Review Date 11/22/2013
Try? Re-buy?
Baltimore’s Clipper City Brewing just keeps sending us treat after treat, and I for one will keep drinking them as long as they keep brewing them. Up to bat tonight is Heavy Seas Mutiny Fleet Letter of Marque Belgian Style Dubbel. Isn’t that a mouthful! Luckily, so is the beer.
I’m going to lean rather heavily on the bottle for information on this beer, but I just can’t do a better job explaining this one than Heavy Seas does, so here goes:
About the Mutiny Fleet series:
The Mutiny Fleet was “berthed” by Heavy Seas brewers who were discovered secretly brewing small batches of big beers to amuse the palates of their fellow crew.
Since most secrets are best kept bottled up, we’re bringing you these big flavor extraAARGHdinary brews in 22oz bombers.”
And about the Letter of Marque program:
Winners from our annual “Letter of Marque” homebrew competition will work along side our brewmaster to create a yearly special release.
Historically, a Letter of Marque was a document that made a Pyrate a legitimate privateer. Our Letter of Marque makes a home brewer a legitimate professional!
I love the idea of brewers conducting homebrew competitions with the goal of brewing up a winning batch for release under their own label. Samuel Adams is of course the most prolific at this with their long-running Longshot series, but I believe that Beer Across America might have been the first to try this with their Fat Chance Ale. That beer was brewed in 1996 at Goose Island in Chicago by the contest winner, but the timing is close with the first Longshot beers. Pete’s Brewing also used a competition winner to become their famous Wicked Winter Brew.
My bottle of Heavy Seas Mutiny Fleet Letter of Marque Belgian Style Dubbel got to age until early 2013 when I drank it. With a few years on the beer, it poured to a murky brown color with a medium sized rocky head and a surprisingly non-descript nose. I got a moderate body on the first sip with some light chocolate and black pepper, licorice, Belgian funk, and definite nutty maltiness. Warm alcohol in came through in the finish the finish.
A very nice beer and a perfect nightcap of good complexity. It didn’t seem it’s 8% alcohol content by volume at first but as it warmed the alcohol came out a bit more.
Congratulations to home brewers David Edmundson and Doug John, who formulated this tasty Dubbel!
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft