Highly acclaimed brews that underwhelmed you?

Pliny the Elder dear god please people stop asking me if Pliny the Elder came in... There are so many choices that are on the shelf that are just as good.

I really love Stone's IRS but I'm a huge stouts fan in general.

 

Nugget Nectar was so underwhelming.

Had Black Note from tap (growler) = AMAZING. Had from a bottle at a tasting = meh.

Traded a KH for a Kern River Citra = meh. (What I gave up may have influenced...)

 

Black Note (good, but not great), CBS (see Black Note), Westy 12, Blabaer < Fou'Foune, BASS, Five Squared? + other stuff

 

its a cottage industry on these boards - to hate on certain brewers. Id love to see the so called experts on here take a blind tasting of a bunch beers including the ones they talk shit about.

 

Pliny suffers as an "underwhelming beer" only in the sense that its preceding reputation glorifies the beer in such a way that isn't necessarily indicative of the beer itself, but instead based on its availability. It's a top notch DIPA and underwhelming to those who succumb to the beliefs that they'll cream their shorts upon consumption. I believe it'll continue to suffer from 'underwhelming' status from a select few tasters until the beer becomes more widely available and/or more beer fans get a taste of it. For those that aren't draped in rose-colored reputations and drink it for what it is...it's a super dank choice. I think kotayk hit on this point well, above. "Underwhelming" as a concept for a beer is almost always based on preceding reputation or unfulfilled standards for what the beer SHOULD be, both factors almost always subjectively-based. Which makes the concept of 'underwhelming' subjective anyway and not necessarily worth criticizing.

That said, I suffer from believing most anything DFH does is fantastic...my own subjective sense of brewery perfection slighting my ability to objectively taste. Their Ta Henket and Tweason Ale are exceptionally sub-par.

 

Well I'll jump on the bandwagon and say Pliny the Elder/Younger.

But I will also throw in a caveat and say that for a little while PTE was one of my favorite beers, then it became hard to find and by the time I had it again my palate had changed. It has a soapy, slimy quality to it that I just don't care for, I would rather drink a Blind Pig or just about any other decent IPA.

Don't get me started with the Younger, I can't believe I waited in line for that shit. I think it is a classic case of BA herd mentality.

 

The biggest disappointment was the Goose Island Burbon County Stout. I remember thinking it was too boozy and the mouthfeel was as thick as molasses. I may need to try it again, because it's been 3 years ago I tried it. I was 21 and fairly new to craft beers, and I do like bigger beers now.

 

Sorry if my/others opinion ruined your day. I really don't think many people on BA actually consider themselves experts, nor do I think many of them are here "talking shit". You may be missing the point of this thread, and judging by your pissy attitude, the point of this website.

I have a six pack of Levitation in my fridge. I will drink it happily. But I won't buy it again, because I don't find anything about it all that impressive, especially considering I can get HopBack cheaper, which I like better. Note that I said that I like it better, not that it's undeniably better and that Stone sucks. Opinion.

I stand by what I said about Arrogant Bastard though. When I had it, it tasted like a brown ale that someone poured vodka in. Not my thing. If you like it, congratulations.

 

Mouthfeel is a funny thing - when it comes to stouts, the thicker the better in my opinion.

 

I guess this is the best place to put this right now.

I just had my first Duchesse De Bourgogne. Unfortunately, I couldn't find a single bottle of this, only a four pack. This is the first beer in the style that I've ever had.

Couldn't even finish one. Smells and tastes like ketchup to me. Maybe my palette isn't sophisticated enough to appreciate this, but all I know is that I hate it. Now I need to find someone who wants the other three ketchup beers.

 

Brooklyn Black chocolate stout

 

I have to agree, after nearly three years of hearing and hearing and hearing about it, I finally got a bottle. I like a good IPA, I'm not a hop head so it definitely takes a lot to impress me. Don't get me wrong either, I can step back and look at the beer in a very concise way as what it is even if I am not all about the style 24/7. Though I will say Pliny the Elder was of great quality and certainly was a well achieved IPA, it just didn't blow my mind like everyone pumped it up. I felt like I have had better and even equal though very few. But you are definitely not alone.

Other beers for me would have to be Lagunita's Lil Sumpin' Sumpin' (or something like that), the malt was odd. Goose Island's Rare, WWAAAAYYY to expensive for how unimpressive it was. I have had dozens of beers much less expensive and much more impressive. Stone Smoked Porter, I even bought the Chipotle and it was just mediocre... They were good but not nearly as smokey as hoped.

 

Agreed. I've tried Green Flash West Coast IPA three times, thinking I should like it. I don't.

 

You did no such thing good sir - I apologize if my attitude seemed pissy, it was not my intention.
I simply was trying to make the point ( i suppose now in hindsight not very successfully) that there is a certain set of brewers that are always picked on.

 

Founder's Breakfast Stout.

Love stouts, love (good) coffee stouts, this tasted like 3 day old, used coffee grounds that someone had soaked in water and added some yeast to to make beer. Not very good.

 

Fayton's Maple Imperial Stout...perhaps I shouldn't have held the bottle (although it was refrigerated) for quite so long. Nothing special there and nearly no maple.

 

Brown Shugga, Stone IPA.

 

If you don't like it, you don't like it and that's all good, but it is nothing like rubbing alcohol. Vodka is kinda like rubbing alcohol, but Supplication is not.