13th Anniversary Ale | Stone Brewing

3.88/5  rDev -4.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The bottle asks you to drink it young, so here we go. A little bit of several styles. Hops up front, citrus c, piney. Also a little roasted barleywine imperial stoutish. A little yeasty, like a Belgian IPA. Neither style overwhelms, it is a great beverage accompaniment with supper as different tastes predominate with each course. Darkish colour with generous head.

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3.5/5  rDev -13.8%

4.35/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a very dark orange with a thick off white long lasting head. Big nose of grapefruit that goes to lemons.

Nice thick and creamy mouthfeel of grapefruit and burnt toast with a long grapefruit to pine resin finish.

There is also a big underlying characteristic of malt that is literally layered under the hops. Complex and wonderfully integrated huge malt and huge hops. Should prove wonderful with lots of foods.

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4/5  rDev -1.5%

4/5  rDev -1.5%

3.5/5  rDev -13.8%

3.58/5  rDev -11.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Got a bottle of this in August of 2010, so the brew was not fresh like the bottle says it should be enjoyed. However I wanted to have it and give it a try. The brew poured out as a brownish color with a pretty decent head on it. The smell of the beer is malty and had some nice hops in there also. The taste of the brew was similar to a Barley Wine to me. Sweet, hoppy and dry. The mouthfeel was on the thicker side. Overall not a bad brew, wish I could have had it sooner just to see the difference.

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4/5  rDev -1.5%

4/5  rDev -1.5%

4.25/5  rDev +4.7%

3.98/5  rDev -2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Aah, the anticipated Imperial Red. In true Stone fashion, this beer is flavorful, challenging, and aggressive as hell.

Begins with a sturdy dark amber hue (boardering on crimson) with very good clarity despite such dark red colors. Great foamstance and retention with malt-stained yellowish foam. Tough to knock the appearance from perfect.

Aromas are that of true Stone beers- floral, citrusy, piney, and pungent all the way. A background of malts and sunkist barley rise and give complexity to the hops. A lot going on here, could be mistaken for a Barleywine.

Flavors are extremely strong and obviously begin with the heavy dose of hops throughout. Flowery and fruity even with the onslaught of alpha acid flavor. Heavy malts come in with a toasty, toffee flavor and heavy breads (think beer breads) with molassas and sorgum. Also comming in at mid-palate is the flavors from the alcohol that deter from the malt-hops blend because of a nail polish remover taste and aggression.

The feel is equally as bold with ultimate bitterness that is tempered nicely with the bready and well attenuated malts. Not much sweetness, just malty as hell (similar to Arrogant Bastard). But again, the alcohols become quite abrupt and keep the beer from reaching full potential. Bitey and bitter the finish suffers a bit from the vodka-like alcohols.

The beer reminds me a lot of Arrogant Bastard. The hops are re-tooled and the beer seems to be a bit more caramelly and toasty instead of the simplified melanoidin notes. Still, a Stone-worthy beer indeed.

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4/5  rDev -1.5%

3.26/5  rDev -19.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Looks like this is about 6 months old...picked up a bomber in WI, never seen it before. Silkscreened bottle interested me enough, but not the tl;dr story on the back.

Pours a reddish tawny brown, some sticky lace. A cluster of tan bubbles clings to one side. Retention is ok, a skim maintains across the surface.

Sort of generic hoppy aroma, sweet specialty malts, rich and full bodied, lingering bitter aftertaste. Bready, bitter, almost a strong rye component. Too oppressive. This is pretty typical Stone, too full with one-dimensional bitterness to really drink much of. Eh, pass...

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4.5/5  rDev +10.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: Arrives with a root beer brown color and a one finger head that laces with proficiency

Smell: Grapefruity aroma, with rich malty undertones

Taste: Citrusy grapefruit dominates and builds, but there is a complex undertone of spice cake malt; after the swallow, the two flavor elements balance nicely, though the finish is a bit sticky (a Stone trademark)

Mouthfeel: Full body with moderate carbonation

Drinkability: One of Stone's better efforts; really enjoyable

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3.65/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottle: Poured a deep dark amber color ale with a medium foamy head with good retention and good lacing. Aroma of citrus hops with a grassy feel and deep caramel malt also noticeable. Taste is also a mix between some grassy earthy hops with some deep caramel malt and a light toffee aftertaste. Body is a bit thin for the style with good carbonation and no signs of alcohol. Well done though maybe a tad too one-dimensional.

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3.93/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured into Ommegang 10th Anniversary Chalice

Pours 1 and 1/2 fingers of beige tan head. Good retention with some really nice lace. Color is dark copper amber, pretty much brown.

Aroma: Good floral hop aroma, some caramel malts, and a mix of citrus, mainly grapefruit.

Taste: Big caramel malt flavor with a nice floral hop taste. This beast is hoppy, but somewhat balanced by the malts. Some nice grapefruit citrus here.

Mouthfeel: It has a nice bitter touch, but it is fairly balanced for the amount of IBUs this beer has. Medium bodied, with a decent amount of carbonation. Ends with a slight dry, grapefruit hopped aftertaste.

Overall, this is a fairly great hopped up red. I am really impressed on how fast this is drinking. I don't know if I could finish the bomber, so I am glad to share this with a buddy!

