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AltBitter
Widmer Brothers Brewing Company

AltBitterAltBitter
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From:
Widmer Brothers Brewing Company
 
Oregon, United States
Style:
Altbier
ABV:
9.5%
Score:
89
Avg:
4.02 | pDev: 8.71%
Reviews:
8
Ratings:
35
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jan 04, 2018
Added:
Nov 30, 2014
Wants:
  2
Gots:
  10
30th Anniversary Collaboration #6 with Deschutes Brewery

AltBitter, a collaboration beer between Deschutes Brewery and Widmer Brothers Brewing, is a blend of imperial barrel-aged versions of Bachelor Bitter and Widmer Brothers’ Altbier.
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Ratings by kilo_005:
Photo of kilo_005
Reviewed by kilo_005 from Pennsylvania

4.24/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Poured from the 22oz bottle into a pint glass. I let this one warm up for a while to basically room temperature. After all, half of this is an English bitter.
A: Copper in color, not much lacing.
S: Good, this is a malty, boozy smelling beer. It reminds me more of a Belgian beer than the styles that are indicated.
T: Delicious. Boozy at first with dried fruit/raisiny tastes but then finishes with some good bitterness. So, in other words, you get a lot of sweetness/alcohol but finishes like a traditional english ale.
M: Not much carbonation; mainly alcohol here.
O: This is an excellent effort, although my rating is not higher because I just don't get the concept they are going for; I get that this is an imperial version, but these are two low alcohol beers that they are "combining", and somehow you end up with a 9+% beer. This would obviously confuse the natives from London and Dusseldorff respectively. But, the taste is excellent and the bitter finish with that level of high alcohol is great. You won't be disappointed with this beer.
Mar 09, 2015
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.5 by 1971bernat from Virginia

Jan 04, 2018
 
Rated: 4.02 by zekeman17 from Pennsylvania

Dec 06, 2016
Photo of Zorro
Reviewed by Zorro from California

3.62/5  rDev -10%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Mildly chill hazed chestnut brown colored beer with a small khaki colored head that dissipates.

Smells of spicy rye and whiskey. Scents of vanilla, caramel, wheat toast, coconut, pecan and a faint African violet scent. Scent of wood ash.

Starts out tasting of molasses and toasted grain. Tastes of whiskey and caramel. Tastes of nuts and vanilla.

Mouthfeel is good.

An OK beer but not a new favorite at all.
Nov 26, 2015
 
Rated: 3.99 by TXRobbo from Texas

Aug 22, 2015
 
Rated: 4.04 by nassstnate from Colorado

Aug 19, 2015
Photo of RyanK252
Reviewed by RyanK252 from California

4.3/5  rDev +7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Bottle poured into a snifter

A: Pours rich copper brown with a frothy khaki head that settles to a thin layer and laces lightly.

S: Toffee, molasses, vanilla, smooth bourbon, maybe a hint of dark fruit and chocolate.

T: Follows the nose. Toffee, molasses, bourbon, light spice, a little woody note from the barrels, and maybe a touch of dark fruit.

M: Medium body, moderate carbonation, very smooth.

O: I waited a couple months before cracking this one and it paid off because boy was it a pleasant surprise. I really had no idea what to expect from it, but I think the only thing I can really compare it to is a barrel aged strong ale kinda like Lost Abbey Angel's Share. It's a big sweet smooth sipper. I wish I grabbed more of these.
Aug 06, 2015
 
Rated: 3.85 by vermilcj from Ohio

Jun 07, 2015
 
Rated: 4.09 by Valentno7 from Pennsylvania

Jun 05, 2015
 
Rated: 4.06 by gefinley from California

May 08, 2015
Photo of Jugs_McGhee
Reviewed by Jugs_McGhee from Colorado

3.24/5  rDev -19.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25
A blend of altbier and English bitter aged in rye whiskey barrels, brewed by Deschutes (a brewery I adore) and Widmer (a brewery I...don't adore). This should be interesting...

BOTTLE: 22 fl oz. Brown glass bottle. Ornate screen-print label art. Branded black pry-off cap.

Served cold into a pilsner glass at low altitude in Austin, TX, and allowed to warm over the course of consumption. Expectations are above average.

Reviewed live as a hybridized altbier/bitter. Sort of a novelty style, I suppose.

No bubble show forms as it's poured.

HEAD: ~3 inches wide. Khaki colour. Soft-looking, with a nice creamy smooth even consistency and a great complexion. Not the flat head you'd expect from an English bitter (especially one on cask), nor the moderate head you'd expect from a good traditional alt, but almost better somehow - more on par with a stickebier, though I wonder how whiskey barrel aging didn't reduce the head retention; this holds up for an astonishing 10+ minutes. A messy coating of light lacing sticks to the sides of the glass as it recedes. Fluffy and frothy.

BODY: Sort of a copper-auburn with amber hues, if you will. Translucent but nontransparent. No yeast is visible and there's no hoppy sediment, which is to style(s). I'd say it's spot on as an even mix of altbier and bitter hues. I do miss the crisp clean look of a nice vibrant altbier, but this is engaging.

The head exceeds my expectations; the body does not. It appears well-carbonated and seems to be an easy drinker. Let's see if that 9.5% ABV ever enters in...

AROMA: The barrel doesn't overwhelm the base, but it brings plenty of expressive character to the fore...charred oak, vanilla, barrel sugars, some toastiness, faint rye spice...great barrel aging here. And it does play well with the malty core, which boasts bready German malts, amber malts, English caramalts, and marshmallow. The barrel ties it all together, but I do wish the altbier characteristics were more noticeable.

Luckily, there're no buttery diacetyl notes or strange cask-ale oxidation notes from the bitter ale.

