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Valhalla
Elysian Brewing Company
- From:
- Elysian Brewing Company
- Washington, United States
- Style:
- American IPA
- ABV:
- 7.5%
- Score:
- 86
- Avg:
- 3.83 | pDev: 10.7%
- Reviews:
- 40
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- Nov 21, 2021
- Added:
- Jan 13, 2010
- Wants:
- 12
- Gots:
- 7
From their menu: "It's thirsty work crossing the rainbow bridge! Fill your horn with the hoppy pagan red ale of pale, Special B and just a pinch of roasted barley, bittered with Sorachi Ace and finished with rare Citra hops. Starting gravity 17.1° plato (1.069), alcohol 5.65% by weight, 6.75% by volume."
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by ccrida:
Reviewed by ccrida from Oregon
3.62/5 rDev -5.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.62/5 rDev -5.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
"It's thirsty work crossing the rainbow bridge! Fill your horn with the hoppy pagan red ale of pale, Special B and just a pinch of roasted barley, bittered with Sorachi Ace and finished with rare Citra hops. Starting gravity 17.1° plato (1.069), alcohol 5.65% by weight, 6.75% by volume."
On draught at Elysian Fields, Valhalla is murky chestnut with a small white head that leaves very light, scattered lace.
Smell is skunky, pronounced cat pee, with a nice malty backbone that continues to develop as it warms, the sweetness highlight the citrus notes of the hops.
Taste is pretty spicy from the hops, which provided a welcome extra layer to the classic winter warmer maltiness. Clean, a bit of waxy phenols, bittersweet. A bit forgettable, but a satisfying NW WW.
Mouthfeel is a bit thick, malty, slick, on the drier side.
Drinkability is pretty good, just enough maltiness to stand up to the hop spice, bitterness. I wouldn't seek it out, but I wouldn't turn it down either.
Jan 13, 2011On draught at Elysian Fields, Valhalla is murky chestnut with a small white head that leaves very light, scattered lace.
Smell is skunky, pronounced cat pee, with a nice malty backbone that continues to develop as it warms, the sweetness highlight the citrus notes of the hops.
Taste is pretty spicy from the hops, which provided a welcome extra layer to the classic winter warmer maltiness. Clean, a bit of waxy phenols, bittersweet. A bit forgettable, but a satisfying NW WW.
Mouthfeel is a bit thick, malty, slick, on the drier side.
Drinkability is pretty good, just enough maltiness to stand up to the hop spice, bitterness. I wouldn't seek it out, but I wouldn't turn it down either.
More User Ratings:
Reviewed by LambicPentameter from Nebraska
3.79/5 rDev -1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
3.79/5 rDev -1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
Reviewing from my notes after drinking this one on December 1st, 2013. Enjoyed out of a 22 oz brown bomber with no dating to be found on the bottle to indicate when it was packaged or when it's best enjoyed by. That said, this is a seasonal release that I believe comes around in October-ish, so it's probably 2-3 months old. Poured into a Speigelau IPA glass.
Appearance - Pours a deep tawny amber with rust colored highlights. Given the fact that the hue is rather dark, it's hard to tell, but it looks pretty translucent--no haze or cloudiness to speak of. Atop the body sits an apologetic off-white head with some frothiness, about a finger (or less) thick. Retention is alright, as the foam begins receding immediately, leaving a film across the surface and sparse lacing.
Smell - Heavy caramel smells dominate the nose, with rich burnt caramel and roasted barley leading the way and overpowering the remnants of what might have been a more aggressive presence of fruity hops when this beer was fresher. That said, there are still accents of peach and guava lurking behind the more overt aromas from the grain.
Taste - The grain again is front and center, with classic amber ale flavor profiles--caramel and toasted malt with hints of toffee and some nuttiness along with complementary notes of citrus, stone fruit and guava, as well as some decent herbal hop bitterness, reminiscent of pine.
Mouthfeel - Medium-bodied and moderate carbonation, with some crispness and a slightly sweet finish.
Overall, a pretty tasty beer that would be an outstanding amber ale, but is just an alright IPA. It's hard to say how much age plays a role, because I can tell it's not terribly old--no overt signs of oxidation or that distinctive overly-malted characteristic that comes from an IPA that tastes old. That said, the hoppy fruit profiles just aren't as bright as I might've expected.
May 28, 2014Appearance - Pours a deep tawny amber with rust colored highlights. Given the fact that the hue is rather dark, it's hard to tell, but it looks pretty translucent--no haze or cloudiness to speak of. Atop the body sits an apologetic off-white head with some frothiness, about a finger (or less) thick. Retention is alright, as the foam begins receding immediately, leaving a film across the surface and sparse lacing.
Smell - Heavy caramel smells dominate the nose, with rich burnt caramel and roasted barley leading the way and overpowering the remnants of what might have been a more aggressive presence of fruity hops when this beer was fresher. That said, there are still accents of peach and guava lurking behind the more overt aromas from the grain.
Taste - The grain again is front and center, with classic amber ale flavor profiles--caramel and toasted malt with hints of toffee and some nuttiness along with complementary notes of citrus, stone fruit and guava, as well as some decent herbal hop bitterness, reminiscent of pine.
Mouthfeel - Medium-bodied and moderate carbonation, with some crispness and a slightly sweet finish.
Overall, a pretty tasty beer that would be an outstanding amber ale, but is just an alright IPA. It's hard to say how much age plays a role, because I can tell it's not terribly old--no overt signs of oxidation or that distinctive overly-malted characteristic that comes from an IPA that tastes old. That said, the hoppy fruit profiles just aren't as bright as I might've expected.
Reviewed by JCarey from Delaware
3.86/5 rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
3.86/5 rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
Didn't get the chance to see the Elysian booth at AC Beer fest so I picked up a bomber afterwards.
Pours a clean dark amber with minimal head. It does leave a cap and some thin lacing.
Big and sweet on the nose. Bready. Some yeast. And...hops. Not dank or piney.
Taste is sweet. Almost a bit too sweet for me. I feel like the hops take a backseat to the base beer. There is a nice bitterness, but its not too balanced. A lot of citrus.
Mouth feel is quite a but thinner than I expected. Slightly undercarbed.
Overall a decent IPA with a twist. Though with the amount of sweetness they could boost the ABV and hops and make this an IIPA easily, and frankly, I think this would be stellar as a IIPA.
Apr 15, 2014Pours a clean dark amber with minimal head. It does leave a cap and some thin lacing.
Big and sweet on the nose. Bready. Some yeast. And...hops. Not dank or piney.
Taste is sweet. Almost a bit too sweet for me. I feel like the hops take a backseat to the base beer. There is a nice bitterness, but its not too balanced. A lot of citrus.
Mouth feel is quite a but thinner than I expected. Slightly undercarbed.
Overall a decent IPA with a twist. Though with the amount of sweetness they could boost the ABV and hops and make this an IIPA easily, and frankly, I think this would be stellar as a IIPA.
Valhalla from Elysian Brewing Company
Beer rating:
86 out of
100 with
152 ratings
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