Good Feller
Short's Brewing Company

Taken from notes on a recently found notebook full of reviews. This review was done back on 7-28-09. This was a time when Short's was much more of a buzz brewery.

The three finger honey biscuit colored head almost crests the top of my Duvel glass before it slowly starts to fade to a skim leaving dots of lace. Body is a deep honey amber tone with a rich murky tone. Nose carries a hop tone that is full of unique earthy notes including wheat, honey comb, buttered crackers and sweet citrus. With first sip you get big sweet fuzzy hops that resemble sweet bread and marmalade. A rustic full bitterness really coats the mouth but is not harsh at all. There is a bit of alcohol twinge on the end. Mouthfeel is a full complex affair with rich, bitter, sweet and bold all coming together very nicely. Drinkability is sensational. This is an amazingly unique brew. They really should bring this one back as it is no more then a fond memory now. This is just the kind of beer that would get them back in a lot of peoples faces.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bottle shared by Grant - thanks!

Pours a slightly hazy rustic copper color with a one-finger off-white head. The head recedes into a thin layer on top leaving decent lacing.

Smells of robust and dry caramel malts with good amounts of leafy and milder amounts of old citrus hop aromas.

Tastes similar to how it smells. Grainy caramel malt flavors kick things off. Joining in midway through the sip are leafy and mildly herbal hop flavors. Right before the end of the sip the hops sweeten a bit, taking on more of a citrus edge before carrying through to a solidly bitter ending.

Mouthfeel is very good. It's got a smooth thickness with grainy carbonation.

Drinkability is good. I finished my glass without a problem and could have another.

Overall I thought this beer held up fairly well, although the veracity of the hops is certainly diminishing. Definitely worth drinking sooner rather than later if you have a bottle.

Bomber from the brewery. Orange body with lots of white foam. Some hop and citrus aroma. Above average mouthfeel. Nicely drinkable, with fruit ameloriating the hop bite. Did not seem to be overly hoppy, but it is there. A different take on the style.

Ditmier cracked this at his weekend tasting... thanks homeboy. Bottle #620/798

Pale orange brew... good head and retention.. nice lacing.

Nose is soapy hops ... a bit perfumy... hints of apricot hide in pale maltiness.

Big bitterness out of the gate.. too much in my mind.. plenty of very pithy grapefruit hoppiness mid palate, yet not enough maltiness to come anywhere close to balancing the bracing bitterness nor to really rein in the hops.

Big body.. nice carbonation.. oily mouthfeel from all the hops.

Thanks Eric!! Glad I got to try this, but I think it is on the steep downhill slope.

4/3.5/4/4/3.5

Huge thanks to jdubfl for bringing all the Short's beers in for a tasting.

A: Pours a golden hue with a small white head. No retention or lace.

S: Aromas of sweet caramel, brown sugar, and fresh pine.

T: Lots of fresh orange, hints of pine and apricot. There is a nice caramel sweetness beneath.

M: Medium in body, smooth

D: Not bad. Has held up well, no oxidation noted.

Thanks to tayner for this one. Number 380/798.

A - Pours thick, dark caramel. Small head leaves ring, sudsy but somewhat clingly lacing.

S - Crazy Deep Malt. Malt extract with bitter edges.

T - Viscous mouth of chewy, bready malt with a pretty competitive bittering presence. Alcohol there but not out of whack.

M - Thick, clingy, well carbed and fairly balanced.

D - For what it is, very drinkable. Each sip begs for another.

Really, seems more like an Old Ale or Barleywine, but good, non the less!

Received this brew in a trade with hoppymeal. This will be my first "normal" brew from Short's and this will be my eighth of the Imperial series. Drank from my Stone India Pale Ale tulip.

Imperial IPA
Date Brewed: 4/9/07
Batch No: 297
Date Bottled: 5/15/07
Non Traditional Ingredients: NA
Imperial Beer 10 of 13
Bottle Number 504 of 798

