Draught @ Albion. Hazy reddish brown with small frothy beige head, very faint caramel aroma, high carbonation, woodsy flavor, slightly bitter caramel taste, abrupt finish. Interesting.

12 ounce bottle into dimpled mug, best before 1/13/2015. Pours hazy deep orange/copper color with a 1 finger fairly dense off white head with good retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Slight spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass. Aromas of big caramel, toffee, toast, biscuit, brown sugar, light nuttiness, herbal, grass, light oak, and yeast/toasted earthiness. Very nice aromas with good balance and complexity of dark/bready malt, earthy hops, and light oak notes; with good strength. Taste of caramel, toffee, toast, biscuit, brown sugar, light nuttiness, herbal, grass, light oak, and yeast/toasted earthiness. Light earthy herbal/spicy bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of caramel, toffee, toast, biscuit, brown sugar, light nuttiness, light oak, and herbal/toasted earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Very nice complexity and robustness of dark/bready malts, earthy hop, and light oak flavors; with a great malt/bitterness balance and zero cloying flavors after the finish. Very clean on lager flavors as well with minimal esters present. Medium carbonation and body; with a very smooth and fairly creamy/bready mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is well hidden with minimal warming present after the finish. Overall this is a very nice Oktoberfest style. All around good robustness, balance, and complexity of dark/bready malt, earthy hops, and light oak flavors; and very smooth to drink for the ABV. A very enjoyable offering.

$3.50 cold bottle at Freikoten. Deep amber color with a bit of a hazy, thin head. Note of apple juice when placed within "nose shot." Closer in, I smell the Vienna malt, and an edge of yeast (this is, after all, from their oak foudre). Nice deep malts, tending more toward sweet than hoppy. A note of spice and yeast; likely a few bugs coming in from those wooden aging barrels. Some toasted biscuit and, yes, some roast squash. Yes, an all-around autumn beer!

Bottle. Medium amber body. Frothy off-white head. Aroma of toasted grain, wood, caramel malts. The flavor is moderately sweet and lightly bitter. It finishes moderately sweet and lightly bitter. Medium body, watery texture, lively carbonation. The raw grain taste is magnified by the oak. Notes of caramel and nuts.

A golden amber ale with floaties and a thin white head. In aroma, a strange oxidized malt with light coriander and wood notes. In mouth, a decent crisp malt with grassy notes, light wood. On tap at Sunswick.

12 oz. bottle courtesy of queenholly. Dimpled mug displays a cloudy amber color with a thick soapy white head. Aromas has notes of straw, malt, and a bit of minerals. The flavor is toffee and earthy hops with a slick/ oily texture. The label reads “aged in oak foudres” Well, I don’t smell or taste oak. I do taste the alcohol notes after the sip. When I read oak on a label, I want to taste it. I was excited for this but it leaves me flat.

97th rating of this beer, and my 97th Illinois rating. Spooky. During Scion’s Halloween beer festival. Even spookier. Bottle. Clear golden amber color, fluffy white head. Aroma of biscuit and light fruit. Taste is malty, peppery hay.

Draught @ The Ginger Man, NYC. Pours clear amber with airy white head. Clear aroma of hops with touches of caramel malt. Bitter, dusty and grainy flavour with notes of raw malt. Rough aftertaste. More interesting than good.