21st Amendment Special Edition Allies Win The War
In a surprising turn of events, rival superpowers have joined forces to bring a beer of might to the world. According to top-secret documents, recently unclassified, brewmasters for 21st Amendment in California and Ninkasi in Oregon began their brewing careers together many years ago. ALLIES WIN THE WAR! is 21st Amendment Brewery’s first ever collaboration beer, a traditional English-style Strong ale aged on native California dates and dry hopped with all-Northwest aroma hops. Available now in limited edition four-pack cans and draft.
Old ale with dates.
Old ale with dates.
3.6
251 reviews
San Leandro, United States
Community reviews
Can: Coppery colored, thin to moderate off-white head, a bit sudsy, with sparce lacing. Somewhat of a
bready and biscuity nose. An odd duck of astringent biscuity mealy malt flavors on the tongue. Its a bit hoppier
than most English Ales. Seems like an ESA meets ASA of sorts, and I am not sure that it works. Its like many
winter English Strong Ales, except remove the strong biscuity malt profile, dim that down a bunch, and add a stronger than
normal hop back ground. Not really digging this one, seems really out of balance in terms of hops mated with malts.
Amber, clear, beige head. Malty, toffee and some toast, some fruity date notes, piney-resiny hops character with some citrus.
Clear red-copper with big, foamy, beige head, good legs / Lean nose of dark fruit, dark caramel, spun sugar, pine / Light to medium body, some bock-like sweetness & syrupy-ness, but lots of hoppy astringency thin this one out, with good bitterness on finish / Stylish flavors of burnt sugar, date, raisin, orange peel, nut, pine / I enjoy the austere, dry nature of this inherently sweet beer; however, the body/fruit could probably have been a little bit bigger.
On tap at Darby's. pours clear, brown/dark amber & a slim cap that doesn't move. Aroma of wood, nuts, apple, plum. Taste is similar but citrus rind and floral zest bitterness. So roasty! My cat would hate this.
Lots of earth, dirt and wet stone on aroma. Perfume as it warms. Clear copper with khaki head. Dates on biscuit malt . Herbs and floral background. Slight bitterness with slightly dry finish.
pours a clear copper with a small light tan head and very good lacing.
smell is of caramel, malt, and slight amount of dark pitted fruits.
taste is of dark fruits, a little sweetness, malt, and some hops. ends smooth and a tad bitter.
Can. Pours dark copper with no head. Aroma is malty booze with a matching flavor. Nice beer. Definitely worth trying.
Can from Gail’s Hops and Grapes in Hickory. Deep amber pour. Aroma is roasty malts, dark fruit and spices. Tastes are caramel, bread, nuts, wood, citrus zest, dates and apple. Has a salty vibe. Dries out a little in the finish. Definitely different - well done.
For me, I can’t help but compare this weird fusion by Ninkasi and 21st Amendment to an IPA; both breweries have such outstanding examples in Total Domination and Brew Free or Die!, I was expecting something more along those lines. It’s quite hoppy for an ale,ever so slightly sweet (not something I enjoy particularly). Almost no finish, but again, expecting that strong after-bite so familiar with IPAs. Good, not great, and not worth the $10 per 4 pack, but def. worth a try!
Clear, dark red-amber. Finger of off-white rocky foam with good retention. Some lacing. Nice aromas of brown sugar, dark fruits, caramel, pine resin, alcohol. Flavor is sweet dark fruits, dark sugars, caramel, toffee, pine and light citrus. Finishes with resinous pine hops. A bit of alcohol. Medium-to-full body. Good carbonation. Clean finish. Some warmth.
From a 12 oz can. Pours a clear dark brown with a very thick off white head, slowly receding and leaving significant lacing. Dates and candy sugar in the nose. Soft toffee and caramel flavor with a mild bitter finish. A really nice beer.
12 oz. can I got in a four pack. Can on 11-30-2011. Awesome brown color with solid off-white head that gives spotty lacing. Nice eye appeal. Nose is a nice mix of malt and dark fruit. Taste is complex. Starts with sweet malt then it transitions to a blast of grapefruit and pine resin. The finish comes back to the malt, showing me bread and toffee. The texture is smooth with a softer carbonation. Body is medium. I’m guessing the year it was sitting helped with the ABV because I don’t taste it at all. This beer is fantastic!
Can. Pours brown, with a reddish tinge. Aroma is hops, malt, and caramel. Flavor is caramel, hops, malt, fruit, and alcohol. Medium body. Slightly bitter finish.
12oz can. Looks copper. Aroma of floral and citrusy hops, some toasted and caramel malts, and a little bit of fruits. Flavor the same, with a nice blend of everything. Average texture. A pretty good beer.
12 oz. can from Hayduke. We had this together via facebook chat. Ron’s brother Rick joined us for this one. This poured dark brown and had a nice beige head that left sticky lacing. A nose that had rich malts and dark fruit. Dark fruit is a nice addition and I see this was brewed with dates. A nice addition. Hops are very scarce here but are finally spotted quite late. They added some citrus and bitterness. This beer really didn’t need more hops and was quite nice without them. Thanks, Ron.
