Newport Storm '06
Newport Craft Brewing & Distilling Co.

Poured from a 750ml bottle into a snifter glass.

A: The beer is a deep coppery brown color, with a very little head that fades quickly and leaves no lace on the glass, but I’ll attribute that to the age of the beer.

S: The aroma contains whiskey, alcohol, caramelized malts, vanilla and some fruit.

T: The taste starts out sweet with flavors of vanilla, caramel, whiskey and a little fruit. Then a significant alcohol sting comes in followed by a hearty malt character and the barrel-aging essence. Whatever hops presence had been there is completely gone but that is not unexpected given the style and the age of the beer nor does it seem to detract anything from the beer. The after-taste is slightly sweet.

M: Smooth and a little crisp, medium body, light carbonation, finish is slightly sticky.

O: Tasty, goes down ok, slightly filling, very strong kick, decent representation of style, this one has held up decently with 8 years of age compared to some of the other releases in the series. Overall it’s with sipping on for a while, but if you still have it, I recommend drinking it soon.

Pouring a cellar temp bottle into a snifter. The beer pours a clear mahogany color with minimal frothy beige head that fades to nothing almost immediately as the bubbles form.
Aroma is caramel, brown sugar, and some booze. A little dark fruit, raising and plums mixed in for good measure.
First sip reveals a thinner body than expected and almost non-existent carbonation. Texture is a little watery and the feel of the beer is a little less exciting than I was hoping for.
Flavor is sweet maltyness with caramel and brown sugar. Also plums and raisins no real hop presence anywhere. There is some pretty good booze heat after each swallow. Definitely makes this a sipping beer even after all these years.
Finish is a little rough and I suspect this beer was a lot better fresh, but it is still reasonable just not amazing.

 

 

 

 

Poured from a 750ml cobalt blue bottle into a NYCBW glass.

A: Light brown with a touch of burnt orange. No carbonation and translucent. I do not like the looks of this.

S: The best feature of this beer. Malted barley, caramel, butter toffee, and a slight metallic note. Apricots and peach nectar come through too.

T: Kind of moot. Caramel, sucralose, and almonds. This definitely lost some of its richness with age.

M: Quite watery and not appealing for an ~12% ABV beer. That's not to mention there's absolutely no carbonation either.

D: The only thing keeping this beer going besides the aroma is the presence of booze, surprisingly enough. The taste and mouthfeel are not enough to want to drink this one though.

Drainpour. Thanks anyways Bill!

Poured from 750ml bottle.

A- Pours a murky brown color with some light amber highlights. Pour resulted in no head at all. No lacing at all.

S- Big and I mean big caramel malts in this beer! This stuff just smells sweet overall. Some light bourbon notes in this fade in and out of vanilla highlights. A distinct alcohol burn on the nose that seems to get bigger and bigger as it warms.

T- Huge caramel malts with some darker fruits in the front end of this. There is a light bourbon flavor in the middle that clashes with a vanilla undertone. The malts come back into play with some light oak toward the end. This ends with a sweet alcohol flavor on the back end.

M- Heavy mouthfeel. Carbonation is not there at all. Flat as can be. Sickly sweet malts left on the palate with a distinct alcohol burn in the aftertaste. Flavors were muddled together making it bland tasting except for the alcohol and caramel malts. Very drying on the palate.

D- This beer is I think starting on the downward spiral of its aging. I enjoyed the beer don't get me wrong....I think it is a year over due and if you have some of it I suggest you drink it now.

Newport Storm 06, 750ml blue bottle. I've had 07 thru 09, with varying success. Excited to try this one though! Poured into Portsmouth tulip.

A- Lighter than expected, almost golden in the pour and a hazy, light caramel brown in the glass. A few thin bubbles but no head whatsoever.

S- Very nice- Caramel, bourbon, peat, smoke, vanilla.

T- Hmm. Bourbon is extremely smooth. Malt sweetness is also mellow. Time did this one some favors. I am getting chocolate, vanilla, even a hint of mint along with the big caramel wave. Mild smokiness, but very subtle. No hint of the 12% ABV, either.

M- Minimal carbonation, but the flavors are fantastic and the alcohol has smoothed out. A few more bubbles would push this one over the edge into awesometown.

D- Really awesome here.. easy drinkin', for 12% it's outta this world. Prob. my favorite of the Storm verticals I've had. 3+ years was just what the doctor ordered... a shining star of a strong ale.

750ml corked bottle poured into a red wine glass.

Pours a dark amber/ruby with no head at all. It's almost like a cider or off colored red wine. Nose is a boozy mess with some sweet maltiness and raisins, similar to a big quad.

Initial taste is a bit dry with an almost wine like mouthfeel with not too much booze on the palate but you can feel the warming down your throat. It's hard to put my finger on this, but it's very wine like with some of the barley character from beer.

Unfortunately this beer was basically flat and far too boozy, not sure if it was intentional or if this bottle was aged too long. Really not drinkable and my first drain pour.

Purchased it back in August in RI; looked interesting given the fact it was in a blue wine bottle with a cork.

A - Light look of single malt scotch. No head,lacing or carbonation. I'm disappointed already.

S - Not bad. Has a bourbon/oak barrel smell that comes across as sweet. Interesting.

T/M - Boozy, light caramel, leather and alcohol. The mouthfeel is stale, with a trace of carbonation.

D - Let's hope it was better upon release.

biegaman pulled this one out of his cellar. thanks jan!

