A whiskey red ale. Malty. Not my style, but it’s okay enough. Thanks Dave! Pic from @DiscoverIreland on Twitter.

6.5

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 6

Can, from Costco. Pours clear dark amber-red with foamy light beige head, sweetish caramel aroma, medium carbonation, mildly bitter caramel taste, faint whisky flavor., thin body, long sweetish caramel finish. A bit thin and watery for a barrel aged brew.

5.6

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 4 | Overall - 5.5

Deep rich and fairly clear amber coloured body with tints of cola and light brown notes, with a thinnish one to two centimetre tall tan head that fades fairly quickly but at least leaves a nice thin layer of head on the top and sides that almost seems nitrogenated. Aroma of toasted malt, earth, nuts, pitted fruits and a rustic, pungent quality and super aromatic beer with some oak and cedar noticeable from the barrels with a touch of whiskey and alcohol noticeable. Medium-bodied; Deep coffee and nutty flavours dominate with some woodsey and very earthy, rustic qualities with the toasted grain front and centre as well with only a mellow touch of caramelised sugars and yeast noticeable. Aftertaste is dry, toasty and super malty without much complexity or richness - this really shows some dry malts, a touch of wood and rustic notes, but that's about it. Overall, a decent beer, but not showing too much and definitely not enough complexity or range to make this a good beer or worth trying to find. I sampled this 440 mL, pint-sized can, purchased from Costco in Arlington (Pentagon City), Virginia on 05-March-2021 for US$2,99 sampled at my house here in Washington on 17-March-2021, St Patrick's Day.

7

Dark amber body medium creamy tan head. Toffee caramel earthy aroma. Dry toffee toasty bready earthy oak flavor. Medium body moderate carbonation. 7/4/8/4/15 3.8

7.2

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7

660 ml bottle. Orange copper color. Rocky beige head. Sweet caramel malt aroma. Toasted malt flavor brings notes of caramel and oak. Whiskey notes are subtle. Medium bodied with residual sweetness. Finishes with sweet tea-like notes.

6.4

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6.5

Bottle - pours reddish brown white head - nose and taste of whiskey, cream, pine and caramel - medium bodied

7.9

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

660 ml bottle into tulip glass, bottled on 10/29/2016. Bottle code L302161A. Pours slightly hazy deep orange/copper/light reddish color with a 1 finger fairly dense and fluffy light khaki head with good retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Nice spotty lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, raisin, plum, fig, peach, pear, apricot, red apple, whiskey, toasted oak, biscuit, and brown bread; with light notes of nuts, leather, herbal, grass, and yeast/oak/toasted earthiness. Very nice aromas with good balance and complexity of dark/bready malts, fruity yeast, and light-moderate Irish whiskey barrel notes; with great strength. Taste of big caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, raisin, plum, fig, peach, pear, apricot, red apple, whiskey, toasted oak, biscuit, and brown bread; with light notes of nuts, leather, herbal, grass, and yeast/oak/toasted earthiness. Light herbal/grassy hop and whiskey/oak spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, raisin, plum, fig, peach, pear, apricot, red apple, whiskey, toasted oak, biscuit, brown bread, nuts, leather, herbal, grass, and yeast/oak/toasted earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Very nice complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malts, fruity yeast, and light-moderate Irish whiskey barrel flavors; with a solid malt/bitterness and whiskey/oak spiciness balance; and no cloying flavors after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering bitterness and whiskey/oak spiciness. Medium carbonation and body; with a very smooth, moderately creamy/bready, and lightly sticky/tannic mouthfeel that is nice. Zero warming alcohol for 6.5%. Overall this is a very nice barrel aged Irish red ale. All around nice complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malts, fruity yeast, and light-moderate Irish whiskey barrel flavors; very smooth and easy to drink with the mildly bitter/tannic/drying finish. Great balance of nicely rich malts and fruity yeast complexity; with nice barrel presence/integration. Not a lot of barrel, but adequate enough. A very enjoyable offering, and well made base style example.