Vesuvius (Brewmaster Reserve)
Full Sail Brewing Company

Vesuvius (Brewmaster Reserve)Vesuvius (Brewmaster Reserve)
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From:
Full Sail Brewing Company
 
Oregon, United States
Style:
Belgian Pale Strong Ale
ABV:
8.5%
Score:
79
Avg:
3.39 | pDev: 14.45%
Reviews:
66
Ratings:
70
Status:
Active
Rated:
Mar 13, 2016
Added:
Sep 09, 2005
Wants:
  3
Gots:
  2
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 3.42 by Brandon632 from North Carolina

Mar 13, 2016
 
 
Rated: 4 by t0rin0 from California

Oct 01, 2012
 
Rated: 3.5 by buckyp from South Carolina

Jan 01, 2012
Photo of mactrail
Reviewed by mactrail from Washington

3.48/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Looks good, more like a hefeweizen, though with the hazy appearance and orangey amber color. Rather a fruity zing, and just a degree to the sourish side. The funniest nose of odd fruit I wish I could place. Old canteloupe, or green grapes. Hops seem to have gotten lost somewhere, but it has a hint of bitterness and a little woodiness. Quite a nice head and lovely lacing. I just think it's lost some funkiness and yeastiness.

This is the 2009 version, which was 8.2% ABV according to the label. Seems to me like another example of a beer that doesn't last well after a year or less. Still it's quite drinkable as an oddity.
Jul 04, 2011
Photo of garymuchow
Reviewed by garymuchow from Minnesota

3.5/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Sweet, light fruity with a little citrus (lemon), mild yeast, mild phenols and there seems to be some wheat qualities. I like it.
Slightly cloudy with a darker color of gold with reddish hues. Smallish head for style, but very persistent with constant bubbles rising to maintain the cap.
The flavor is a little less impressive. Malt flavors are a little flat and the overall flavor lacks a zestiness. Nonetheless, other aspects are good. Yeast is prominent with abundant alcohol taste. Very slight fruit with a tad of sugar sweetness. Ample bittering to cut the sugar and dampen the richness, but it also tends to dominate too much and while nicely contributing to the dryness of the finish it pushes astringent, which I don't want.
Heavy feel in gut as it seems really filling, but in bulk and carbonation - lacking a lightness I'd expect. This also takes away from drinkability adn I feel full quickly which decreases my desire to take the next sip.
Too bad as there are qualities I like in this beer and overall I like this brewery. This falls lower than the other beers I've had from Full Sail.
Jul 09, 2010
Photo of Soilworker
Reviewed by Soilworker from Idaho

2.16/5  rDev -36.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 1.5
Presentation: 2009 vintage poured into a tulip glass.

A: Cloudy golden yellow with a one finger thick yellow tinged head with moderate head retention.

S: Strong banana malts with hints of coriander dominate the nose on this one. A little on the musty/yeasty side and I can detect a little bit solvent aromas that are a bit off putting.

T: Solvent like aromas and the alcohol seems to be quite dominant this one. Quite unpleasant overall. All the flavors that I would expect to be prominent, like banana, spice, and yeast flavors, are merely undertones. Finish is a bit bitter with the lingering solvent-like flavors.

M: Slightly high carbonation and medium bodied overall.

D: This had way too many off-flavors for me. Bitter yet still slightly sweet with high solvent and alcohol like flavors. I'll struggle to get through this whole bomber.

Notes: Not a big fan of this one. Not very good for the style and too many off-putting flavors for me. Will not be buying this one again.
Jun 11, 2010
Photo of cokes
Reviewed by cokes from Wisconsin

2.61/5  rDev -23%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5
Light hazy golden yellow bodied with a tight crop of white suds that lace and retain decently despite never rising far from the surface of the liquid.
Lemon rind aroma, with solvent-like fusel alcohol fumes, peppers, damp basements, white bread, and burnt clove phenols.
Doughy once it meets the tongue. Again in that non-descript white bread sense. It gradually gains a lemon drop sweet/sour personality. Yeast adds more wet dough, along with tendrils of chalk and pepper and phenolic plastics. Hops bring a quick herbality, but are then ripped down by a heated fusel alcohol jet. For 8.5%, this brings a outsized boozy whallop. And not in a good way. Then it lingers with continued lemon, biiter gin, and clay.
The relatively beefy body is thinned in part by the noted alcohol and also carries a better than average (for Americanized Belgian styles) carbonation. Tame the heat, and the feel would be spot-on. The flavor would still be off and pedestrian, though.
May 24, 2010
Photo of colts9016
Reviewed by colts9016 from Idaho

3.29/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 2 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Poured into my Tripel Karmeliet tulip glass. at 41 degrees.

