Green Flash Anniversary Ale 2005
Green Flash Brewing Co.

Green Flash Anniversary Ale 2005Green Flash Anniversary Ale 2005
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From:
Green Flash Brewing Co.
 
California, United States
Style:
American Imperial Stout
ABV:
8.5%
Score:
79
Avg:
3.36 | pDev: 11.61%
Reviews:
29
Ratings:
29
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Mar 23, 2008
Added:
Dec 26, 2005
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Photo of BretSikkink
Reviewed by BretSikkink from Mexico

3.08/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
Gosh. I've liked all the Green Flash stuff I've had before..

A: reasonably clear golden orange, head could have been better to be strictly on style, not much retention and no lacing.

S: I found it to be thin and sugary, with a backbone of pepper. The only Belgian touch is in the candi sugar; not the yeast.

T: Some vanilla sweetness, sugary with a slight nutty backbone. Malts are pale and largely unobtrusive other than the sweetness.

M: grudgingly acceptable. I'm disappointed with this one; a beer of 8.5% in the tripel style really should be okay after a couple years in the bottle. Carbonation is good, mouthfeel medium thick, just about on style.

D: boring. That's all. Bottle-conditioning would have helped this thing a lot, as I found a lackluster tripel waiting for me tonight.
Mar 23, 2008
Photo of m1ked
Reviewed by m1ked from California

4.13/5  rDev +22.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Luckily picked up 2 of these guys, one for now and one for later.

A- Beautiful almost clear golden orange liquid. 3/4" white head, quickly retracting to a thin nothing. Couple of mini streamers.

S- Candied sugar with toasted coconut and vanilla

T- Candied sugar and light brown sugar. Light maltiness, butterscotch, vanilla with a little alsohol warmth.

M- Fine carbonation, slight alcohol warmth.

D- I really enjoy this one, I am glad that I have another to drink down the road.
Feb 09, 2008
Photo of ArrogantB
Reviewed by ArrogantB from Colorado

4.14/5  rDev +23.2%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Very nice hazy orange without much head to speak of. The smell is very, very good. nice fruits and some chocolate, all kinds of great aromas. The taste is nice and fruity, candied sugar and grapes. Not much alcohol showing up in this. I assume this beer is about two years old now considering they just celebrated their 5th anniversary. It has held up very well and I think I like it better than the fresh GF tripel I had some months back.
Dec 11, 2007
Photo of wcudwight
Reviewed by wcudwight from North Carolina

3.73/5  rDev +11%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Pours a hazy peach color with a small off-white head that recedes to a thick halo around the rim of the glass.
Smells like a candy-apple.
Taste starts off with a nice mixture of fruits and sweetness. Peach, apple and bannana. This fruity sweetness gives way to some pretty serious hoppy bitterness. This piney citrus hop bitterness is suprising given the style but I'm not complaining. Lasting hoppy aftertaste.
Mouthfeel is fair, but a bit too carbonated for me.
Personnally for me the drinkability is good for the style, but the bitter aftertaste lowers the school a half a point.
Thanks to boolshot and Marvz for providing this Christmas Eve beer to me in the Double Trouble BIF.
Dec 24, 2006
Photo of Beertracker
Reviewed by Beertracker from Oklahoma

3.62/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
The Third Anniversary Ale is best served at cool cellar temperatures (40-50F) into a stemmed snifter, tulip or goblet. This edition is a Belgian inspired Tripel which pours up rather inconsequential with a low whitish head that barely covers the bright deep sunset-peach golden body. The head dissipates almost as quickly as it is poured which is somewhat dissapointing. What it lacks in appearance is quickly forgotten as aromas of ripe fruits (e.g. bruised banana, peach pit, Bosc pear) emerge along with some earthy, floral & spicy notes from both the yeast and hops. Some welcomed complexity from the alcohol is also noted. The generous flavor starts off with a delightful candied fruit maltiness which gives way to a surprising bitterness that launches it's way towards a flourishing finish packed with spicy undertones and prickly alcohol. This west coast inspired Belgian-style tripel has a nice quality that is sure to turn a few heads, just as sudden as a "Green Flash!" Here's to a Fourth Anniversary!

CHEERS! Beertracker
Nov 10, 2006
Photo of Padron4KM
Reviewed by Padron4KM from Arizona

2.81/5  rDev -16.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
22 oz bomber. No freshness date noted.

Peachy color, slight chill haze, with almost no head. As it warmed haze went away to leave a clear golden honey colored liquid in the glass.

Aroma is mostly apples, with some citrus, sugar and yeast in the mix.

Flavor is yeasty, fruity, sugary, a little hop presence.

Average.
Oct 22, 2006
Photo of Vancer
Reviewed by Vancer from Illinois

3.78/5  rDev +12.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
A solid performer at the Tripel. Not “A” grade, but comes in at B+. Tasty and smooth, just not enough Belgium sugar to put it in the first class section.

