Posted by: Tyler Rippeteau
Oct. 30, 2012
Salvation – An appropriate word and beer to rinse away my
memories of our last
review here at 20 Beers in
20 Nights. Avery’s Salvation is also
a beer with a great
story. It essentially became the
mother who gave birth to Avery and Russian River’s “Collaboration Not
Litigation”. For those too lazy to click
the link, the short story is that after Adam Avery and Vinnie Cilurzo (of
Russian River fame) became friends they realized that both of them had a beer
called Salvation in their line-up.
Rather than fight about it or choose who removed the name from their
portfolio of beers, the two decided to simply brew a beer together which
contained elements of both and to both retain their respective Salvations.
As we approach the end of The
Avery Project, this was a beer I had to get into The Project. Sure, it was great to taste and review some
of the rare Avery offerings, but any serious look at this brewery as a whole
would be incomplete without this Boulder staple.
Location:
Ace Wine & Spirits, Boulder, CO
Cost: $7.99/22
oz. bomber
ABV: 9%
IBUs: 33
Brewery
Location: Boulder, Colorado
Style:
Belgian-Style Strong Pale Ale
Average Beer Advocate Rating: B+/3.82 – Very
Good
My Beer
Advocate Rating: B+/3.98 – Very Good
Current
Number of Reviews on Beer Advocate: 482
Brewery
Description: Avery
Salvation
Bottled: NA
APPEARANCE: (4.5 out of 5) Beautiful, brilliant and light
golden in color, this beer is a looker.
The rich head rests gently on top and reaches about a half-inch before
receding. The head is gorgeous, but
retention could be better. The lacing is
not bad at first, but it isn’t strong enough to hang on throughout the whole
glass.
SMELL: (4 out of 5) Lemon zest, spice, other citrus (grapefruit)
and that touch of funk immediately identify the Belgian yeast and noble-like, aromatic
hops in this one. Nothing out of this
world or completely unique here, but this is simply a pleasant smelling beer.
TASTE: (4 out of 5) Citrus and tropical fruits (banana
in particular) lead the way here, but those fruit flavors are all complimented
with some nice spice. A little clove,
maybe a touch of cinnamon and a tiny dose of brown sugar. It oddly has many of the same flavors as a good
Barleywine, but this is obviously much lighter in body and far less hoppy. Although, the noble-like hops flavors do come
through here, it is not lacking in the hop department.
MOTHFEEL: (3.5 out of 5) As I mentioned above, the
Salvation is fairly light bodied. It is
on the dryer side, but has a slightly sugary and sweet finish. Carbonation is light and tickling, providing
a crisp and clean mouthfeel.
OVERALL: (4 out of 5) This, the third beer in Avery’s
Holy Trinity Series (along with Hog
Heaven and The Reverend). While it
is not as complex as some other Belgian-Style Pale Ales (to be fair Avery calls
it a Belgian-Style Golden) it is nicely balanced, easy drinking, refreshing,
crisp, clean and a nearly perfect beer to use to win over a Coors Light
drinker. If they’re open-minded enough
to at least try this beer it will not offend them, but should pleasantly
surprise them with a ton more flavor and certainly with a bigger, better buzz
if they drink enough.
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