St-Ambroise 20th Anniversary Vintage Ale (2009)
"A man who is not a communist at the age of twenty is a fool. Any man who is still communist at the age of thirty is an even bigger one." --George Bernard Shaw Darkest persimmon with a blizzard of yeast that adds tremendous visual character. The upper third of the sniffer is filled with a creamy crown of ecru hued foam that is pebbly (not quite rocky) as it descends. A smattering of bubble bath lace looks good too. The nose is modestly caramel-like, earthy, apricot fruity and hides its alcohol pretty well. More power and more definition would have earned it the next highest score. Warming helps, just not enough. McAuslan St-Ambroise 20th Anniversary Vintage Ale is tasty stuff that appears to have aged well. It still has a fair amount of countering bitterness and the alcohol delivers the light punch to the palate that is the reason why many of us love higher ABV beer. No heat or harshness whatsoever. The barley tastes mostly pale with an assist from English toffee and a sugared nuttiness that adds yet another dimension. The fruitiness is akin to apricots and peaches, nothing darker than that. Again, earthy-herbal-citric hops keep the malt sugars in line and do a little tongue scrubbing too, which is amazing given more than one year in the bottle. The mouthfeel isn't big and burly, nor does it have the laid back carbonation that I usually prefer. No matter. The medium weight silky creaminess and lightly stinging bubbles work beautifully from a sensory standpoint. Last year's edition of St-Ambroise Vintage Ale is more than worthy. It was disappointing to see a 341 ml bottle exit the cylindrical box rather than a 500 ml bottle. It's even more disappointing now that I've tasted it. Thanks to biegaman for the opportunity.