Amber orange, plenty of ivory laces. Great aroma of the yeastys, Belgium that is, and it carried over well in the quaff. I luv a good Tripel and this one is on my list for future quaffing. I’d add more, but I think I’ll just sit back and enjoy the rest of this bomber.

thanks to lou91 for the pop.
Sep 19, 2006
Photo of Billolick
Reviewed by Billolick from New York

3.75/5  rDev +11.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Looks like I'm the only on reviewing the draft version here, I got to try a pint at O'Brians in S.D. It poured pretty clear, almond, under a minor dull tan head, the nose clearly was of cloves and some other Belgiany spicing and yeasties. The wife and I both picked up notes of more clove, coriander, banana, vanilla, fruity lifesavers....Smooth, creamy, yeasty, this is a wacky flavored American tripel, the dry flavorful finish shows more coriander, bananas. Out of wack, crazy SD/Belgian, but I enjoyed it.
Sep 10, 2006
Photo of RoyalT
Reviewed by RoyalT from Michigan

3.35/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Appearance – This is a bright glowing orange in color with a monster head that went down without a fight.

Smell – The medicine cabinet alcohol abounds along with some orange syrup and a bit of cumin.

Taste – This is the medicine cabinet smack down. Ka-slap! It is strong and wrong and will chase most casual drinkers to a soda can. Of course, I’m a drunk so I kind of like it.

Mouthfeel – This is sharp booze with a mild sting and less than medium in the mouth.

Drinkability – Pass it over this way. I’m sure you won’t like it but I won’t spill a drop.
Aug 25, 2006
Photo of OStrungT
Reviewed by OStrungT from California

2.94/5  rDev -12.5%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
This beer pours a clear golden yellow color with a thin white head. The head fades fast, leaving too few laces. I think this is the weakest looking Tripel I have ever seen.

This beer has a weak spicy aroma. It also has a mild grainy aroma. It has a slight earthy yeast aroma also. Everything I detect in the aroma is quite mild. Not bad, just not to strong.

This beer tastes grainy. The alcohol content is present in the flavor. It has a slight bubblegum flavor. It has a slightly skunky, for lack of a better word, flavor.

This beer is full bodied. It is highly carbonated. It leaves a bubblegum like aftertaste.

I doubt this beer would make a good session beer. It tastes bad, IMHO, and it is high in alcohol. More than one bomber would probably be too much. This beer is definately not for me.
Aug 09, 2006
Photo of Gueuzedude
Reviewed by Gueuzedude from Arizona

3.6/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Pours with a hazy, light amber color when held up to the light, but shows a reddish hued, dark amber color otherwise. It is topped by a frothy, initially two-finger thick, pale tan colored head. As I pour this it is quite noticeable that the aroma is quite malty, a bit more than I was expecting, even for an American Tripel interpretation. Underneath the toasted grain note are notes of spice and fruit. I get notes of pear, green apple, white pepper, ginger, and lemon zest.

The taste is creamy, yet not too thick. It is not as sweet as some examples, yet has an ample mouth coating malt sweetness to it. The finish is quite dry; spicy, a touch astringent with a mix of alcohol with a touch of phenolics. Notes of clove, hot ginger, a touch of lemon zest, toasted grain, and a touch of orange round out some of the noticeable flavors in this brew. This seems to have all of the flavors that are needed in a stellar Tripel, but they don't quite strike the right balance. It is a bit too phenolic in the finish, though I do like how this dries out the beer. It is possible that this beer just needs a year or so of age, this really might round out and balance this brew. I'll definitely have to age a couple of these to see how this goes.
Jul 26, 2006
Photo of bennetj17
Reviewed by bennetj17 from Arizona

3.56/5  rDev +6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
22oz Bomber in a Piraat glass. Orangish haze with 1/2 inch cap resting quickly and settling as a frothy film. The aroma is a weak, muttled mix of vinous peppery spice and a hint of banana and clove. The taste has a lemon spiciness and earthy dryness, finishing bready/toasty. Not as complex as many true Belgians but a decent attempt at the Tripel style. A little less creamy in the mouthfeel than I hoped for but it has some strong carbonation and a medium body. This brew is decent, and not as bad as I thought it would be. Plenty of better options out there though...
Jul 23, 2006
Photo of Solomon420
Reviewed by Solomon420 from California

3.43/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
22 oz bomber. I thought this one was going to be exceptional since it was an Anniversary edition...but as to not spoil my review, I will refrain from stating my results until the review is over.

Appearance: The pour and stance in the snifter were as picture perfect as you could want from a Tripel style beer. Nice golden/honey hue with very nice fluffy head and a few bubble racing up from the bottom...it was the poster child for Tripels as far as appearance goes.

Smell: Nicely done, you could smell the fruity notes and just a tad of the alcohol bite.

Taste: Well this is where I was very dissapointed. Especially from such a great lead in from the appearance and smell. It fell short from meeting my expectations not only from beer in general, but from such a great style as a Tripel.

Mouthfeel/Drinkability:
The mouthfeel was okay, light and bubbly like most tripels, but the aftertaste sucked and made this one only an average beer.

Overall, dissapointed with this beer.
Jul 04, 2006
Photo of blitheringidiot
Reviewed by blitheringidiot from Pennsylvania

3.47/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Be-bops into the glass with a light clear amber full of rising scattered bubbles to a thin island of ivory leaving a a drippy lace in the glass.

