Trader Joe's Vintage Ale 2012
3.6
172 reviews
Monrovia, United States
Community reviews
750ml bottle. Not sure why this gets different years for each vintage as I don’t believe the brew changes from year to year. That said, I’m copying and pasting this to each vintage I’ve had due to this factor. Beyond that, every year this comes out it’s worth picking up a bottle. It’s a great dark fruited and spiced out Belgian style, something like a dubbel, yet stronger. Can’t beat it for the price!
Bottle: Poured a dark cloudy brown/burgundy color ale with a very generous foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma consists of candy-like ester with some Belgian-style malt. Taste is also dominated by some candy-like ester with some residual sugar notes with some heavy dark Belgian-style malt. Body is full with good carbonation and no apparent alcohol. Very enjoyable beer with good drinkability with nice complexity and beautiful ester. Glad they drop the coriander in this year’s version.
No retention and no lacing. Smells of sweet malt, spices and raisins. Tastes of sweet malt, dark fruits, slightly doughy and spices. Long finish, slightly bitter.
Pour is a dark, amber brown with a chunky beige head. Aromas of dark fruits, spice and yeast go quite well with the sweet, malty, yeast flavors. At $5 this beer is a steal especially after a year or more.
Shared bomber with Sherm1016 and others at lake house NYE beer tasting; thanks! Pours a 'regular coke' brown; sweet / malty initial taste; hints of medicinal tastes once in a while; taste moves around. Spicy; a little boozy for my taste; bready; yeasty.
---Rated via iPad
Bottle - good size foamy head, almost black color with a hint of red around the edges, sweet malty aroma and flavor, mild Belg yeast notes (expected more) - not bad overall but definitely expected a little better
750 ml caged and corked bottle, best before 07-06-2015. This is about a year old now. Served in a Dogfish Head signature glass, the beer pours dark brown with about an inch and a half light tan head. Head retention is good, and there’s a decent amount of lacing. The brew smells like cloves, dark fruit (plums, raisins), peppery spice, and molasses. It tastes like cloves, dark fruit (plums, raisins), cola, dark bread, molasses, and a bit of nutmeg. Mouhfeel/body is medium, it’s slick and creamy, and is well carbonated. This is very similar to the 2011 bottle I drank right before this, which I liked. Guess I’ll have to buy a bottle of the 2013 now!
750 ml bottle purchased at Trader Joe’s in Escondido a little over a year ago ($4.99). Bought and drank a few bottles late last year, but saved this bottle for rating. Pours a dark brown/black cola-like color, with a finger of tan cola-like head that dissipates very quickly. AROMA of Christmas spice (allspice, fresh ginger, nutmeg), holiday fruitcake with candied fruits, some bright citrus, and a bit of spicy Belgian yeast. FLAVOR of medicinal herbs, holiday spice, bready dark malts, candied fruit, brown sugar, and yeast. Dry finish with a well-concealed 9% ABV. Quite similar to the previous couple years’ versions, but still always a very good seasonal deal to look for. (149, 830)
Tasted from big brown corked bottle into snifter glasses. It poured a hazy dark brown colour, reddish at the edges, with extremely thick beige head of tiny little bubbles, long-lasting, with sheets of Belgian lace. Bready, toasty, very fruity, some perfumey hops, typically spicy Unibroue phenols: black pepper, nutmeg, coriander. Light body but well-rounded mouthfeel, strong carbonation, warming alcohol. I remember liking some other vintages better, but this is still good strong Belgian ale, especially for the price.
Dark brown with a thick off white head. Aroma is dark fruit with a little yeast and a bit of clove. Flavor is thick and bread-like with a bit of raisin. Some spices throughout, finishes rather clean.
Wife: 3.8
I am almost positive that this is the same as Fin Du Monde which sells on the same shelf for twice the price...this is a great value in my book this year
750 ml bottle into signature tulip glass, best before 7/6/2015. Pours clear nearly opaque reddish brown color with a 1-2 finger fairly dense light khaki head with good retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Spotty foamy lacing clings on the glass, with a lot of streaming carbonation retaining the head. Aromas of raisin, pear, apple, grape, clove, peppercorn, cardamom, coriander, orange peel, caramel, molasses, herbal, brown bread, toast, and yeast earthiness. Nice and pleasant aromas with good balance and complexity of malt, spice, and yeast ester notes; with solid strength. Taste of raisin, pear, apple, grape, caramel, clove, coriander, orange peel, peppercorn, cardamom, molasses, toast, brown bread, herbal, and yeast earthiness. Lingering notes of light fruits, caramel, toast, clove, peppercorn, cardamom, coriander, orange peel, herbal, brown bread, and yeast earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Very nice balance and complexity of malt, spice, and yeast ester flavors; with good flavor robustness and zero cloying flavors after the finish. Medium carbonation and medium-full bodied; with a fairly slick, smooth, and lightly syrupy mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is very well hidden with only a slight warming present after the finish. Overall this is a very nice spiced Belgian dark ale. All around good balance and complexity of malt, spice, and yeast ester flavors; and very smooth to sip on for the ABV. A very enjoyable offering.
Bottle shared by Dr Silverworm. Poured reddish brown color with an average frothy head that lasted with good lacing. Complex dark fruit, spice and yeast aroma. Medium to abundant body with a smooth texture and soft carbonation. Medium to heavy complex sweet flavor with a medium to heavy sweet finish of moderate to long duration. This is a good beer.