Appearance: A nice two finger head that is off white in color and has pour retention. The color of the beer is an amber color with orange hues. The clarity is slightly hazy. There is some effervescence in the beer.

Nose: A light fragrant floral aroma, citrus, and pine. The malt is toasty, with some biscuit and yeasty aromas. In the background there banana, cloves, phenols and solvent.

Taste: A fragrant floral, banana, pine, citrus, solvent, phenols, and cloves. The malt is lightly toasted, yeast, and biscuit aromas.

The mouth feel is carbonated, sweet, and slightly astringent.

Overall: The body of the beer is medium light and the finish is medium. This is a descent beer there isnt a whole lot going on in the beer. I was hoping for more from this brewery. This just seems like they need more research to get this recipe right.
Apr 21, 2010
Photo of stoutfiend27
Reviewed by stoutfiend27 from North Carolina

3.85/5  rDev +13.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
bomber received from genghis22...poured into over sized wine glass

a-golden i color..small half finger white head...lacing is there but not in typical belgian fashion...bubbles are present but not what i would have expected

s-sweet and fruity...some yeast...

t-starts off sweet...the phenols and slight banana and clove kick in...a little alcohol comes to play before it finishes semi sweet

m-creamy and smooth as expected...the carbonation is a little low imo....the abv is noticeable on the tongue...

d-a bomber and im done..its a good american belgian....easy to get through but a tad warming

overall a solid stab from an american brewery at a belgian..better than most and perfectly drinakble..
Mar 24, 2010
Photo of Gueuzedude
Reviewed by Gueuzedude from Arizona

3.65/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Sampled February 7th, 2010
A solid, but not overly aggressive, pour into my 25cl tulip glas produces four fingers of pale tinged froth. The beer underneath is brilliantly clear and a rich gold hue that shines brightly when held up to the light. The aroma smells of ripe apples, pears, hay and cracker-like grain at the first. A deeper inspection of the nose yields melon notes, some honey-like muskat grape notes, a hint of orange zest, ample clove aromatics and more of a crushed grain husk dustiness in the deep finish.

Fairly dry tasting, though the fruity fermentation notes boost the sweetness that is here. Flavors of ripe pear, bright mellon, a hint of green apple, and some floral green grape notes are balanced in the finish by a light, but firm, bitterness, some spicy phenolic clove notes, a touch of spicy white ginger and maybe even a touch of white pepper. The body has a lightnes to it that makes it quaffable, but it does still have a certain viscous fullness to it.

This is not a bad interpretation of the style that is embodied by Duvel. I like that it has more fruitiness and spiciness than the standard. It does have more body and sweetness, but neither of these really detract. I wasn't expecting much from this beer for some reason, but I find that it is quite enjoyable.
Mar 07, 2010
Photo of ocelot2500
Reviewed by ocelot2500 from Maryland

3.07/5  rDev -9.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
Pours a clear golden color with a small fizzy head that leaves no lacing.

Smells of some fruity esters and alcohol.

Tastes of apple, banana, clove, and some sugary sweetness. Too sweet and not enough of the spice. Alcohol is also predominant and does not add to anything. Very messy, some ideas are there, but not brought together well.

Mouthfeel is medium with an amount of cabronation that gives it isn't creamy enough. Would like to have seen a lot finer carbonation.
Feb 04, 2010
Photo of BBThunderbolt
Reviewed by BBThunderbolt from Kiribati

2.92/5  rDev -13.9%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
Poured into tulip glass. Poured the expected slightly hazy golden-yellow of the style. The beer had the typical fluffy white head, but it dissipated far too quickly and left no lacing.

The aroma was the typical yeasty spice scent of the style. The flavors were also what one expects to find with this type of beer. A solid malt base supporting the spicy yeast and a slight hop tang on the finish.

The body was a little thinner than is usual for the style, less full and rounded. Drinkability was good, but not great. Overall, an average version of the style. Worth a try. Perhaps this would be a good introduction to the style since it's not an overly bold example.
Feb 01, 2010
Photo of GilGarp
Reviewed by GilGarp from Colorado

3.5/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
22oz brown bomber served cold into a Belgian style goblet.

Vesuvius has a very hazy, cloudy orange appearance with barely any head. I was expecting more of a big rocky-topped beer given the name and the style.

Aroma is slighly funky, a little sour, and a bit peppery. None of these characters really meld very well though. A little disappointing here too because those qualities can be outstanding in other examples. Not so much here.

