Ding Points: 69.00

Pour: 70.00, Nose: 70.00, Palate: 70.00, Mouth: 60.00, Global: 70.00

Tasting Notes:

$2.99 from Trader Joe’s who market and distribute the Mission St. beers. The range is brewed by Steinhaus, which are owned by Firestone Walker – this is a complicated arrangement! Apparently this is a blend of three different beers. 22 oz bottle with a black, plastic covered cap.

Pour is a chestnut body with a modest, mocha colored head. A little lace and not much retention. Some spotty, very thin film but not much going on here.

Steinhaus Brewing Co., Mission St. 2012 Anniversary Ale

The nose is chiefly solvent alcohol, but there is a nutty, malty backdrop, too. As it warms the nose gets a little less alcoholic and pushes forward a few liquor notes – it’s better after a few minutes.A slightly chocolate based malt note dominates up front, but as in the nose the alcohol play s a part. It’s quite prevalent and along with a little prickly carbonation, leads to a sting that I wasn’t anticipating. There’s quite a lot going on here with a touch of caramel nuttiness.

The mouthfeel is certainly not the strength of this beer, and to be honest it’s a little edgy with the alcohol penetrating quite a lot. The solvent nature of the alcohol has the effect of accentuating the fairly thin body, and taken as a whole the beer doesn’t really take any prisoners.

Steinhaus Brewing Co., Mission St. 2012 Anniversary Ale

A beer that is really an Imperial Brown Ale, but the alcohol is not well hidden by any round, creamy, sugar malts quite as well as others in the style. As a result the beer feels a bit too aggressive for the moniker, and begins to sit in American Strong ale country.

In the final analysis this is a bit of a ‘miss’ for me, but I could see that with some edges being taken off and the alcohol being turned down, how I could grow to enjoy this a little more. As a result, this might be a really interesting cellar candidate. Cheap, so low risk, and I’d be surprised if time were not kind to this.

Other: 8.5% ABV, Imperial Brown Ale.