Boulder Beer The GABF 25th Year Beer
When Charlie Papazian founded The Great American Beer Festival in 1982, Boulder Beer was happy to brew a special high gravity ale to celebrate the inaugural event. For the silver anniversary of what has become one the world’s premier beer showcases, we’re honored to do it again, and this time brew one of Charlie’s recent favorites that we’re calling 25th Year Beer.
With a rich golden hue, this brew has plenty of British Pale Malt for a high original gravity; this ale is then assertively hopped in the kettle for a smooth balanced flavor, with more than a dash of Saaz hops dry-hopped in the fermenter lending it a unique floral aroma.
One of the original 22 breweries at the first GABF, we’re been back every year, and are thrilled to raise a glass in celebration of the flavor and diversity of American Craft Beer. Cheers!
With a rich golden hue, this brew has plenty of British Pale Malt for a high original gravity; this ale is then assertively hopped in the kettle for a smooth balanced flavor, with more than a dash of Saaz hops dry-hopped in the fermenter lending it a unique floral aroma.
One of the original 22 breweries at the first GABF, we’re been back every year, and are thrilled to raise a glass in celebration of the flavor and diversity of American Craft Beer. Cheers!
3.3
193 reviews
Boulder, United States
Community reviews
Bottled - tasted blind. An amber beer with a lazing beige head. The aroma is sweet matly with dusty notes of hops. The flavor is sweet malty with notes of straw and grass, leading to a rather bitter finish. THe body is a bit thin.
From bottle #20 at sk8vikings American blind tasting. Pours hazy orange with a lacing white head. Mild orange to grapefruity hopy aroma. Flavour starts milds sweet and quite hoppy fruity. Goes into a slight more dry and hoppy flavour following this. Hoppy and slight bitter finish yet still nicely fruity.
#20
Bottle [Sk8viking great American blind tasting] Small bubbly white head that mostly diminished. Clear copper amber color. Fair display of lacework. Aroma of mild grapefruit, pine, toffee. Over the palate came a hint of metallic notes and spice. Medium bodied with a soft carbonation and mild dry texture. Moderated sweet flavor with good counter bitterness. Average duration dry bitter finish. 7 / 3 / 7 / 3 / 14 = 3.4
bottle - Pours light amber and mostly clear with a one finger head. The aroma has some light caramel malt, citrus hops, and some other fruit esters. The caramel malt flavor has a pretty good hops balance, a medium body, and a fairly mild, dry finish. There’s a bit of alcohol noticeable. The hops isn’t as crisp as I would like. Still it’s a fairly solid brew.
22 oz bottle
I finally caved in and picked up a bottle of this at the local shop. The fact that it has held up this well for so long indicates that they’ve done an excellent job of keeping it cool. I certainly didn’t expect something that had been in stock for at least ten months to still be fresh. I wish I had room for an extra bomber or two for daily drinking. Maybe one day Boulder Beer will rerelease this perfect summer evening beer.
Aroma / Appearance - A huge bleach white head settled above the transparent golden/copper body. From it came the scents of floral sweet hops, grape soda, brown sugar and taffy. Combined they formed a nice inviting mixture.
Flavor / Palate - The leathery start soon yielded to sweet malt balls. The nutty finish faded quickly as did the bottle. This was so easy drinking that it was gone before I knew it. For a special occasion beer it was quite good.
A lightly hazed dark golden ale with a thin off white head. A rather funky hops signature, with notes of Worcestershire sauce, brine and signs of oxidation. In mouth, metallic hops and sustained maltyness, toffee. Past its prime, but still not too bad for a 2 year old ESB.
Thanks to Jason for this one. Light amber color. Aroma is malty sweet, brown sugar, caramel. Flavor is light brown sugar, caramel, subtle dry bitterness.
22oz bottle, courtesy of jasonp. Thanks, Jason! Pours a bright, slightly hazy golden-orange color with a reddish tinge; off-white head with excellent fine-bubbled lacing. Lots of English bittering hops in the aroma; earthy, spicy, and slightly astringent with a light malt background. Medium mouthfeel: chewy breadiness, English hops, and a bit of residual sugar; not as dry as needed, nor with much clarity from the English hops; a fair amount of lingering sweetness / sugar; a touch of tartness, even. Medium finish: sugar, citrus, and basic breadiness / earthiness.
Mostly clear amber body with a small white head. The nose is grainy malt, light citrus and caramel. The flavor is bread, grapefruit, tangerine, caramel and cotton candy. Medium body is a bit thin with light carbonation.
