Newport Storm - Elle (Cyclone Series)
Newport Craft Brewing & Distilling Co.

 

 

 

TheManiacalOne sent me this one as part of BC2. thanks mark!

12oz bottle, bottle code 356. sampled june 14/08.

pours deep red with a wisp of fine tan head. the head drops fast and leaves a few spots of lace.

aroma is good. raisin and toffee. alcohol. wheat bread and cracker. more dark fruit - date, fig, raisin. bit of caramel.

taste is good. toasted wheat bread. toffee. bit of caramel. lots of dark fruit here too. raisin, date, fig. light alcohol. touch of sweetness.

mouthfeel is good. low carbonation level. medium body.

drinkability is great. nice balance. really like the dark fruit. nice malty base. a solid strong dark.

this beer poured a cloudy brownish amber with no head, but a few large bubbles.

the smell is sour and candy. it smells like wild yeast, orange peel, sherry and light spice.

the taste is of sour fruit. it's very sweet at first and then peppery.

the mouthfeel is medium and oily.

this beer tastes just ok. glad to try, but would not seek out.

Medium copper body with orange highlights, hazy with a half-finger of persistent head and some lacing.

Belgian in the aroma with the yeast playing a huge role, but a little too sweet.

Taste is hugely cherry, maraschino style. Little else. It tastes like you're drinking the juice. Way too sour/sweet. Through some brett in, though, and it would make a great farmhouse ale.

Smooth, slightly creamy cabonation.

Really off for a belgian, would not recommend.

Thanks to TheManiacalOne for this fine ale!Decanted at cellar temp into a Corsendonk glass from the 12oz brown bottle.

A - Golden brown w/ a tan head that exhibits a fine bead

S - Nice sweet and malty aroma w/ a hint of caramel and woodiness.

M - A medium bodied feel w/ moderate carbonation and residual sweetness. The feel is mildy warming of alcohol.

T - A nice malt flavor w/ a slightly nutty, tobacco-like earthiness w/ sweet caramel malt and herbal hops. Almost like a doppelbock's malty flavor w/ lots of residual sugars after the sip and a creamy raisiny sweet element that has a candy-like sugary aspect.

D - A very nice ale, rich smooth w/ malty sweetness of some big lagers. The fermentation produced very little fusel or estery qualities. Very easy to quaff and nice strength w/ 8% abv. The booziness level is low which is deceptive.
I appreciated the chance to taste this, thanks TheManiacalone.

Pours a five finger light tan head that fades slowly leaving some lace. Almost clear amber color. Light carbonation and medium-heavy bodied. Sweet malty nose. Flavor is sweet malt with raisins and spice. $1.50 for a 12oz bottle from Liquid Solutions Oregon City, Or.

Thanks to TheManiacalOne for the oppertunity.
Pours a tawny amber color. Hazy with some light getting through. 3 finger carbonated head quickly recedes to a fizzy lace on top of the glass. Tight ring of lace crowns the beer.
Aroma is heavy with the sweet malts and Belgian yeast with hints of figs and appricots.
Taste is caramel malts and some toast. Bananna, raisons and figs. Nothing ground breaking but true to style and yummy.
For me this beer really shines in the mouthfeel and drinkability. The body is a bit light than most for the style which I really appreciate and enjoy. This makes this beer more smooth and drinkable than some others I've had. Thanks TheManiacalOne. I kinda had this one circled in my head when I saw that you were from RI and am grateful for the oppertunity to try this.

Received from TheManiacalOne as part of BC2. Thanks!
This one had a thin beige cap of fine bubbles and a full, thick collar. The beer itself was clear and a deep red colour. It had great retention and produced sticky lace. Lovely! The aroma was full of banana with some cloves, bread and yeasty notes. Light bitterness stayed out of the way of the sweet malt and fruity character. There was a bit of bready flavour and some banana, plus toasted marshmallow and lingering candied fruit. Medium to full bodied with lowish carbonation, a little bit of stickiness and little to no alcohol warmth. I thought it was pretty good. A little strong in the banana department, but still mighty tasty.

12oz bottle obtained in trade with TheManiacalOne. Thanks for the opportunity.

Poured into an imperial pint glass, formed a 1" orangey beige head over the cloudy orangey amber brew. Frothy head lasts nicely, with ample lacing. Aroma is sweet malts, spices, and alcohol. Taste is fruity, with light spicing, and subtle warmth at the close. Citrus bite is prevalent. Mouthfeel is a bit sharp with the lemon, and drinkability feels the wrath of the over-citrusness as well.

Thanks to TheManiacalOne for this BC2 gift!

Pours a clear brown/amber, huge off white head forms, nice lacing, good retention, looks nice. Smell is sweet, some cherries, raisins, bread and yeast, citrus, brown sugar, some alcohol, not bad. Taste is a bit smokey, some cherries, raisin, caramel, yeast, sweet and sugary, some spice, not bad. Mouthfeel is light to medium bodied wtih medium carbonation, pretty drinkable. Accessible Belgian Strong Dark, I liked it. Thanks Mark!

Pours with an initial fat-two-finger thick, tan colored head that sits atop a dark, plum colored brew. The beer shows a hazy, light cranberry color when held up to the light. The aroma is quite fruit focused with notes of tart plums, tamarind, raisins and perhaps a touch of apples. When I go in for a deeper smell I definitely get some funky sour notes that remind me of a mix of vinegar and lactic acid. Somewhat reminiscent of Rodenbach classic, the beer also has a nice caramelized malt character & toasty grain notes that is found in the nose of that beer. The sour notes are very slight though, but they are quite persistent.

