7.6

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

Cask at London & North Western, Birmingham. Out of the 9 festival beers I've tried so far this is by far the best. Pours a dark ruby with beige to tanned head. Fruit cake, chocolate, treacle, moderate roast and creamy oats. Smooth mid-body. Very tasty.

6.8

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

Cask @ Seven Stars, Manchester. Very dark, sweetish brew, not quite a stout, slightly sticky-sweet texture but good darker malt effort with no pinned-down style.

7

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7

Pours a dark reddish-brown colour with a small tan head. The aroma is sweet roasted malts, liquorice, dark chocolate, and roasted nuts. A sweetish light roasted taste, sweet roasted malts, , liquorice, roasted chestnuts, and milk chocolate flavours with a sweetish roasted finish.

7.1

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

7.5

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

Cask at Commercial Rooms (JDW), Bristol. Pours deep brown with a ruby tinge, beige foam. Aroma: roast, oats, nuts, earthy. Taste: moderate sweet & bitter, cocoa, mild liquorice, fruit cake, treacle. Smooth. Light to medium body with soft carbonation. Good one.

7.6

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

Cask at the crosse Keys Bank. A dark mahogany brown coloured pour with a lasting loose tan head. Aroma is semi sweet, nutty roast, earth, some lactose sweetness, roasted chestnuts, black liquorice. Flavour is composed of semi sweet, rounded roast, liquorice, roasted nuts, layered malts, light tang. Palate is semi sweet, rounded, decent cask condition.

7.5

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

Third of a cask pint in my local Wetherspoons on 14th October 2024. Slight ruby hue to the dark brown body, creamy beige crown that hung around. Pleasant malty nature, with minimal hop action. Cadbury's Fruit and Nut chocolate bar sort of flavour, but not as sweet.

7.2

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

Cask at the Standing Order. Pours black with a thin beige head. Aromas of coffee and chocolate. Taste has some fruity coffee berry. Cocoa finish.

7

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7

Cask at The Moon on the Hill (Wetherspoons), Harrow. A very dark ruby/brown/black coloured pour with a healthy beige head on top. Sweetish, roasty, malty, chocolate, coffee taste/aroma. Almost a Belgian theme in this one. A pretty decent effort actually for a Spoons festival stout.

7.5

Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7

[Cask at the Back of Beyond (JDW), Reading.] A glossy black pour with a ruby red gleam with a thin caramel coloured head; oaty aroma; silky smooth in the mouth with an oaty body and chocolate and roasted grains; and a dry finish with soused raisins. A satisfying stout.