Ten Years Alt
Victory Brewing Company - Downingtown

Ten Years AltTen Years Alt
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From:
Victory Brewing Company - Downingtown
 
Pennsylvania, United States
Style:
Altbier
ABV:
8.5%
Score:
88
Avg:
3.93 | pDev: 10.69%
Reviews:
242
Ratings:
267
Status:
Active
Rated:
Nov 27, 2021
Added:
Jan 05, 2006
Wants:
  9
Gots:
  5
A Doppelsticke Altbier brewed for Victory Brewing's 10th Anniversary, released in Feb 2006 and debuting at BeerAdvocate's 3rd Annual Extreme Beer Fest in 2006. A dark ale with malty depth, but with the fragrance and bold, brassy tang of European hops. 8.5%. According to Victory, they believe that this could be the first Doppelsticke brewed in the US.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by BeerBuilder:
Photo of BeerBuilder
Reviewed by BeerBuilder from Minnesota

4.38/5  rDev +11.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Had to break out the Uerige stange glass for this one.

It pours to a clear, deep copper color with a thick off-white head. It leaves a large amount of lacing when sipped down. Nice looking brew.

The aroma is floral and spicy, with a toasted, caramel malt backbone.

The flavor is malty and a bit fruity...apple skins, with a spicy, floral hop bite throughout. It is a clean brew.

I get a hint of alcohol, but it hides it well for the most part. It is medium in body and easy drinking for its strength. I like my alts and this one is top notch too. I could drain a lot of these
Apr 22, 2006
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.9 by LesDewitt4beer from Minnesota

Nov 27, 2021
 
Rated: 3.53 by AlpacaAlpaca from New York

Mar 26, 2018
Photo of woodychandler
Reviewed by woodychandler from Pennsylvania

4.09/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
The wonder of the depth & breadth of the Bottle Backlog here at Chez Woody is some of the beers that it burps forth as I scrub through in order to eradicate them. This is one such instance.

From the Ten-plus Years Alt Bottle: "We met when we were 10 years old, and we opened our brewery just ten years ago. To honor the past years of great beers and memories, we have reached back to our German brewing roots for inspiration. With this special ale we have given new life to a tried and true style."; "The alt beers of Dusseldorf are legendary ales of delicate malt complexity and surprising hop character. Our Ten Years Alt is an amped-up take on the 'sticke' versions of alt beers that the top brewers make from time to time to reward their loyal fans. With a level of malty depth to anchor the robust tang of quality German hops, Ten Years Alt will both surprise and comfort you, just as you have come to expect from our beers. Cheers, [undersigned] The Brewmasters of Victory[,] Bill [&] Ron".

You must know by now that I would be employing a very gentle pour with this one. I began with a Pop! of the cap & slowly decanted the beer into an awaiting glass. My efforts paid off as its clarity was excellent, but it required a vigorous in-glass swirl to briefly raise a finger of foamy, soapy, light-tan head with limited retention. leaving decent lacing as it sank. Color was Brown to Dark Brown (SRM = > 22, < 27) with garnet highlights. Nose had a leathery, raisin-y quality, almost like an aged Barleywine. Glancing at the ABV, this may have held up very well. Mouthfeel, while only lightly carbonated, was thick & viscous. I let it roll around on my tongue to warm as I contemplated where I might have originally purchased this sixer. It may have been during a trip to the brewery for its release, actually. The taste was earthy, as though both the hops and malts used imparted an earthiness that melded together really well over the past decade. It was very much imbued with a raisin & leather flavor, again making me thing of an aged Barleywine. Finish was dry and the lees that remained on the punt suggested that the yeast had continued to do its job even after bottling. A very interesting time capsule.
Feb 23, 2017
 
Rated: 3.75 by Spade from Pennsylvania

Jan 31, 2017
 
Rated: 3.97 by Soneast from Wisconsin

Jan 29, 2017
 
Rated: 3.99 by jrfehon33 from Pennsylvania

Jun 19, 2016
 
Rated: 4.25 by Hayden34 from Georgia

Jun 14, 2016
 
Rated: 3.53 by Lucular from Maryland

Apr 07, 2016
 
Rated: 4.03 by anteater from Oregon

Mar 29, 2016
Photo of cjgiant
Reviewed by cjgiant from District of Columbia

3.9/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
On tap:
Pours an almost balanced dark red/brown. Clarity is high, and the off-white head is tight and lasting, though minimal lacing.

Nose is lightly caramel in nature, but with a balancing bittering note that is indistinct to my nose. The combination seems a little toasty at times. In some whiffs, I get a little fruity note, maybe light cherry - but I'm not positive that this isn't an anomaly.

Taste in this pour isn't as malty as I'd expect. There is a honey-like note in and otherwise toasty and woody to herbal bitter opening. If I let the beer linger on the tongue, the caramel and that light cherry note make an appearance. Feel is decent carbonation that does add a little bite to the feel that comes off to me as a bit of spice. Lingering tingle may indicate some spiciness in the actual hops.

Was looking for a little more malty or balanced beer, but this isn't bad. It comes close to the hoppy amber, but luckily for me doesn't get there.
Mar 28, 2016
 
Rated: 4 by jwat from Pennsylvania

Mar 17, 2016
 
Rated: 3.66 by emptyglassagain from Massachusetts

Mar 11, 2016
Photo of drtth
Reviewed by drtth from Pennsylvania

4.31/5  rDev +9.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Reviewed from notes taken a couple of hours ago while having a glass and being able to chat about it with a friend who is also a homebrewer.

Although this beer is listed here as retired I just had it on tap at the Parkesburg brewpub facility. It was originally brewed as a 10th Anniversary beer and only brewed once. But now, 10 years later in the 20th Anniversary year it has been brewed again but I don't think it will see any distribution beyond the brewpub.

As served in a tall half pint glass the beer is a clear deep copper, almost brown color, with a 1/2" light tan head that leaves some patches of lacing and has a nice layer of foam for most of the beer. Sipping creates scattered patches of foam.

The aromas include some caramel and a bit of dark bready character along with some spicy, grassy, floral hops.

The flavors are really firm, definite and enjoyable with this one. The malt backbone, with its caramel and dark bread character, tends to dominate but isn't overly sweet and so allows the spicy hop flavors to show through while it controls the earthy bitterness that is a part of the flavor mix. I think I'm also picking up a bit of alcohol sweetness as well but there isn't any alcohol burn.

The mouth feel is on the full side of medium bodied and nicely smooth with the moderate carbonation. The finish begins about midway through and is fairly long as the malt flavors slowly fade away leaving some nice earthy bitterness to linger to the next sip.

I've enjoyed this beer and hope to find it again as I'd like to have another. It's definitely well made and I think its a shame that it has only put in an appearance once every ten years.
Feb 20, 2016
 
Rated: 4 by DrBier from Pennsylvania

Sep 19, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by brandoman63 from Illinois

Apr 02, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by BillRoth from Maryland

Dec 29, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by ColForbinBC from New Jersey

Dec 21, 2013
 
Rated: 3.5 by ejimhof from Pennsylvania

Sep 29, 2013
 
Rated: 3.25 by dgherm from Pennsylvania

Jul 21, 2013
Ten Years Alt from Victory Brewing Company - Downingtown
Beer rating: 88 out of 100 with 267 ratings