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ELEVEN
Ithaca Beer Company
- From:
- Ithaca Beer Company
- New York, United States
- Style:
- Sweet / Milk Stout
- ABV:
- 7.5%
- Score:
- 87
- Avg:
- 3.86 | pDev: 14.25%
- Reviews:
- 74
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- Oct 19, 2016
- Added:
- Aug 22, 2009
- Wants:
- 14
- Gots:
- 3
Brewed with British, German, and French malts, American hops, and milk sugar, then aged for weeks on locally roasted Sumatra coffee beans.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Proteus93:
Reviewed by Proteus93 from Virginia
4.37/5 rDev +13.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
4.37/5 rDev +13.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
A: Black with a lighter, bubbly head that doesn't retain all that much. It's very sea-side foamy and dissipates to nothing very quickly. In some ways, there is an intriguing beauty to looking at a glass of straight up, black liquid.
S + T: Pleasant malts, coffee and cream, some vanilla. Overall, it's a rich mocha scent and flavour. Coffee is certainly the predominant flavour, but there is a cookie quality that comes to it with a little age. That does it incredibly well, at least at this point in time. The bottle states that it could be aged indefinitely, though I would likely feel that the oxidation could hurt it over the next couple of years. Nonetheless, this is a fantastic beer... both scent and aroma are incredible.
M + D: The body of the brew is a little lighter than a lot of more common in the stout style... most RIS will be thick or chewy, and this is neither. Rather, it's a modest body, assertively carbonated, yet on the lighter side. In this case, it serves the beer well. The coffee serves as 'the front line,' even over the beer quality. This is one I would hope to come by again, as the age doesn't hurt it at this point in time.
Apr 28, 2010S + T: Pleasant malts, coffee and cream, some vanilla. Overall, it's a rich mocha scent and flavour. Coffee is certainly the predominant flavour, but there is a cookie quality that comes to it with a little age. That does it incredibly well, at least at this point in time. The bottle states that it could be aged indefinitely, though I would likely feel that the oxidation could hurt it over the next couple of years. Nonetheless, this is a fantastic beer... both scent and aroma are incredible.
M + D: The body of the brew is a little lighter than a lot of more common in the stout style... most RIS will be thick or chewy, and this is neither. Rather, it's a modest body, assertively carbonated, yet on the lighter side. In this case, it serves the beer well. The coffee serves as 'the front line,' even over the beer quality. This is one I would hope to come by again, as the age doesn't hurt it at this point in time.
More User Ratings:
Reviewed by cpetrone84 from Pennsylvania
2.3/5 rDev -40.4%
2.3/5 rDev -40.4%
Pour is dark brown with a small amount if fuzzy dark brown head. Nose is fairly clean roasted coffee, very strong, with notes of milk chocolate and a touch of soy sauce. Taste is rough, highly acrid and sweet residual sugar in back. Coffee bitterness lingers through the finish. Body is oily and falls off in the finish with low carbonation.
Dec 09, 2014Reviewed by jlindros from Massachusetts
3.29/5 rDev -14.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3
3.29/5 rDev -14.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3
Shared with many people at my cellar cleaning.
Small fizzy head, dark mahogany color little light.
Nose ground coffee, stale coffee, lactose, somehow burnt milk, little cocoa, dark malts, creamy milk stout, little cardboard.
Taste lots more coffee, roasted coffee grinds and burnt, cardboard, dry lactose and milk stout, little dusty cocoa, slight metallic acrid roast, little acidic bite, dusty. Dry slight bitter acrid finish.
Mouth sticky slight syrupy, little acrid acidic like burn, mild carb.
Overall a big mess, too much burnt coffee, oxidation, bitter acrid metallic roast, and dry but cooked milk that was meh. Not really enjoyable.
Dec 23, 2013Small fizzy head, dark mahogany color little light.
Nose ground coffee, stale coffee, lactose, somehow burnt milk, little cocoa, dark malts, creamy milk stout, little cardboard.
Taste lots more coffee, roasted coffee grinds and burnt, cardboard, dry lactose and milk stout, little dusty cocoa, slight metallic acrid roast, little acidic bite, dusty. Dry slight bitter acrid finish.
Mouth sticky slight syrupy, little acrid acidic like burn, mild carb.
Overall a big mess, too much burnt coffee, oxidation, bitter acrid metallic roast, and dry but cooked milk that was meh. Not really enjoyable.
Reviewed by rudzud from Massachusetts
2.86/5 rDev -25.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2
2.86/5 rDev -25.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2
Thanks to JLindros for sharing.
A - Poured into a Kate the Great tulip a nice dark brown hue with no head, yep.
S - Aromas of old support bitter green coffee. Super bitter.
T - Taste is pretty burnt sweet coffee. Almost undrinkable.
M - Mouthfeel is lowly carbonated.
O - Overall this beer was really a mess.