750ml corked blue bottle. sampled feb 17/08 while watching the NBA all-star game.

pours hazy reddish orange with a few bubbles around the rim. no lace.

aroma is interesting. my first thought was a saison. wacky malty spicy floral combo that i'd associate with that style. alcohol. bit of vanilla and bourbon. light smoke. neat fresh floral character. big bread and cracker malt. spicy character that makes me think there's some rye in here. so much going on that it's tough to describe.

taste is equally interesting. alcohol. bourbon. light vanilla. bread and cracker malt. neat fruity character. there's some orange peel and light citrus as well as a bit of darker fruit too. bit of light smoke. low bitterness level. bit of earthy and floral character too.

mouthfeel is good. very low carbonation level. medium-large body. could use a bit more carbonation to hold things together, but it's still nice.

drinkability is good. it's a little odd and quite interesting, but mostly balanced and nice. certainly a unique beer.

appearance - Dark maber color with a small head that didn't stick around.

smell - Alcohol, JD, and Malt.

taste - Strong alcohol as always from these beers, lot of JD taste here.

mouthfeel - Medium- light body

drinkability - Lots of alochol here, I shared it as always LOL. If you didn't know, they cellared these in Jack D barrells for a year. All Jimmy Bean taste here.

'Nice' is such an inadequate word, isn't it?

Pours a medium dark amber with only a tiny head of white (poured very gently so as not to disturb anything in the bottle).

Aromas are initially oak, then some bourbon and brown sugar with a touch of hops and alcohol at the end. Almost 'mono' dimension though with the oak being there in the beginning, middle and end.

Taste is much more expansive.
Oak...yes.
Bourbon...yes. Actually lots of bourbon.
Dark brown sugar, dark candied fruits such as raisins and prunes, strong alcohol on the end.

Mouthfeel is a little thin for as 'big' as this beer is, especially when you go back and realize how much alcohol is in it.

Overall, enjoyable big, BIG beer.
Won't drink many of these at one sitting, guaranteed. Too big...too much alcohol.
I still prefer Stone's Double Bastard for this style, but the Newport Storm '06 is very 'nice'.

Huge, huge beer. Huge. Almost tastes like drinking a shot when you put a bit of it in a sample glass. Not bad - decent mouthfeel, some pleasant complex alcohol flavours (scotch and/or bourbon). Some roasted malts. But hard to get over the burn. Decent, interesting, but could use some balance.

11.9%.

A: Hazy amber-brown, no head.

S: Big, boozy aroma, vanilla with a hint of fruity sweetness.

T: Assertive alcohol, woody, light caramel, hint of fruit.

M: Moderate body is very well-attenuated and dry. Lightly carbonated.

D: Interesting, but this one's a real brute.

Sticky, woody, and caramel malts sweetish. Goldings hops, review 2500. Bourbon aroma, a scotch ale sipper more than a barleywine. Alcohol is great and felt. Better than some years, and good though not extraordinary complex big Coastal Extreme. Thanks Vaino.

Pours a rusty peach color, a nice hazy opaqueness, a small covering of white foam quickly fades away. Aroma is sweet rich pruney maltiness, caramel, new leather, wood, and alcohol strength is apparent in the aroma as well. Smells older than one year. Taste is strong of a smoky woodiness and a rich leatheriness, some pruney maltiness in the background, a soft vanilla licorice sweetness in the finish with a good strong alcohol warmth and punch. Strong dry woody flavor in the taste as well. Mouthfeel is medium in body and low in carbonation, some tingle on the tongue, a slight dryness in the finish, and a decent bite of alcohol. The barrel ageing adds some nice qualities to this beer and I thought it was a very nice relaxing sipper. I would have loved a little more malts in the aroma, some more pruniness, but especially in the taste to balance some of the other characteristics as well as in the mouthfeel just to add a little more body and mouthfeel. Everything about this beer said older than I thought it was, not sure how long it was in the barrel. Still a complex and pleasurable barleywine.

"Imported" this one from Rhode Island after attending my brother-in-law's wedding, and shared the rating with BA yelterdow. $10.99 a bottle, 11.9% ABV.

Served from a screen-printed cobalt-blue 750ml bottle in a Duvel tulip at just below cellar temperature.

A - Syrupy orange with honey-gold highlights and a slight haze. A thin, soapy head forms then receeds to the rim of the glass. Has the legs of a big, sweet fortified wine; like a tawny port. Looks "big" for a beer.

S - Sweet, candy-like malts and a very interesting 7-11 "blueberry creme" coffee-like smell with a hit of molasses. Wow. Didn't expect that at all. Very light peatiness and obvious vanillin from the barrel aging. Peaty notes like one might find in a Speyside single-malt Scotch. Old leather and dusty book bindings in a cedar chest. Complex.

T - Peated malts right up front with notes of vanilla and caramel. Dry, English maltiness in the middle with a slight alcohol burn. Finish brings a light yeastiness and a dry hop bitterness. Aftertaste is huge and "old". Like a barleywine with extra malt sweetness.

M - Super-low carbonation that lends a powerful feel as if you're drinking a cordial. Adds a velvety tingle on the tongue that helps push the subtleties forward. Swallow is smooth with a bit of alcohol that transitions into a nice warmth in the belly.

D - For such a huge beer, this is a complex as hell and well-tamed, even if the alcohol isn't completely concealed. As the temperature rises, this beer improves, so let it breathe! Age will also most certainly take the edge off of the somewhat punchy alcohol. An awesome wind-down beverage for a cool autumn night.

Cobalt blue 75 cl cork finished bottle.

Clear, bright, burnished copper. A rough pour produces a thin white head that fades quickly.

Beerbon! Aromas of vanilla, oak, & some smokiness.

An interesting blend of muted fruit combines with a rich malt palette. Slight smokiness, toasty. Plenty of vanilla & oak. A slight warming of the throat is welcomed as this 12.2% ABV monster finishes.

Rich & smooth. Very gentle carbonation.

Deceptively smooth. Beerbon!