Brewery At Lake Tahoe Bad Ass Ale

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 6

wow...stoutlover72 was right on target...one of their best, but that really isn't saying much. it just means this one isn't quite crap like the rest. nothing new to report. 6/09: still one of their better beers...more on the boozy malty side. come to think of it, none of their beers have enough of a hop presence. ok. i ordered a pint after a race, but i won't be rushing back anytime soon.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 5 | Overall: 6

This stuff was okay, probably the best item they had on their beer list and while in most cases that would be a good thing, this really wasn't that good of a beer (which tells you alot about the rest of their line-up). An appearance of maple brown, clear with a one-finger white head. Aroma of sweet caramel malts, spicy hops, a bit nutty and some toffee. Mouthfeel was too thin. Flavor was malt with a hull astringent knocking in the background, piney hops, alcohol and little else in the way of complexity. If this was supposed to be some sort of Arrogant Bastard clone, they need some more work.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Rudy amber color. White foamy head. Aroma is malty and sweet. A medium to full bodied American Strong Ale. Malts are nutty and sweet. Hops are slightly spicy. Very noticeable alcohol bite. Yet, it is still very sweet tasting and a touch watery for an American Strong Ale, Mouthfeel is full and round. Finish is slightly sweet.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 5 | Overall: 5

~ Initial Review, 04-13-2004:
This was the last of a sampler set of seven 4-oz tasters -- the Prince Of Pales Ale was out when me and Karen stopped by, so we were owed a second 4-oz taster glass of whatever we liked the best of what was available (i.e. the IPA). That is to say, not another 4-oz sample of this -- one taster was enough to get a very firm idea of what this beer had in store.

Rumor has it that the head brewmaster (or, rather, with a place this small, the *only* brewmaster) had a taste of Stone's Arrogant Bastard when it was first released a few years ago, while he was vacationing down here in San Diego, and wanted to make something of a clone back in Lake Tahoe. Whether the story is true or not, the end-results are the same: a beer quite similar to Arrogant Bastard, except that the Bad Ass is sweeter, and not nearly as interesting to drink.

Maple-syrup in appearence, and in the flavor, to a certian extent. That is to say, too-damn sweet, and not nearly bitter enough to be of any interest. The heat from alcohol isn't entirely unwelcome, but doesn't really add or subtract to the general feeling of "unbalance" to the entire affair.

Perhaps if you had just come off the mountain (i.e. Heavenly Ski Resort), with something of a "skier's buzz" going on, a full pint of this might be interesting to enjoy. But for lazy pub-crawling beer-geeks like myself, this doesn't impress, IMO.

~ Edit, 09-14-2004:
Was talking to some friends of mine, who had just come back from visiting the Lake Tahoe area -- including stopping in places like this. They met up with the owner, who explained that despite popular believe, this actually pre-dates Stone's Arrogant Bastard by around 2 years. So, I guess the theory is now that Arrogant Bastard is something of an altered version of Bad Ass Ale, not vice-versa.

Even still, this is not a very enjoyable or balanced beer. I'd pass...
//TB