Stegmaier 100th Anniversary IPA
Lion Brewery, Inc.

WOW – saw the notes below about the price. Quite a good deal!

My review stays the same, and in summary, an outstanding buy and brew!

A clear amber/brown, topped by a lacey tan head. STRONG hops with a malty backbone in both the aroma and the quaff. A very spicey lil’ brew, hints of caramel, pepper, pine and a small aged whiskey pop. Very full bodied with a superb oily slickness. Very smooth, I thought it might have an alcohol kick, and I see it’s over 8% - still very drinkable and enjoyable.

So, if I was in the N.E. area, I’d have a couple cases in my cellar.

Thanks beerbeing for another great taster – again, I’m envious of the east coast.

Appearance is pretty hazy for a DIPA with a nice bright white head. Smell is sweet with an alcohol hint. Taste is again sweet but not quite as strong as a DIPA is normally although the alcohol is dominent. Could be a session beer if it qere available near me especially for this price.

I picked up a case of this in Scranton, PA right when it came out and it was I think $15! What a deal and what a very good beer. It poured a nice brownish/amber color and clear with a thin off white head that did stick around all that long. The smell I get from this once is a nice nose of floral hops and a bit of sweetness. The taste is a pleasant mix of the hopppy bit with some sweet caramel tones which I really enjoy and with a medium body, I find this DIPA to be very drinkable. Steg has done a good job lately of bringing their name back with some quality brews including this and the new bock. Way to represent NEPA.

Slightly hazy golden amber color. Thin head that dissipates quickly. Thin webby lacing.

Very weak smell. Small hop scent and possibly some orange rind?

The taste is quite subpar. There's some metallic hops and twanged pale malt. There's an unpleasant alcohol taste too.

Not worth the effort for me.

Bright tangerine with butterscotch edges. The largish head is midway between ecru and dark cream in color and contains the slightest orangish blush. It's firm enough to last and to show off a dippled mesa of foam as it descends. What lace ends up on the glass doesn't look to be dripping with hop resins since it's soft, sudsy and melty rather than tenaciously tacky. Not a bad look.

The nose is considerably underpowered and I actually got my nose wet when attempting to appreciate it (gotta keep my eyes open from now on). It's something less than well-hopped and smells like sweet orange above all else. No trace of alcohol. A pleasant enough scent, but the beer will have to do a lot better on the palate or I'll be disappointed.

Tough call on the flavor. Not between good and great, but between average and slightly above average. There's a ghost of a good DIPA here and I can actually appreciate the beer's potential. With a moderately comprehensive overhaul, it could be more than just acceptable. Trouble is, as an anniversary beer, it's destined never to be heard from again.

It's decently malted with no hint of caramel. I'm not sure that I'd go along with DIPA, but would have no problem with big IPA in terms of malt and mouthfeel. Hoppiness is where Stegmaier 100th fails to make an impact. A disappointingly hopped DIPA is no kind of DIPA at all. It's still orangey with the slightest hint of pink grapefruit.

The beer is sweet and bitter in nearly equal measure, with bitter smacking the snot out of sweet on the surprisingly biting finish. I say surprisingly because the minor tongue abuse snuck up on me a little. The 8.2% ABV fits the stated style, but isn't buried well enough. The beer tastes a bit harsh and does nothing to make me associate the words 'quality brewing' with Lion Brewery. I am, however, willing to give them the benefit of the doubt and several more chances.

The mouthfeel is medium (at best) when judged with style in mind. It's reasonably smooth, yet slightly harsh at the same time. Upon further reflection, I think the poorly-mannered alcohol is what accounts for that impression, not the mouthfeel itself. The carbonation is appropriately subdued.

In response to a recent thread, I went back and looked at the scores that I've given beers of my favorite style (DIPA). I was surprised to discover that I've never really had what I would consider to be a bad one. Stegmaier 100th Anniversary IPA isn't bad exactly, but it's my least favorite of the dozens that I've consumed to date. Rest In Peace, though you will not be missed.

Pours with a darkish, amber-tan colored head that forms an initial three-finger thick head. The beer is brilliantly clear and shows a rich ruby-hued amber color. The aroma is nice an hoppy with a up front herbal pine note to it, but it also has a backdrop of subtle citrus note, which are accentuated by a light malt sweetness. The finish has quite a dry aromatic malt note to it that reminds me of crackers.