This might be called an English Strong Ale, but it tastes like a well malted IPA. The head is big and chewy, the color is brown with fleks of orange. Nose is big floral hops. This is a fantastic beer!
12oz canned on October 26, 2011. Nearly a year old now. Served at around 50F.
Pours clear red/copper with a three finger light beige head that leaves walls and rings of lacing and holds a very nice cap.
Aroma is dark fruits, the dates are there, raisins, cherries, apples, some toffee and caramel, bread, a bit of floral hops. Good strength.
Flavor is dark fruits, dates, raisins, cherries, toffee, brown sugar, caramel, bread/toast, perhaps a bit of earthy hops, a bit of sweetness, mild bitterness, mild alcohol.
Mouthfeel is medium bodied, a bit sticky, good carbonation.
Nice brew. Kind of like an Old Ale ’Lite’. Not to say this is a light beer by any means, just not quite as robust, rich and big as other Old Ales can be. However, this helps drinkability...goes down nicely.
Can, shared with my wife. Beautiful deep copper orange with a thick golden head that leaves sheets of sticky lace. Aroma is very enticing: breadcrusts, earthy toffee, light chocolate, light pine. Delicious flavours of breadcrusts, sponge toffee, sticky dates, light citrus and pine, moderately bitter finish.
Can. Deer ambery/copper colour with a small beigeish brown head. Aroma is fruity, some plum, mild figs, raisins caramel and some slight herbal notes. Flavour is raisins, caramel, some figs, mild toffee as well as some herbal and mild bitter notes. Hides the alcohol extremely well.
Nice super rich toffee, caramel and copper coloured body with deep ruby highlights and a one centimetre tall tan head that fades very quickly. Aroma of earthy, piney hops with a ton of alcohol, caramel, pit fruits, raisins, nuts and a touch of light spices. Full-bodied; Earthy malt up front with caramel and a good amount of hops that actually produces a solid and not potent or bitter flavour. Aftertaste is well rounded and complex - showing off the caramelised sugars, alcohol and a bit of the piney hops at the tail end. Overall, a very nice beer - strong, but not overpowering with some complex earthy english flavours - nice! I sampled this twelve ounce can (with a nice mock picture) purchased from New Beer Distributors in New York, New York on 02-July-2012 for US$3.00 sampled at home in Washington on 16-August-2012.
Bottle at James’ a few months ago. Thanks James. Dark amber pour. Aroma is kind of tough to discern, but possibly Belgian yeast strain. Thin-bodied with a dry, bready taste.
Wow - a big and boozy beer, but still drinkable. I expected big hops from these two west coast brewers. Surprised it wasn’t so. Sampled at the 2012 Lansdale Beer Fest.
Appearance: poured into a chalice, a deep, clear garnet with one finger of medium tan head, some legs, and a little lace. Aroma: molasses, ginger snaps, brown sugar, dates, raisins, and figs. Taste: prunes, dates, caramel, candi sugar, brown sugar, toffee, graham cracker pie crust, and some slightly dank, resinous hops. Finish: big, sweet, and slowly fading. Notes: Wow, what a nice beer. Big, huge, rich flavors. Could almost have been a barleywine, but the alcohol was restrained (you’d never know it was an 8.5% abv) and the bitterness took a back seat. Eminently drinkable, pretty to look at, and tasty to boot. WINNAH.
Pretty good. Rich malts shine through but there are hops sewn into this one. Well balanced and clean but heavy. Malty strong with a hint of alco esters. Nice body and legs and the yeast is awesome how it leaves spice and a hint of warmth but doesnt ruin the palate or stay too long. good stuff
From the Can, and graciously shared by a friend last winter. Sweet and malty and tasty, a little bit of dark fruity flavors as well. Thoroughly enjoyable beer.
Poured a dark amber brown. Can at obx. Love the can label. Aroma is dominated by caramel malt. Medium light sweetness. Medium body at least. Huge malt forward notes. Carbonation on the softer side. Not bad.
12oz can. Pours a clear dark copper color with a sticky tan head. Little carbonation. Aroma has dates, fig, prune and caramel. Taste is sweet with dates and some light bitterness. Thinner bodied and somewhat sticky. No idea that this is 8.5% abv. Pretty tasty.
Can. Malty aroma, a little sweet and dry. Copper, clear, light head. Sweet taste that really brings out the dates. Different taste but good as it’s not overdone.
very deep copper, malty aroma with some fruity spice. Medium thick body, with a decided date flavor. Very enjoyable.
wow! Am I glad I tried this beer. Flavor is incredible balance of, in order or prominence, sweet rich malt, rippin drippin hops, tart fruit, hops and malt again then tart malt. Wow. Hitler and Tojo suck!!!!!!!!