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4.25/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Stone 13 sits in the glass with a dark but clear crimson body and a dense, long-lasting rust-colored head. The nose is hoppy but balanced, the tobacco and grapefruit of the hops playing nicely off of the caramel and old leather malt backbone. The taste is initially rich and malty, but the grapefruit and pine hop attack takes over mid-palate, leading into an intensely bitter and resiny finish. This is a pretty easy-drinking beer despite the high ABV and moderate sweetness, and the mouthfeel never gets excessively heavy. Basically, it's exactly as advertised; an imperial red ale, not just an overhopped barleywine or dark DIPA. Good stuff, a huge improvement over the lackluster 12th anniversary stout. This one is going to fade fast though, so drink it fresh.

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4/5  rDev -1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I liked the teenager reference on the bottle; and I love that Stone is growing! So Kudos! to Greg and Stone for 13 years of great beers!

That said, I wasn't particularly impressed with this one. Don't get me wrong, it's a good, decent American Strong Ale, and it's well-rounded (not necessarily a Stone trait - wink -). But it's also not too unlike a lot of their other beers. I guess it just doesn't stand out for me. If you put this in an Arrogant Bastard bottle and handed it to me I'd probably believe it was. Sure it's probably a little bit stronger, maybe a bit more fruity, and maybe a bit more hoppy (probably not), but it's similar. And this is an anniversary beer. ...I guess I was just expecting more.

So...
Appearance: Hazy ruby-accented almost-chestnut-brown body beneath a frothy head of light tan that holds well and leaves great lacing behind.

Aroma: Yeasty fruitiness, darkly caramelish malt, spicy/piney/leafy/herbal hops.

Flavor: Upfront solid combination of piney/spicy/grassy/leafy hops and biscuity but dark-edged, deeply caramelish maltiness. It's on the cusp of burnt sugar and roastiness. It warms across the middle and the yeasty fruitiness rises, along with grassy/piney hops. The bracing bitterness actually steps in right at the offset, but rises to its full height at the middle. From there the malts start to fade in the swallow and finish, but the bitterness and hop flavors remains. It ends very dry, but piney/grassy, and long-lingering with a hint of roastiness.

Mouthfeel: Medium-full bodied with a bubbly carbonation.

Drinkability: As far as American strong ales go, it's pretty much on par. English strong ales tend to be more malty and soft, while Americans rev it up a bit, which can lead to 'hop-mouth' and sensory deprivation (no more perfectly exemplified than Stone's very own Ruination, although that's an IPA and not a strong ale - same idea). It's got lots of malt and bitterness and hoppiness and fruitiness, and yet it never really overwhelms. In fact, the yeasty fruitiness is left behind as the final note to it, which is interesting. And although you can feel the strength of it, the alcohol never really shows any more than it's supposed to in flexing its muscles. But at the same time, it lacks depth and complexity. So I don't know. I'll just go with 'it's pretty drinkable', how's that?

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4/5  rDev -1.5%

3.75/5  rDev -7.6%

4.68/5  rDev +15.3%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

On-tap 7/25/09 at Track 84 in Warwick, RI, served in a tulip glass.

A: The beer is a dark reddish brown color, with a large off-white head that fades very slowly and leaves a very thick lace on the glass.

S: The aroma contains caramelized malts, some citrus and a lot of hops.

T: The taste starts with a strong burst of floral hops that is quickly followed by a nice compliment of caramel & citrus sweetness and some roasted malts, creating a very nice balance. The after-taste is hoppy and sweet.

M: Very crisp and very smooth, medium body, medium carbonation, finish is clean and dry.

D: Very tasty, goes down quite easily, not too filling, strong kick, excellent representation of the imperial red IPA style, this is a great high-octane beer to drink for an entire evening.

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3.95/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

I always look forward like most do the annual Stone anniversary brews.Poured a rich deep amber with a tight and sticky one finger off white head,big hops in the nose with a mix pine and herbal/leaf,there is a gummy,fruity-like sweet note as well.The mouthfeel is a bit sharp I will say it crashes down the gullett at first,it does begin to smooth out after a few sips but still seems a bit harsh.No holds barred hops hit the palate up front with big pine and big herbalness,a healthy does of sweeter alcohol gives a slight burn along with a bit of dark fruit.Very good but seems like it something that should sit for awhile,still another fine one from Stone.

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4.25/5  rDev +4.7%

3.27/5  rDev -19.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

I call it a Red IPA and definitely qualifies for Extreme.

Odor of alcohol and -- does anyone remember how Merthiolate smelled? Or is it moth balls? Definitely not an "aroma." Oddly harsh and sharply acidic. Woody and resiny hop flavors. Malt appears and disappears, and why do I think of Milk Duds?

Very educational, and the intense red-copper-amber color is worth seeing. But I'll be looking for something bland to mix the rest of the 22 oz with. Usual Stone printed-on-bottle label says it was bottled in 2009 and "Do not cellar - enjoy in 2009." You have been warned.

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4.2/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Found this one still on the shelf in a recent trip to Buffalo. Had it fresh out in California when it came out but wasn't able to give it a review so I picked it up.

Poured from a 22oz into my Southern Tier tulip glass. Pours a dark brown with a one finger off-white head. Very good lacing on the glass.

Aroma has some citrus from the hops but also a sweet caramel and chocolate malt presence. The hops have definitely faded some comparing to my experience when fresh, but still a very good complex aroma.

Taste is a lot like the nose, the hops give it a citrus and pine flavor and the sweet malt gives a good caramel and chocolate flavor.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Drinkability is good, especially for the high abv.

Overall this was very good both fresh and now, enjoyed a lot both times I had it.

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