Aromatic intensity is average. I'm looking forward to the first sip.

TASTE: The barrel isn't as well-integrated as the aroma promised, but it does bring some nice albeit artificial vanilla in the third act, which is amongst the best characteristics of this brew. And the charred toasty wood and concomitant barrel sugars lend the flavour profile needed cohesion. I say "needed" because the balance is off-kilter and the build is a hodgepodge of malts lacking focus and direction. Toasty English malts, bready German malts, English caramel & toffee, a kiss of graham cracker, some earthy low-acid hops...this can't decide what it wants to be, and it isn't gestalt as a result. Rye was an interesting choice as the whiskey, but it's not very well showcased...or at least, it doesn't ring distinct.

Has a mild woody bitterness from the open that clashes with the malty sweetness from the well-attenuated alt. It's an oddly unfocused brew, but that's not to say I don't like it per se. I just hoped for better given Deschutes' involvement as well as the whiskey aging. There's not a marriage of barrel to base.

TEXTURE: Full-bodied to its detriment, coming off more like a doppelsticke than an alt/bitter hybrid. Somewhat creamy up front, but somewhat stale and oxidized in the middle (probably from the bitter ale). Overcarbonated and unrefreshing. Sticky and overly thick, with a somewhat overbearing and overly heavy weighty presence on the palate. Coating.

OVERALL: I don't think the premise itself was a good idea - altbier and bitter ale do not mix well, even when you try to use whiskey barrel aging to force them together. The fundamental clash of competing styles at the heart of this brew holds it back, but little things like the oak and the vanilla and to a lesser degree the altbier/toasty amber malts are worthwhile. It's a winter beer, if anything, and isn't real drinkable as a result, with the 9.5% ABV obvious as you drink.

I wouldn't buy it again, and it's far from Deschutes best work, but then again it's also far from Widmer's worst. Still, it does succeed at capturing a European flavour (even in spite of the rye whiskey), and I imagine I'd enjoy it quite a bit more if it committed more to the traditions behind its constituent styles. In any case, I do think it drinks more like an English ale than an altbier or sticke - but that's probably just Deschutes brewing a more flavorful brew than Widmer (as usual). While there's no harmony of texture to taste, and it's not a horribly deep or intricate brew, it's an enjoyable mess that would be well-suited to wintertime drinking - ideally from a dimpled mug.

The artificial vanilla on the finish only amplifies as it warms, and I can't decide if that's good or bad.

High C+ (3.24)
May 04, 2015
Photo of UCLABrewN84
Reviewed by UCLABrewN84 from California

3.82/5  rDev -5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
Pours a murky dark orange-brown with a foamy dark khaki head that settles to a partial film on top of the beer. Small streaks of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Tiny particles of sediment are seen floating around in the beer after the pour. Smell is of toasted malt, caramel, toffee, vanilla, rye whiskey, and slight wood aromas. Taste is much the same with rye whiskey, wood, vanilla, caramel, toast, and earth flavors on the finish. There is a mild amount of earth and wood bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a good level of carbonation with a crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a pretty good beer with barrel aged characteristics that somewhat overpower the mix of base beers to me.

Serving type: bottle.
May 04, 2015
 
Rated: 4.33 by DoubleSimcoe from Pennsylvania

May 01, 2015
 
Rated: 3.89 by Dwreck from Texas

May 01, 2015
 
Rated: 3.57 by GRG1313 from California

Apr 11, 2015
 
Rated: 3.81 by WontontoIsDrinking from Pennsylvania

Apr 02, 2015
 
Rated: 4.34 by Sparty55 from Michigan

Mar 21, 2015
 
Rated: 4.25 by jmccraney from Washington

Mar 19, 2015
Photo of mac31
Reviewed by mac31 from California

4.01/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
This beer started out promising. It was served cold (which I hate having to let it warm enough to open up.) It started out with the typical barrel aged nose-sweet, whiskey/bourbon-like, vanilla, oak. The taste followed the nose, big vanilla up front in the first few sips. Sweet from the whiskey barrel. The spiciness from the rye was very sharp while the beer was cold, but later softened as the beer warmed. Nice oak that rounded out and softened the beer. As the beer warmed, I was expecting more complex layers to come to the fore. Nope. There were some dark chocolate notes, almost bitter sweet cocoa. Some tobacco was apparent. That was about it. As the beer warmed all the flavors came in to a nice balance, which was pleasant. Sweet up front, finishes dry. Medium bodied, lightly coating the palate. Alcohol was well covered for a beer approaching 10%. All in all, a nice barrel aged offering. I might buy again if it is in a local bottle shop and the price is right, but I would not go on a massive hunt for this beer.
Never had an alt bier. My guess is it's not overly complicated because it's "part" bitter, although some bitters are complex enough. I'm a little puzzled by the aim of this beer, to be quite honest.
Mar 14, 2015
Photo of TBoneJones
Reviewed by TBoneJones from Texas

3.95/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Deschute's involvement sold me on trying this..
Pint poured and it's a deep ruby/ mahogany. Very light tan creamy head, creamy lacing coats the sides, body appears medium. Nice.
Smells oaky, nicely and lightly. Malt, whiskey scent. Alcohol barely there, just the barrel.
Taste is like the smell but spicier, and with some alcohol present..but this is smooth sipping, feels good. Bitter, dry finishing, although sweet enough at first to make it something to reach for. Nothing complex.
Carbonation feels low, feels smooth and slick.
Overall, this has a malt tone and a whiskey tone that equals decent drinkability. The only altbier I've tried prior is Alaskan Amber. That was an alright beer. This is too, on an imperial scale no doubt.
Mar 14, 2015
AltBitter from Widmer Brothers Brewing Company
Beer rating: 89 out of 100 with 35 ratings