750ml bottle, shared with local raters. Purchased from my local Trader Joe’s. Really interesting big dark spice and herb aroma in the nose. Cinnamon sticks, saigon cinnamon? Dark fruit shows up in the flavor. Mostly clear brown / red color. Thin, sort of bubbly khaki head, no lace sticks. Bigger body. More soft texture, but carbonation is in check. Easy-drinking. More dry finish. Moderate bitter, lightly spicy. Light sweet. Tasty stuff. Hides alcohol well. Good long dark spice aftertaste. Love the cinnamon, nutmeg type flavors, here.
750 ml bottle to taster (shared by DrSilverworm). Looks good; cola with foamy light beige head. Smells Belgian yeast, dark fruit, and spices. Tastes like it smells with a solid mouthfeel. Solid beer.
This was a gift so its hard to complain about it. Dark, fruity, had just a bit of heat.
a solid unibroue offering, if not particularly exciting. typical dark belgian ale, lots of prune, dates, raisin alcohol. certainly could do worse for the money.
Pours near black with a huge tan head and an earthy dark fruit aroma. There is a slightly harsh fruity malt flavor with lots of spice and a bit of candi sugar. This one is a bit stranger than in the series.
I have had this several times, and I am rating it from a bottle kept refrigerated and consumed on August 29, 2013. Still very well carbonated. Dark brown. The Unibroue house character is very strong in the aroma and flavor to the point it takes away from the other qualities of the beer. Rich and sweet with some spices, maybe clove and cardamom.
This is a case of a beer not being horrible, but just not my style. Too heavy, the flavors are too muddled, and too boozy. I got some molasses, some pine, and some peppery, but mostly just a lot of jumbled spicy notes and nothing rally stood out. At least it was cheap.
Appearance: dark reddish brown, 1" off white head, very light lacing
Aroma: strong fruit and clove/cinnamon spice aromas along with distinctive Belgian yeast. There is a also a somewhat medicinal alcohol smell.
Mouthfeel: medium bodied with a mostly wet finish.
Flavor: spices dominate (cinnamon and clove) along with some raisin and citrus rind flavors. The middle and finish feature cocoa, some earthy hops, and a warming alcohol presence.
A: Musty. Clovey. like.... old banana. something sweet in there... date maybe
A: hazy light dandelion color.
T: Clove big time. A sugary sweetness like a date. very light and watery on the finish.
P: Watery. big must note. funky finish.
Huge head on this full-bodied ale. Flavors of roasted malt and dark fruit. There is a sweetness that lingers for a sustained aftertaste. Spices in the undertones.
750ml bottle pours out a dark brown topped with a small soap head. Aroma of pit fruit, house yeast, spice, sweetness, and a little heat. Taste is more of the sweetness, pit fruit, spice, and some tart.
750ml bottle, caged & corked. Best Before 07-06-2015. Pours like cola. Aromas of roasted malts and clove. Very spicy nose. Dark fruit, burnt wheat, spice. Dark sugar finish. Tart wheat character. Better than any Belgian-style, dunkel weizenbock I’ve had. It’s nice to have a Christmas beer in the middle of July. (3758)
I buy this beer with date like fine wine or even scotch. I try and keep in cellar area, but cannot resist the spl cork and nice bottle which tempt me like beaut woman with long black hairs and lip of red cherry. This remind me of similar beer I try called Terrible from Unibrou company from country of much Hockey and French speaking ppl. I like this beer and seem to be good price for 9% alcohol make me full boost.
Type: 750 ML glass
Glass: Oversized Sea Smoke wine glass
From: Trader Joe’s in Hillcrest (San Diego), Calif.
Price: $4.99
Purchased: June 19, 2013
Consumed: June 22, 2013
Misc.: Best before July 6, 2015
Poured an almost pitch black color with 1-2 fingers of khaki tan lacing. Below average lacing with some occasional wet spots on the sides of the glass. Average-to-below average retention on the top.
Smelled dark malts and Belgian spices. Specifically got roasty nuts, toffee, cinnamon, cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, pepper and cloves.
Tasted like toned down version of the smell. Got those Belgian spices. Also winter warmer notes like cinnamon, nutmeg, pepper and cloves. The 9 percent alcohol is well-hidden.
Medium body, Oily texture. Soft carbonation. Long, smooth finish.
Light-to-medium body. Oily-to-creamy texture. Average carbonation. Long, bitter finish.
This beer grew on me as it went down. Not as good as the Providential Belgian Style Golden Ale I tried last night, but definitely worthy.
A classic that is well received each year. Bubbly and with a kick of caramel.
Bottle thanks to Sarah! Pours a dark brown with a white head that dissipates to the edges. Aroma has a good amount of dark fruit and dark grains with a bit of caramel and toffee and underlying. Flavor has a toffee and caramel note with a bit of dark grains and dark fruits.
Dark brown pour with a khaki head. Herbal nose with some sweet brown sugar, a little alcohol, and some light spices. Raisin, light roast, and a hint of chocolate. Lots of herbal notes to the flavor. Roast, some chocolate, caramel, and dark fruit. A touch of alcohol and brown sugar.