Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7.5 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 7.5

Pours a few shades lighter than the base Clara, for some reason. still a browned tawny. Scent is very expressive of the wood, loads of vanilla ! maybe even a tad too much, as this turns quite pudding-like. mild generic red fruit underneath, but unlike the base, the fruit seems rather young (green, unripe) in this one. Taste is smooth, fairly sweet due to the honey, tannins are pushed back by the wood - which presents lots of vanilla. alcohol is more on top, though its 0.5 % lighter. Anywway, this blend works far, far better to me than the regular Clara. The fruit intensity is pushed back from it's overpowering strength, due to the wood - that also might be a tad loud (the honey / mead aspect is still quite lost ) . Very decent, as a red wine alternative more than it is a mead.