650 ml bottle shared with Lubiere (merci!), served cool in a tulip glass.
App.: Orange-amber, cloudy, big yeast chunks, diminutive off-white head.
Aroma: Very fruity, but also barn funk (bad), a bit briny/meaty, a bit tangy; still a fair bit of grapefruit hops, a bit vegetal.
Palate: Medium-ish body, moderate carbonation.
Flav.: Very American malts – super sweet caramel and toffee and quite fruity; a touch of organic acids, a little cardboard.
Showing its age. Would be interesting to try this fresh to compare.
Bouteille 650ml, courtoisie de Blankboy. De couleur orange et voilée. Nez de houblon floral et herbeux avec de faibles notes résineuses, de levures fruitées (abriocts sucrées, agrumes), malté de caramel sucré avec des notes de pain. Moyennement ronde en bouche avec un pétillement moyen-bas ainsi qu’une texture plutôt crémeuse. Goût moyennement amer de houblon floral, herbeux (herbes fraîches et herbes mouillées) et aux notes citriques (zest d’agrumes et traces de pamplemousse, une amertume présente toute la gorgée) avec un goût levures fruitées aux faibles notes sûres (agrumes, surtout orange et citron, léger d’abricots) lors de l’entrée en bouche auquel se rajoute un goût malté de biscuits au miel et de pain (faibles notes terreuses), léger de céréales ainsi que des traces de caramel butterscotch rôti puis en finale l’on assiste à un léger regain d’amertume plus herbeuse, légèrement asséchante et aux petites notes résineuses. Post-goût moyen et légèrement sec, moyennement amer de houblon floral, herbeux aux notes citriques et résineuses avec un goût de levures fruitées (zest d’agrumes, noyau d’abricots).
Tasted 4/7/08. 22oz bomber. Top pour. Clear and amber. Minimal head. Appley fruity estery nose. Touch of sweet malts. Medium bodied and mildly bitter. Good hops. Tight effervescence with a hint of berries. Tingling and crisp with a touch of honey sweetness. Off dry finish. What an opportunity!
22 oz bottle, from _____ in a trade (sorry I don’t remember at the moment and don’t have my notes handy). Pours hazy bronze amber after opening with a fizz and a small gush, a few floaties inhabit the liquid, and spots of lace remain on the sides of the glass. Aroma is a bit fruity and somewhat biscuity, citrus notes, a hint of souring orange, floral hops as well. This one may be starting to turn, a bit of overripe/sour fruit in the flavor as well, with toasty and biscuity malts, tart and bitter herbs, floral hops and hints of lemon and spice in the finish. Medium body and spritely tingly carbonation.
Bottle. Small off-white head that mostly diminished, spotty amounts of lacing, hazy, fast rising carbonation, and a orange brown hue. Nose was malty, hoppy, floral, and citrus. Ditto for the flavor with a dry finish. Fairly smooth and dry mouthfeel. Medium in body. Quaffable, well balanced beer that I would drink again and worthy of a try.
Nice clear fall foilage color. Mild but good aroma of floral and grassy hops. Med/full bodied. Good hop driven taste is full of floral and citrus flavors here. Has a mild alcohol bite to finish. A hop lovers delight. 111206
Bottle. Hazy orange pour, pure and carrying an arrogant finesse. Virtually no head, and lacing is not persistent. Flat, expression-less floral hops in the nose. Citrus, vanilla, faint chocolate notes mixed with a dash of molasses. Flavor-wise there’s lukewarm hops that surprisingly seem to have aged well for this beer. Distant chocolate is felt, but too distant to make a huge distinction. Bitter bite to this one, possibly due to the age of the beer more than anything, but a nice soft easy-going finish.
Bomber thanks to Nathan! Poured clear, medium orangey-golden with a short cap of white head. The aroma picked up orange zest over an odd bouquet of slightly vodka-infused floral notes and toasted grains.. came across sticky, and it grew on me as the drink progressed. The flavor was centered around toasted grains and cereal, with orange zest with fading, yet still evident orangey and floral bitterness surrounding.. sharper around the edges, with raw alcohol perhaps replacing some of the former bitterness. Medium-bodied with an OK sweet/bitter balance.. this was tacky and rather cloying for me at the end. Decent, but perhaps not what it used to be.
Thick Pour with large white, fizzy head. Hazy and orange there are plenty of floaters suspended throughout. Nice citric hops on the nose. Sweet malts, bread, hops, and lemon. Lots of yeast sediment in the bottom.
Bomber drunk on 11/13/07, at about 12-15 months of age.