The taste starts out a bit off dry, but then picks up some sweet caramel notes which lingers on through to the finish. The hop character is definitely here as well, but it is not as dominant as it was in the nose. There is some really weird hop note here as well. It is a bit herbal, but almost vegetal and not in a good raw hop kind of way. I would almost characterize it as a processed hop product, though that is just a shot in the dark. It seems like a bit of the soul of the hops have been striped out and we are left with this not quite hoppy goodness; interesting. The beer is fairly light on the palate, perhaps a bit too thin of a finish. I am not sure what it is, because this is pretty flavorful, but something about this beer makes me think of a macro-lager. There is a solid bitterness here from start to finish; and other than that weird note, I get notes of pine, fresh cut herbs and a bit of orange-like citrus.

This is a drinkable beer, and is even enjoyable (much more so than I have made it out to be), but something is just off here. I don't think that this beer is old or mistreated, it just seems like it was brewed by a brewer used to making less flavorful brews. I have to check out what this Stegmaier brewery does, as this is my first exposure to them.

A slightly hazy, deep-amber and copper colored body reveals glowing orange highlights. The white head holds well and leaves some nice lace about the glass. Generous amounts of piney, grassy, and citrusy (lots of orange) hops greet you in the nose. The body is medium and it's gently crisp across the palate. The flavor is well-balanced with a caramelish malt and yeasty fruitiness supporting it's hops, and rounding out its bitterness. The alcohol appears fairly readily in the finish, however, distracting from an otherwise great beer.

Recieved a sampler pack as a Christmas present. The IPA has a stronger alchohol content 8.2% than the other Stegs. Ale was a bit syrupy. Pleasant taste and aroma. Overall a very good pale ale from a brewery that is close to home. A good drink for a cold night.

Steg of my Heart

Pours an amber color with a small head that dies fast and doesn't leave much lacing on the glass. The aroma reminds me of band-aids. Medicinal with some hops in there. Something seems off here. The flavor is very much like the nose - some hop character, but it's dominated by a band-aid thing. The body is ok on this one, but the drinkability suffers from the flavor.

Pours a nice deep copper color with excellent clarity. Minimal head sits atop, with minimal signs of carbonation bubbling up. Nice looker. Nose is interesting. I get a big blast of earthy and piney hop, not the brilliant citrusy blast I was expecting. There is a nice caramel and fruity sweetness. Not working well. Its almost a touch phenolic/medicinal/almost smokeyness in there. The bitterness is present in the aroma as well. I do not like the aroma at all. Flavor is much the same as the aroma. Something is not right. Definate caramel flavor with a very prevalent character that matches the aroma as a smokey character. Hoppyness is definately piney. A light bitter hits on the finish with a puff of alcohol. Just not doing it for me. Feel is moderate with a light carbonation. I just flat out am not enjoying this one. The smokey, almost peppery character is too strong. It doesn't have a whole lot of what I want in my IIPA's.

Clear, orange-y appearance, lush, creamy head...like it.

Nose: nice! Big pine resin, some lime and lemon, vast fruity attack, sweet and floral...not too bitter...nice'n'hoppy...

now, I want to drink it...big flavor, but the outsized alcohol (8+%, right?) speaks up immediately...and a little too loudly...full bodied, but rather obnoxious, the hops spilling out everywhere and the alcohol just making an embarrasment....tasty, though...but still, a mess...

I like it okay, but it falters in several ways...not a bad stab, though...by year 200, they should get it right, I think.

This beer came highly recommended by "Joe Six-pack", well known and respected columnist for the Phila Daily News. I went over to my trusty local case man and as luck would have it, he had some. However, it was only available in the special “antique” wooden variety case so I came away with only a six-pack of it. Fairly hazy amber color in the glass with a thin foam of head that melted away pretty quick. There is a very nice hop aroma. Initial taste is kind of sour but the finish tends more toward a decent malt/hop blend. Alcohol flavor is prominent throughout. I don’t know that I would rate this beer all that high but considering the source and the price, it’s a noble effort.

This beer poured a glowing dark amber with a touch of red and only a slight smoky film of head. I found this to be exceptionally dark for an IPA. Smelled of chocolate flavored candy and caramel combined with a sour dry hop. Tastes a bit different for an IPA with an awkward/different combination of sour medicinal bubble gum and a dry bitter hop. Mouth feel was light to medium with a light carbonation. I got this beer in a trade with BeerBeing and I’ve never seen it before, but from some of the other reviews I gather that this stuff is pretty inexpensive. With that bit in mind, that makes this beer seem only mildly drinkable to the palate, but extraordinarily drinkable to the wallet.

thanks goes to kramer17801 for this bottle. poured an amber with a big off white head that lasted and left some lacing. aroma, hops, citrus, leaning toward oranges, sweet malts as it warmed got some alcohol. flavor, got to love the hops, malts, orange,brown sugar, alcohol as it warmed.