Sweet malt flavors mix with fruit flavors of plums, raisins, apples and prunes. The plum and apple notes definitely are accented by a slight tartness. While the fruit and tart notes are the most noticeable, there is a solid malt character to this brew as well. Flavors of caramel, some of the raisin notes, toasted grain and a touch of soda cracker flavors, these last two in the finish more than anything. The beer finishes with a mix of sweet fruit notes, a touch of malt character, some slight astringency and a lingering light sourness. This is an easy drinking brew with a medium fullness to it that is actually made a bit more drinkable by the persistent sour notes of lactic acid.

I wouldn't necessarily bet the farm that this beer is infected with something other than you standard beer yeast, but it definitely has a lightly tart character to it and is most likely has some wild influence to it. I really enjoy the light tartness found in this brew as it adds another layer of complexity to this brew. Quite a tasty brew, definitely a nice mix of sweet malt, fruit and a lightly sour funkiness (intended or not).

Poured a thick hazey copper color with a thin head and modest lacing. The aroma was an interesting mix of buttery malt and citrus. The feel is solid with good carbonation, a bit bready as seems typical to me of the style but tart and tangy. It is somewhat acqueous but you can pick up the alcohol at the finish along with various fruit hints like dark cherry, raisin and even some light apple. Pretty drinkable considering the ABV but not something entirely up my alley.

Cloudy burnt orange color with a little haze

Sweet dark fruits,malts

Not very well rounded ,leans more towards sweet candy and not much else

Slick and smooth with medium weight

Average at best unless this is your #1 style and even so probably not one of the best for this classification

Because of the ABV and the overwhelming tartness one does it for me as a change of pace, will try others of this brand, they've got my interest

It pours a somewhat hazy rusty amber. Two fingers of tight beige head drop eventually to a bubbly pad. Commas of lacing pause along the inside of the glass.

The aroma carries an earthy edge of roasted malt, with toffee and tart cherry. A vague spiciness wafts from the esters and is joined by a feathery crispness. The alcohol is slinky but present.

Upon sipping, a dark cherry fruit sweetness slides along side of the tongue, but in not time an acetic sourness puckers the palate poignantly. Meanwhile, the alcohol presents a sneaky face that emboldens in a flash. And then a disproportionately biting bitterness surges, ebbs, and settles to a dry lingering finish. The flavor struggles with little depth and a disjointed character.

Medium bodied-plus, the malt nonetheless flows off fast and an edgy sourness just doesn't sync well.

Once you get past a nice meshed aroma it seems to start fraying at the seams. If it was dancing, it would be tripping and tumbling across the floor. Not that it's totally inept, but it misses too many steps and stumbles on others. And the ABV needs some goodness to help mitigate it, but there's just not enough there. It's not a complete waste of time, but my time could easily have been better spent.

The beer pours a dark amber color with a thick frothy offwhite head that slowly fades to lacing. The aroma is decent. It has a dry, yet malty scent that boasts of caramel malts and Belgian yeast. It's a bit fruity with hints of raisin and figs. The taste is good. It has a very smooth malty flavor that goes down easy and finishes dry and a touch warm. It has a strong fruity element that really compliments the malt content. The mouthfeel is decent. It is a medium bodied beer with adequate carbonation. It could use a bit more body IMO. This is a good drinking beer. Is it an exceptional Belgian brew? No, but it's a good drinker regardless.

Pulled this treat, thanks to the ManiacalOne, from the cellar on what would be a beautiful, perfect, hot, my-one-day-this-week-off-work afternoon in June if it weren't for the looming rain clouds that have drifted over and away and back all day.
Brewed November of 2006 and sampling the end of June 2007.
Pours a deep, dark tawny mahogany colour. Perfect clarity despite the shaded tones. Head would generate then dissipate, leaving only a swirl cloud (like the logo on the bottle cap). The body illuminates when held into the light, shinning bright ruby onto my hands as I type. Brilliant and glowing. The aroma is a deliciously, decisively spicy character. Bubble gum and candy notes, dried fruits (prunes, dates, plums, raisins, etc) and phenolic yeast strain. Quite intriguing, sweet like candy. The flavours mimic with a strong cotton-candy like character, notes of bubble gum, dried fruit. I get a lot of cherry too. Definitely a lot of cherry in a kind of 'flowery' way. Where it fails me is the mouthfeel, under carbonated and without much texture. A little watery given the promises of the aroma and initial taste of the flavours. This drinks alot like a barleywine although no alcohol detected. Great drinkability. Quite enjoyable.

Damn Elle. Crazy Elle and her rain.

Thanks goes out to TheManiacalOne for this one.

Pours a slightly cloudy amber color, nice carbonation, nice creamy tannish head, lots of nice sticky lacing afterwards. The nose is malty, slightly yeasty, plums, raisins, and some caramel. The taste is very nice mostly malts, belgian yeast, and caramel. The finish is dry. Medium body. Very drinkable, I really like this one, the taste is superb, highly recommended.

Poured from a 12oz bottle into a US tumbler pint glass.

A: The beer is a light orange-brown color with a thin off-white head that fades quickly and leaves a thin lace on the glass.

S: The aroma is of brown sugar, dark fruit, caramelized malt, light Belgian yeast and a touch of hops.

T: The taste is sweet and malty with flavors of caramel, brown sugar, apricot, apple & dark fruits. There’s a mild but complimentary hops presence that provides a good balance. The after-taste is slightly sweet.

M: Smooth and very crisp, medium body, medium carbonation, clean finish.

D: Very tasty, goes down quite easily, not very filling, good representation of style even though, as with all of the Cyclone Series beers that I’ve had, it seems to be a combination of styles, I could definitely stick with this beer for a whole evening.