Flavor is also kind of odd like something just didn't go quite right. The sour/funk comes through as in the aroma but now there is a decidedly lemony citrus flavor as well. None of the flavors are especially strong, nor off-puting, but they just don't work well together in this beer.

Mouthfeel is medium-light in body with lower carbonation than usually found in this style. The balance of citrus, sweetness, and bitter is fairly good.

Overall not a bad beer, although my review sounds pretty negative. It comes across as an 'imperial wit.' That is a big strong wheat beer with a strong citrus character and a hint of funk. It's easy drinking considering the strength but it's definately an American take on the style: Belgian for the masses.
Jan 31, 2010
Photo of vkv822
Reviewed by vkv822 from Oregon

3.11/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
22oz. bomber into pint glass.

Slightly cloudy yellowy and golden with strong and constant carbonation and a thin, short lasting white head. Smells of alcohol and perhaps spice or fruit. It tastes about the same. . alcohol with the fruit and spice hints forming into almost a cider after note. Nice medium body with a good bit of carbonation. A fairly drinkable beer, although slow going, probably due to having more of an alcohol presence then expected.
Jan 03, 2010
Photo of BradLikesBrew
Reviewed by BradLikesBrew from Missouri

3/5  rDev -11.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Cloudy muddy gold body, thin white head. Yeasty spice and fruity esters on the nose. The flavors are fruity, maybe some dried apricot, then some yeasty spice, pepper, pears, apple cider and a dry finish. Good though not particularly complex. Like a cheap, knockoff of Duvel. $3.99 well spent, but you do get what you pay for...
Dec 10, 2009
Photo of nickd717
Reviewed by nickd717 from California

3.62/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 4
Bottle from Whole Foods Los Altos. Ramon, the beer guy there, recommended this highly. While I don't necessarily agree that it was that awesome, it is a bit underrated.

Pours a crystal clear light golden color with a quickly dissipating one-finger white head. After that, looks not too dissimilar from a white wine.

Aroma is sweet pale malt, Belgian yeast, banana, and spices.

Flavor is pale malt, table sugar, yeast, banana, coriander, herbal notes, and a little alcohol. A little sweet and underattenuated for the style, and just a tad boozy. Good though overall.

Body is medium-light and palate is rather still, but the long, sweet finish is pretty nice.

Drinkability is pretty good. Goes down easy.
Nov 23, 2009
Photo of flagmantho
Reviewed by flagmantho from Washington

3.93/5  rDev +15.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Poured from 22oz bomber into a tulip. This is the 2009 offering.

Appearance: hazy golden color with one finger of white head. Quite nice.

Smell: yeasty and chalky with a little citrus toward the end. There is also a slightly off-putting quality; not exactly skunky, but somewhat unappetizing. Overall it's not bad, though not my favorite.

Taste: sweet malt with big orchard flavors. Alcohol is noticeable. A bit one-dimensional, but still quite nice.

Mouthfeel: medium body, but creamy and velvety like you wouldn't believe. I love it.

Drinkability: as I said, it's a bit one-dimensional; however, it is still quite tasty and quite drinkable despite the ABV.
Nov 22, 2009
Photo of morimech
Reviewed by morimech from Minnesota

3.78/5  rDev +11.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
Brewmaster Reserve 2009

After reading some of the older reviews by the top reviewers, I wonder if the brewer made some improvements to this beer. Not a spectacular example of the style but worth taking a look at this beer on the shelf.

Appearance: Pours a clear golden color with a solid two inches of white head that had good retention before settling to a thick cap. Very little lacing is left on the glass.

Smell: Nice aroma of pale malt with some fruity esters. Some alcohol is lurking in the background.

Taste: Dry and fruity. Notes of pear, cherries (weird in a pale ale), and some pepper and cloves. Alcohol flavor and warmth in the finish.

Mouthfeel: Medium body and low carbonation. I think this is an area that could be improved upon. Just does not pop in the mouth like Duvel.

Drinkability: A good American example of the style. It will not be mistaken for the great Belgian beers, but for what it is I would drink it again.
Nov 01, 2009
Photo of DNA
Reviewed by DNA from Oregon

4.32/5  rDev +27.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured into a snifter. Has a nice orange hue somewhere between gold and amber with a small head that dissipates quickly. Very floral candy-like aroma. Almost like gardenias. Taste is appropriate for a Belgian with lots of spice but not as much fruit as some other Belgian style beers. The alcohol comes through a bit in the finish. Overall, a very tasty beer that I would definitely buy again.
Oct 28, 2009
Vesuvius (Brewmaster Reserve) from Full Sail Brewing Company
Beer rating: 79 out of 100 with 70 ratings