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Sam Adams Utopias vertical questions

Discussion in 'Cellaring / Aging Beer' started by thepallidmask, May 14, 2014.

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  1. thepallidmask

    thepallidmask Initiate (0) May 14, 2014 Rhode Island

    Hello all! New to the forums here but not BA in general.

    I had a few questions for you fine folks and wasn't sure whether to put it here or in the cellaring/aging category.

    At the bar I work at we are going to be holding a Utopias vertical. Everything from the '03 release to the '13, minus the anniversary edition.

    Now my questions have to do mostly with flavor profiles: How is each year different? I know the 13 was the first to use kosmic mother funk leading to a slight tartness/fruity quality, but what of the others? Are They much different at all?

    Secondly, how much can I expect the beer to have changed since '03? (More of a cellaring question, I'll probably x-post it there if that's allowed)

    And finally, any ideas for accompanying flavors? We're doing very small plates so as not to distract from the beer and the final "course" will be a cigar. I was thinking a lagavulin infused mousse for dessert? What do you guys think?

    Anyway thanks for the help and cheers!
    -j
     
    #1 thepallidmask, May 14, 2014
    Cubatobaco likes this.
  2. chodog

    chodog Initiate (0) Dec 31, 2010 California

    get the utopia cigars from teds cigars, they are super tasty.
     
    #2 chodog, May 14, 2014
    Loganyoung likes this.
  3. thepallidmask

    thepallidmask Initiate (0) May 14, 2014 Rhode Island

    We were thinking those exact cigars actually
     
    #3 thepallidmask, May 15, 2014
    Loganyoung likes this.
  4. paulys55

    paulys55 Initiate (0) Aug 2, 2010 Pennsylvania

    I can't give much input on the tasting as I don't have too much experience with Utopias but I would save the cigars for after the tasting because they won't help your palate.
     
    #4 paulys55, May 15, 2014
    Spinaltapped likes this.
  5. HighWine

    HighWine Initiate (0) Dec 11, 2010 Illinois

    I bought a bottle in '03 that took me about 6 years to finish. Unfortunately I never made tasting notes but I don't recall much of a change from beginning to end. A little mellower, maybe? Having had pours of different vintages since then they all seemed about the same to me. Haven't had the '13 yet.

    Food wise it's very sweet and you might have a hard time coming up with 10 different plates to pair with 10 pours that taste so similarly. You might consider pouring three vintages at once and serving the flight with a plate. A cheese plate, some kind of appetizer, and the mousse you described (sounds awesome!). The last pour could come with the cigar.

    Have fun with it!
     
    #5 HighWine, May 15, 2014
  6. brother_rebus

    brother_rebus Pooh-Bah (2,500) Jul 28, 2014 Maine
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    Curious how this turned out
     
    #6 brother_rebus, Feb 12, 2015
  7. pmoney

    pmoney Initiate (0) Apr 15, 2011 Illinois

    I can't recall specific differences enough to comment on, but I did a full Utopias tasting (including Millenium) a couple years ago (before the 2013 came out). My favorites were 2007, Millenium, 2002, and 2012. My least favorites were 2003 and 2009. And 2011 and 2005 were in the middle for me. I think my ranking went something like this:

    2007
    Millenium
    2002
    2012
    2005
    2011
    2009
    2003
     
    #7 pmoney, Feb 12, 2015
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