Proper tripel aroma of doughy bready dough and some peppery zest with mixed apple and cherry fruit.

First swigs: Candy lolipop malt, a touch of harsh booziness and cherry juice. Dry meets ginger ale syrupy sugar. A lemon peel is a common thread. Some last minute off kilter spicy light clove answers the tripel call a bit too late.

Feel is a tad on the rude side. Medium bodied with a sizzly starchy effervescent briskness. Somewhat thin with a lack of refined tripel aspects.

Last swigs: Sorry to say a tripel that misses the mark. Green Flash makes a stunning IPA but the tripel is...eh! Move along!Reminds me a lot of Naked Elf Mad Elf.
Jun 29, 2006
Photo of Imstillthegman
Reviewed by Imstillthegman from Delaware

3.06/5  rDev -8.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Pours an amber color with a thick, creamy head. Nice lacing left at the top of the glass. The smell was very sweet with some spicy black pepper in the background. Taste is sweet fruit and sugary with spicy alcohol at the finish. Medium bodied and somewhat dry.
Thanks to Zorro for this opportunity.
Jun 24, 2006
Photo of Gusler
Reviewed by Gusler from Arizona

3/5  rDev -10.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
After the beer is poured into the glass, the color is an unclouded copper, the head is modest in size, creamy in texture and the color a light tan, after its rather rapid demise, the residual lace forms a tight skirt to surround the glass. Nose is cotton candy sweet, malt and hops also present, banana, pepper, quite a mélange, Start is somewhat sweet, grain profile adequate, feel middling to the palate. Finish is hardheaded in its acidity, the hops benign, some alcohol bitterness, and a metallic taste that sticks way to long on the tongue.
May 19, 2006
Photo of PuckLSHS
Reviewed by PuckLSHS from Iowa

3.85/5  rDev +14.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Opened up the Green Flash as a welcome to the relatives that are in town. Poured in the Duvel glass that held a Deschutes before dinner commenced.

The beer poured a nice deep amber color. I would say, it poured exactly like a nice Belgian brew and Green Flash never ceases to get my mouth watering with their beers. It left about a 3-finger head thanks to the glassware.

The taste was candi sugar, corriander and other spices...reminding me of many of the belgians that I enjoy 90% of the time. The smell was spicey and sugar-filled to compliment the taste.

Mouthfeel was smooth and wonderful. This beer had a bit of oomph to it too. A nice little kicker with the higher ABV.

This beer is very drinkable and I am sad that I was only able to wrangle one out of the store when I first bought it about 6 months ago. Mental note: Buy at least 2 bottles next time.
May 16, 2006
Photo of IceAce
Reviewed by IceAce from California

3.13/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
22 Oz. bottle. Label states, "Belgian-Style Tripel" & "Third Anniversary Ale"

An aggressive pour netted 2+ fingers of meringue-like foam which leaves above average lace in its wake. Body color is light copper with very good clarity.

Aroma is candi sugar sweet backed by esters 'de alcohol and Belgian yeasties. Top heavy with sugar, one would hope for a bit more of a balanced nose.

Entry seems devoid of carbonation and displays a thinner mouthfeel than expected for the style. Midtaste is one dimensional (candi sugar) but is rescued by a finish which piggybacks dry yeast and alcohol.

Representative of the style and a worthy attempt...but not up to what one might expect from an anniversary release.
May 05, 2006
Photo of Zorro
Reviewed by Zorro from California

3.15/5  rDev -6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
22 Oz bomber.

Pours a clear reddish gold beer with a bit of white head.

Smell is lots of candi sugar and flowers with some spiciness from coriander and black pepper to the aroma. Alcohol is slightly detectable.

Taste is one the sweet side and a little bitter with a medium strong coriander taste. Flavor is on the woody side, which is unusual for the style, particularly for something without a cork in it. Little bit of a melon flavor here.

Mouthfeel is OK.

An OK drinkable beer but honestly not a good Tripel. This tastes a lot like a homebrew effort where they added a hop too high in Alpha acids combined with a too hot sparge leaving too many insurmountable sugars. I would applaud if this was a hombrewers first try at the style but from a commercial brewer it isn't good enough. It is a shame though this brewer makes a kick ass IPA.
Apr 16, 2006
Photo of scottoale
Reviewed by scottoale from California

3.35/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Pours out of the 650ml bottle a light gold-amber bubbling liquid with an active growing white head, which soon fizzles down. Left behind is a nice, intricate lacing.

Sweet, musty malts with yeasty, bready after tones. Smells quite true to it's style, very Belgian like the lesser Chimays. Taste is sweet and tangy, semi-citrus with a yeasty, alcohol finish. Easy to detect the fairly high 8.5% ABV.

Feels creamy-smooth, though light in body for a triple, with a bitter-sweet, yeasty alcoholic warming down the throat. Not that easy drinking as it is a strong, almost hot, needs to mellow out, kind of brew.
Mar 02, 2006
Green Flash Anniversary Ale 2005 from Green Flash Brewing Co.
Beer rating: 79 out of 100 with 29 ratings