than I had anticipated, but also has a good bit of sour in there. There's some oak and strawberries as well. It's fairly full-bodied with decent carbonation. Overall, this is a solid beer from Allagash, but not my favorite sour out there. It's perhaps a little too sweet, but I guess that's what happens when you take a big quad and then add strawberries.
Oct 23, 2012
More User Ratings:
Photo of Rug
Reviewed by Rug from Massachusetts

4.35/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.25
Bottled February 2022

I always say that it’s hard to make strawberries shine in a beer as a solo fruit. But if anyone can do if artfully, it’s gotta be Allagash. They excel at fruited Wild Ales and are good keeping this the right level of funky. Let’s pop it open and find out what it’s all about

Pours a mostly clear deep red with 2 fingers of creamy off white head that fades to a thin cap and leaves minimal lacing

Even for a 2 year old bottle, the strawberries are super vibrant in the nose. I’m picking up on aromas of jammy strawberry, lemon juice, crackery malt, sweet honey, lime zest, brown sugar, smooth oak, molasses, red wine vinegar, and light black cherry

In taste it’s much gentler, but still damn good. On the front end of the sip I’m tasting dehydrated strawberry, lime zest, lemon juice, crackery malt, dry oak, burnt sugar, cherry pit, and light red grape. The swallow brings notes of juicy strawberry, lemon juice, wildflower honey, dry oak, like zest, stone, old leather, cherry, and light brown sugar

A medium body pairs with gentle carbonation, resulting in a sharp beer. Finishes bone dry and refreshing, drinking well below its abv

I really dig this one, to nobodies surprise
Jan 24, 2024
 
Rated: 4.24 by Taenim from Maine

Jul 23, 2023
Photo of Roy_Hobbs
Reviewed by Roy_Hobbs from Connecticut

3.93/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Bottled May 5, 2017. Pour is a copper color with decent clarity and minimal short-lived white head. Aroma is tart, with some strawberry notes still around after five years, and a good amount of barrel still present on the nose. I'm impressed by how the strawberries still show up on the tongue. Pleasantly tart with medium acidity. Nice barrel notes to round things out. Medium carbonation. Still a great beer.
Jul 06, 2022
 
Rated: 4.25 by hopley from Massachusetts

Jan 30, 2021
 
Rated: 4.22 by vfgccp from New York

Oct 04, 2020
 
Rated: 4.32 by Beer-A-Lot from Virginia

Aug 17, 2020
Photo of ryan1788a5
Reviewed by ryan1788a5 from Massachusetts

4.29/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
12.7oz bottle poured into a snifter.

A: Red-orange color with perfect clarity. Head dies almost instantly and there is no lacing.

S: Strawberry jam in a big way. Hard strawberry candy. Lemony lactic acid, hint of cider vinegar. Very subtle and delicate whiff of funk and a touch of clovey phenols. Hint of oaky vanillins far in the background.

T: Strawberry jam as well as freshly picked strawberries. Loads of them too, it’s all over the attack. Very real, and very pleasant. Brisk tartness, though it stops just shy of being puckering. Lactic and lemony. A little bit of that cider vinegar too. Molasses. Slight funk, briefly, and a medicinal phenol flavor that lingers a bit. Woody vanillins middle to end, and a mild corny bourbon sweetness. Finish is subtle trailing funk and phenol, tame barrel flavors, and a whole lot of lingering strawberry.

M: Medium-Full body. A little bit of weight and heft. Round and creamy with ample carbonation. Very gentle tug of tannin.

O: Delicious. It’s so easy to find the bottom of your glass well before you ever intended. That strawberry flavor is so delightful and hedonistic. This does not seem like a beer that is nearly 10% either. If you can hang onto it long enough to savor some of the nuance, there are another few layers of complexity to enjoy too. It’s got something for everybody. Definitely grab it if you see it.
May 04, 2020
Photo of Tony210
Reviewed by Tony210 from New Jersey

4.24/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Pours a clear reddish amber with minimal head. Nice funky strawberry aroma. Flavor is very wood-forward. Starts out with heavy funk. Quite oaky, lots of bourbon barrel, earthy, not sweet considering all the different sugars they added, quite tart and good acidity that makes it tangy. Has a nice light strawberry finish. Carbonation adds a nice texture that compliments the tartness. Overall a fun beer, a little to heavy on the oak for me, but glad I tried it.

1/9/20
375 ml bottle, no date, 10% abv - thanks Adam
4.25 rating
Jan 09, 2020
 
Rated: 4.49 by jpd026 from New York

Sep 27, 2019
Photo of andypeters1971
Reviewed by andypeters1971 from Georgia

4.5/5  rDev +9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Extremely complex beer that presents far more taste and feel profiles and characteristics than my unsophisticated palate can discern or explain. In the end, it was outstanding and I'd have several more
Sep 08, 2019
 
Rated: 4.54 by Eychung from New York

Sep 04, 2019
 
Rated: 4.07 by Duncian from Pennsylvania

Aug 09, 2019
 
Rated: 4.86 by Vylo from New Jersey

Jul 31, 2019
Photo of mntlover
Reviewed by mntlover from Tennessee

4.1/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Pours burnt brown amber color, no real head from bar pour. Aroma light malt oak notes hints of light bourbon, strawberry fruit. Taste is the same but better nice tart strawberries, oak light bourbon, good malt base tart but not overly sour easy drinking even though you want to savor it. Mouthfeel is lighter side medium carbonation. Overall enjoyable.
Jul 21, 2019
 
Rated: 4.21 by Griffith from Connecticut

Apr 04, 2019
 
Rated: 3.98 by Chuckdiesel24 from Illinois

Feb 21, 2019
Photo of jmdrpi
Reviewed by jmdrpi from Pennsylvania

4.15/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
on draft

dark golden in color, clear, with thin white head that fades. interesting aroma - mild tartness, oak, mild burnt sugar, strawberry fruitiness. similar taste, very deep and complex flavors - definitely unique. thin to medium bodied, a bit sticky of a mouthfeel.
Jan 06, 2019
 
Rated: 3.87 by hophugger from Virginia

Dec 10, 2018
 
Rated: 3.59 by IBUBrew from Vermont

Dec 09, 2018
Avancé from Allagash Brewing Company
Beer rating: 92 out of 100 with 338 ratings