Appearance- Pours a fairly dark reddish brown with a nice sized one finger head that is a dirty white and super creamy. A fantastic cap and collar remain the ENTIRE beer leaving loads and loads of thick sticky lacing.
Smell- Very bitter initially with a strong Barleywine like nose. Plenty of dark grapefruit pith, pineapple and orange add a nice citrus tone over the resinous pine. Enough caramel malt is present to show through the intensity of hops helping to add to that Barleywine like nose.
Taste- Basically a 100% translation of the nose + a little alcohol in the finish. A bitter rush of grapefruit envelopes my mouth along with some mellow orange peel. Slightly herbal, slightly piney, slightly flowery the hops are indeed jacks of all trades. Plenty of rich caramel and toffee help add some balance and sweetness to that initial intense bitter blast. The beer isn't 100% Barleywine-ish but its damn close. I bet this was a beast fresh. The beer finishes with a lingering bit of pineapple and a slightly cloying bitterness.
Mouthfeel- Pretty hefty body with a thick oily feel and fairly crisp, biting carbonation.
Drinkability- This brew went down pretty damned easy considering. I would LOVE to try this brew fresh someday as obviously the age has melded it a bit into the candy coated fruity goodness that it is now. Simcoe and Amarillo are pretty much my favorite hops and this really showcases that they can still sand up to a bit of time. Big thanks again to Derek for his never ending generosity!

Bottle 369 of 798. Brewed on 4/9/07, bottled on 5/15/07. Drunk on 1/1/09.

Thanks to ThomasHardy for the hookup on this fine beer!

A - On the dark side for an IPA. Light copper, hazy. Formed a half finger off-white head that leaves some lacing. "Legs" also appear when swirled.

S - Grapefruit and Mango hops are surprisingly present for a 19 month old DIPA. Alcohol is well-masked making a greater awareness as the beer warms. Some caramel maltiness also present.

T - Hop flavor seems to have faded considerably from the days of youth. Reminds me of a 1-2 year old american barleywine. Moderately light mango hop flavors, some sweet malts, black tea.

M - Alcohol warmth (maybe a tad high), smooth, medium-bodied, moderate level of carbonation.

D - At this age, I wouldn't have a second. It's drinkable as a barleywine but as a DIPA the nails are in the coffin. I would guess it was terrific in its infancy.

A 2007 bottle thanks to either dashirey or sailbretthd. Both of whom got me bottles on recent visits to Short's.

A-Deep copper-colored body with a thin, light tan head that receded into a thin ring and lwft minimal lace.

S-Earthy/piney and astringent with a malt up front featuring nice sweetness.

T-Being over a year old the hops have taken a back seat to the sweet caramel, toasted malts and dried fruit sweetness. Spicy/pine hops play in the background.

M-Medium-heav body with a thick, chewy feel. This one has become almost barleywinesque. Like snacking on a hop infused caramel fruitcake.

D-A bit long in the tooth but still tasty. I am sure I would have preferred this one fresh but....that was not an option. Glad to have had the chance to try it.

Vintage 2007 bottle poured into snifter on 11/16/08, courtesy of Deuane.

A - Clear deep amber/copper-colored body with rusty orange tones and a thin, light tan head that receded into a thin ring of patchy retention. This DIPA is very minimally carbonated.

S - Earthy, woody hops with some piney accents and quite a bit of malt up front featuring a prevalent alcohol presence. Some dark fruity aromas also creep out, offering a bit of sweetness to the aroma.

T - This DIPA is pretty malt-forward with plenty of toasted grains and burnt caramel malts in the flavor, as well as a good bit of dried fruit sweetness. Fairly boozy as well. Hops are in there, but certainly not as in-you-face as you would expect for a DIPA.

M - Medium body with a pretty thick, syrupy texture that's quite chewy. This brew is softly carbonated, producing minimal prickle on the tongue. There is a warm and tingly alcohol presence in the finish.

D - This DIPA is bordering barleywine territory, probably due to the fact that this is vintage. Not bad overall, but I'd imagine I would enjoy this one fresher.

Thanks to Deuane for sharing this 750 mL bottle. This is a 2007 vintage ale.

A: The DIPA is an amber color, a decent stand-in for the bottle it was served from. Not much head to speak off.

S: The DIPA has the extreme aroma of a barleywine. Hops are citrus and match up against a vegetal malt body.

T: The flavor trends toward the hops; the result is a barleywine-like concoction. As the ale warms, the citrusy hop profile intensifies. A peppery flavor lingers below the citrus, adding a deeper dimension. The caramel malts are big, strong enough to match up against the hops.

M: The ale won't disappoint hopheads. Even with a year under its belt, it can't hide the bitterness.

D: This is my first Short's beer and I am anxious to try some more. The hops were a little too big; I'm glad I had some people over to share it with.