Lovely pour, despite the obvious filtration, showing a clear, bubbly copper body with a surprisingly large, well-retained white head. Light lacing ensues. No sediment on the bottom.
More surprises in the nose, where hops are still prevalent. Pleasantly grainy, crisp pale malts are well-attenuated and complement the saaz-like grassiness. Strong citrus builds up on the end of the saaz aromatics, climaxing with some light pine resin. Not oxidized or stale in any way, and with some mild fruit esters. Medium to medium-high strength of aroma with emerging lemon poundcake sweetness as it warms (citric hops and sweet pale malts). No alcohol or flaws.
Sweet maltiness in the flavor still comes on strong for being over a year old and the hops aren’t far behind. Honey notes are moderately sticky, with a touch of earthy/bready grain notes, finishing with citric (lemon and white grapefruit) hoppiness that are augmented with sticky resins. The mouthfeel is still full of carbonation that is surprisingly engaging. Acidity builds up a bit too much by the end of the bottle and the texture remains creamy, driving home the sweetness. But some semblance of balance sort of wins out in the end. Very little complexity though. Alcohol is not noticed, no flaws.
No doubt this must have been obnoxiously hoppy/acidic when fresh. Glad I waited til now to try it.
This bottled brew from a bottle shop poured a small sized head of foamy finely sized white colored bubbles that were long lasting and left behind a hazy typically carbonated dark orange brown colored body. The aroma was hoppy malty and woody. The crisp mouth feel was tingly at the start and at the finish. The flavor contained notes of mild hops and mild brown malt. A decent one that I would consider buying again.
Bottle from the Grapes of Mirth in Columbus. Pours a cloudy tan, with a thick off-white head. Incredible hop aroma that covers the malt more that I’m used to, for the style. Malty, with a medium body, with nice hop finish.
Cloudy golden-orange with beige head....smells like sour hops, even a tad swampy....I imagine rugged hops still implanted in their bed of soil, but someone has dumped swamp mud on top of them....tastes almost like a home brew, unbalanced and so average...bitter finish like cascade hops....the malts have a sweet kids cereal essence....medium bodied to light, but not just right....did I mention unbalanced
22oz. Bottle: Clear golden body, small white head. Piney hop aroma. Very flat flavor, not much going on here. A little bitter hoppy finish, not too impressed w/ this one.
Bottle: Pours a deep, hazy glowing orange with a nice creamy thick consistent off-white head. Aroma is of sweet, sticky American hops (Amarillo?) with a caramel cookie background. Has a light to medium body with less hop character in the flavor than the aroma. Has a brief citrus zing and a quick, slightly toasted caramel malt hint. Overall the flavor has a sweet American hop profile with a mild peppery bitter finish. The flavors are simple and succinct, but enjoyable. A truly "American" rendition of an ESB.
rolls niceley into glass,with an insufficient head and a shitload of floaties suspended there and deathly still like ancient shit grains frozen perhaps forever in prehistoric amber. eerie quaff of brewed libation, a careful study seemed in order before submitting myself to a proper meeting. if you hear from me no more my brew brothers remember my warning and stead yourself fast against carelessness...eehhaa grapefruit and chalky bitter and substantial some odd minutes have gone by and as i finish the pint i do note refreshing pine and moderate body, good carbonaton and a citrusy fruity finish and malt straw. please check on my next rating friends and if missing do as i would do for you.
This is an odd one for the style...I felt like this was really not of a style. But I had to buy this one-off beer. Orangey, copper color. Not really hoppy or bitter. Somewhat sweet. Very drinkable, but not really remarkable in any way.
Sampled at RAYBOY01’s Cajun Fais-Do-Do. Pours orange with a white head. Grapefruit, oranges, carmel, and some aged notes of faded hops and grain. Oranges pine and more of the carmelized aged flavors coming through with some bitterness still lingering in this brew. Decent.
(22oz bottle) Hazy amber body, small off-white head, some floaties. Aroma is moderately sweet, grapefruit/floral/orange, some biscuit/bread. Aroma is medium sweet, orange/floral/grapefruit, some caramel. Somewhat dry finish. Medium body, some resin, light acidity. Nicely drinkable.
Maybe I waited to long on this one. Had for a year before opening. Easy to drink but not much flavor. Light color and body with no hop left at all.
Bottle. Poured a cloudy but brown with a smallish blonde head. Aroma is weak and very peachy with a good hop note. Excellent blend of citrus and sweet hops. A very balanced beer that has only the slightest bitter finish. Well done.