Allagash Brewing Co.
Portland, ME
Available: CA, CO, CT, FL, IN, IL, ME, MD, MA, NJ, NY, OH, OR, PA, RI, TX, VT, VA
Allagash Four was brewed with four malts, four hop varieties, and four sugars (light candy, dark candy, light golden molasses and date sugar). It undergoes four fermentations, each with a different strain of Belgian yeast. Four Ale was released on 4/4/04.
Alcohol (wt.): 7.98
Alcohol (vol.): 10
Color: n/a
Bitterness: n/a
Gravity: 1083
Elegant, corked, champagne-like package pops with excitement, revealing a turbid orange sunset capped in gentle sea foam. Complexity in the aroma offers herbal hints followed by a long, clean, forest-fresh finish. Mouthfeel is round and balanced, coating the palate with delicious floral and vegetal flavors both dry and fruity. Though the structure reveals strength and character, it is not at all overpowering. Suggested with soul-satisfying dishes like duck cordon blue, lamb shish kebab or couscous with spicy harissa.
It takes only one swirl to rightly anticipate the full-bodied, creamy texture that awaits the palate. Wonderfully conceived aromas with acrobatic bubble-gum fruitiness combined with toasted malt and caramel. Dances as if it were dessert in and of itself. Smooth palate, with perfect balance of hop flavor and character. Overall impression is superbly drinkable and utterly deceiving. Praise the alcohol. This is a masterpiece of the brewer’s art!
A 10% volume Belgian-style quadruple with a deep, burnished copper color and a big fluffy head of foam. It has a rich candy sugar and cobnuts aroma, followed by a palate reminiscent of a childhood confectionery called barley twist, the sweetness balanced by a herbal hop note. The finish starts bitter-sweet but, despite the strength and the heavy malt base, becomes dry, with bitter hop resins and dried grapes. A powerful beer of great complexity and depth.
Founder of Merchant du Vin and the Pike Brewing Co., Charles Finkel is a pioneer in the marketing of craft beers in America.
Author of the New Complete Joy of Homebrewing, founder of the Great American Beer Festival and a Beer Examiner at www.examiner.com, Papazian is a leading voice in beer and brewing.
Roger Protz is the author of Complete Guide to World Beer and 300 Beers to Try Before You Die. He is a respected beer authority and editor of the CAMRA Good Beer Guide.
