Port Brewing Shark Attack

Name: Shark Attack Double Red Ale
Brewery: Port Brewing
Style: American Amber/Red (note, this is an imperial, and I believe they've added this as an official category to the unreleased 2010 BJCP guidelines)
Brewed In: San Marcos, CA
Origin: USA
ABV: 9.0
Serving Glass: Pint
OMG Beer Rating: 7.8

In honor of my first trip to California in a week, my thoughts on this Port Brewing bomber. A solid concoction to be shared for sure.

Appearance: Amber with red highlights, light tan and very bubbly head (reminds me of a homebrew)

Aroma: spices, maybe something like the aroma of cinnamon and cardamom, caramel, cherry, maybe a hint of alcohol

Taste: caramel, touch of fruitiness, and hoptacularness. The hop aroma gave it cinnamon and cardamom hints, which are just barely present, alcohol. The bitterness lingers, but not like an IPA because of the added sweetness of the malt.

Mouthfeel/Drinkability: This is where I'm a little disappointed. Nicely built beer, nice medium body...but as it warms, it gets a little syrupy and the hoppy goodness and the sweetness of the booze and malts take it to a level where it becomes a really intense experience. I suppose you should always approach a 9% beer in that way, and be ready for it (can we admit to not looking at the ABV until after we opened the bottle?). But, it makes turns what initially is a fantastically built beer into a sipper. I recommend sharing this bomber with a friend or two, pouring it, admiring a sip cold, but then letting it warm up and enjoying it sip by sip, over a long conversation or story.