Dec 21, 2013A - Poured into a Kate the Great tulip a nice dark brown hue with no head, yep.
S - Aromas of old support bitter green coffee. Super bitter.
T - Taste is pretty burnt sweet coffee. Almost undrinkable.
M - Mouthfeel is lowly carbonated.
O - Overall this beer was really a mess.
Reviewed by TheBeerologist from Rhode Island
3.37/5 rDev -12.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5
3.37/5 rDev -12.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5
750 poured into a New Belgium globe
Pours a watery brown with a tan 1" head. Looks to be dark brown in the glass.
Smells strongly of coffee and roasted malt..and some more coffee
Again, coffee. The base beer is pretty much nonexistent and is dominated by the coffee flavor here. I really don't get anything else other than a slight hint of malty sweetness.
Mouthfeel is thin and very light, though this was very nicely carbonated
This was a good COFFEE brown ale, if thats your thing. Its not my thing, so I can live without it.
Oct 07, 2012Pours a watery brown with a tan 1" head. Looks to be dark brown in the glass.
Smells strongly of coffee and roasted malt..and some more coffee
Again, coffee. The base beer is pretty much nonexistent and is dominated by the coffee flavor here. I really don't get anything else other than a slight hint of malty sweetness.
Mouthfeel is thin and very light, though this was very nicely carbonated
This was a good COFFEE brown ale, if thats your thing. Its not my thing, so I can live without it.
Reviewed by BBThunderbolt from Kiribati
3.65/5 rDev -5.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
3.65/5 rDev -5.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured into fluted goblet. Poured a solid black and very still. Low carbonation and just a bit of head that had low retention and lacing.
The aroma was dominated by roast and coffee, but did have just a bit of sweetness underneath. The flavors were the same story, bit some tartness and a pleasant light funk did show through behind the strong coffee and roast aspects.
The body was smooth and solid, very nice. Drinkability would depend on your taste for coffee. I hate coffee, so this isn't a good thing for me, but the beer was good for what it was trying to be. Overall, a nice brew that probably wasn't harmed by aging, but may not have been helped either. If you happen to see a bottle, this brew is worth your time.
Aug 06, 2012The aroma was dominated by roast and coffee, but did have just a bit of sweetness underneath. The flavors were the same story, bit some tartness and a pleasant light funk did show through behind the strong coffee and roast aspects.
The body was smooth and solid, very nice. Drinkability would depend on your taste for coffee. I hate coffee, so this isn't a good thing for me, but the beer was good for what it was trying to be. Overall, a nice brew that probably wasn't harmed by aging, but may not have been helped either. If you happen to see a bottle, this brew is worth your time.
Reviewed by soulfly1492 from Pennsylvania
4/5 rDev +3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4/5 rDev +3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Aroma: Bitter coffee, burnt actually. Chocolate, a little funky too. Smokey, a little bit of musty basement and cigarette ash.
Appearance: What looks like melted chocolate is stuck to the underside of the cap and the top rim of the bottle. Not sure if it was planned this way. Black in color, opaque. The pour develops a noisy dark brown head which fizzes away in about 60 seconds like a soda. Some bubbles around the rim and not much lacing, although it's still cold.
Taste: Nice. Instantly reminds me of Southern Tier Mokah. Actually tastes like bold, dark coffee, then a bit of lactose. Some smoke and roastiness follows. Some bitterness also, must be the Northern Brewer hops shining through the sweet malts and sugar additions.
Mouthfeel: Full bodied. Oily overall, but a mild tingle/drying sensation from the coffee and hops. Carbonation is nonexistent. No warming.
Overall: Bold, smooth, accurate coffee, mild lactose and chocolate. Just enough bitterness and roastiness to help balance out the large quantity of sugars.
Notes: Batch E!OI6. Tasted 2/25/2012.
Apr 06, 2012Appearance: What looks like melted chocolate is stuck to the underside of the cap and the top rim of the bottle. Not sure if it was planned this way. Black in color, opaque. The pour develops a noisy dark brown head which fizzes away in about 60 seconds like a soda. Some bubbles around the rim and not much lacing, although it's still cold.
Taste: Nice. Instantly reminds me of Southern Tier Mokah. Actually tastes like bold, dark coffee, then a bit of lactose. Some smoke and roastiness follows. Some bitterness also, must be the Northern Brewer hops shining through the sweet malts and sugar additions.
Mouthfeel: Full bodied. Oily overall, but a mild tingle/drying sensation from the coffee and hops. Carbonation is nonexistent. No warming.
Overall: Bold, smooth, accurate coffee, mild lactose and chocolate. Just enough bitterness and roastiness to help balance out the large quantity of sugars.
Notes: Batch E!OI6. Tasted 2/25/2012.
ELEVEN from Ithaca Beer Company
Beer rating:
87 out of
100 with
97 ratings
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