Pours dark orange with small thin head. Hops hit you quickly as you raise the glass to catch the initial aroma. First sip hits you with spicy hop bite up front with warming of alcohol on back end. Hops don't back off as you sip on this gem from upstate PA. Lacing consistent with fruitiness evident toward the middle of the glass.Mouthfeel is lively as the carbonation does not letdown.
This beer makes a nice nightcap. I can't take too many of these in one session. Nice offering from The Lion Brewery. Try their Porter if you have a chance. Great stuff! Happy holidays.

12oz. bottle courtesy of squidswilbsquids and the Secret Santa 2005.

Pours a semi-hazy copper color with a thin yet quite dense head. Nice patchwok of lace on the glass. Aromas are brash with hops. Earthy+grassy nose with a slightly sweet tang in there as well. Flavor was not nearly as defined as I would like. Really a raw flavor, with an avalanche of hops that just didn't seem refined. Sweet caramel punch in the middle, followed by a mouth-drying bitterness that had some sour notes in the finish. Hot ABV mixes in as well. Fizzyy mouthfeel. Sorta felt like it was scraping my palate in the finish. Average drinkability due to the hodge-podge of flavors and finish.

Hoppy as hell this baby is, which is good in my book. Surprisingly balanced with malt and alcohol in the taste though, smell and pour could be a bit better but it finishes nicely with a punch of alcohol and hoppiness. By far the best product from the Lion Brewery I've had, pick this up if your into the Hoppy IPAs as this holds its own with many.

Ha! California redemption value on the neck label. Fah-nee! Gotta do the rebus test in the cap. Left arrow and right arrow with EZ. Got it! easy come easy go.

Pours out an amber gold vitreaous hue topped with a spumescent khaki dense settling head cap and some immpressive stratus layers of lacing.

Aromatic candy sugar and leafy grassy hop bight stifled with a lemony citus finish.

First swigs: Round lightly citrus tart meets a soft Starburst candy malt. Ephemeral aftertaste of chalky Tang. Benign low-flavor levels. Mostly just a light lemon hard candy and gummi bear. Not finding any real pine or hoppy hops.

Feel is medium bodied, spritzy carbonation, and some lingering Peaz candy malty balance. Maybe a tad diluted for the style. More of an IPA but if the 8.2% ABV is fo' real, then 2IPA gets the nod.

Last swigs: Green leaf mineral and copper penny. When I was "younger" my brother used to buy me a case of Lionshead bottles for like $6. Maybe I should light up a Virginia Slim because Lionshead, you've come a long way, baby. Special big ups to IthacaBaron for the bottle. He saved me from searching for this little curious quirky offering from the giant Lion.

Beer is good. Happy surprise 2IPA beering.

12oz bottle from squidswilbsquids as part of the Beer & Gear BIF. Thanks for the opportunity.

Poured into an imperial pint glass, formed a 1" beige head above the clear copper brew. Frothy head lasts quite well, with heavy sticky foam lacing. Aroma is juicy fruity hops. Taste is nicely citrus and fruity and moderately malty all at once, if a bit sedate for the DIPA style. Creamy mouthfeel and easy drinkability makes this a very approachable representative of the style.

Many thanks to BeerBeing for this one...he is a top notch trader.
Pours a dark mahogany color with a full finger of off-white head...disappears quite rapidly, leaving just a fine layer that goes nowhere. Some tight, thin lacing remains on the side of the pint glass.
Decent aroma...some earthy yeast with a decent spiced hop profile...very little sweetness in the nose, but you sense it has a solid malt backbone.
Taste is pretty good...more floral hops with a decent balance of malt. Less spiced than what was first detected and the flavors linger a bit too long on the pallet.
Either way, a nice offering and a great attempt at a very popular style...the alcohol is very well hidden, the mouthfeel is solid and the carbonation is where I like it. I could enjoy a couple of these at any given time.
A hell of a bargain from what I hear...I'm just not sure I would buy a case and get through it in a short enough period of time.