7.8

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

12 ounce bottle into pint glass, bottled in 10/2018. Pours slightly hazy deep ruby red, light copper/brown color with a 1 finger fairly dense and fluffy light khaki head with good retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a light amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of caramel, brown sugar, toffee, brown bread, toasted biscuit, and nuts; with lighter notes of chocolate, cocoa, coffee, dark fruit, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/toasted earthiness. Nice and pleasant aromas with good complexity and balance of dark/bready/light roasted malts and light earthy hop notes; with solid strength. Taste of big caramel, brown sugar, toffee, brown bread, toasted biscuit, and nuts; with lighter notes of chocolate, cocoa, coffee, dark fruit, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/toasted earthiness. Light herbal, grassy, peppery hop; and roast bitterness on the finish. Lingering notes of caramel, brown sugar, toffee, brown bread, toasted biscuit, nuts, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/toasted earthiness for a good bit. Very nice complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready/light roasted malts and light earthy hop flavors; with a great malt/bitterness balance, and no cloying/astringent flavors after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering bitterness. Light-medium carbonation and medium body; with a very smooth, moderately creamy/bready, and lightly sticky/chalky mouthfeel that is great. Zero warming alcohol as expected of 5.5%. Overall this is a very nice American brown ale. All around nice complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready/light roasted malts and light earthy hop flavors; very smooth and easy to drink with the mellowly bitter/drying finish. Very flavorful for the ABV. Nicely clean and rich malt complexity; with solid earthy hop balance against sweetness. A very enjoyable offering, and spot on style example.