Cask at GBBF 2015, day 1 - London. Pours clear brown with a bubbly tan head. Burnt wood in the nose, with notes of dark, dried fruits. Medium sweet flavor, oily, with woody character dominating, some toffee, spice. Full bodied, thick and chewy, with fine carbonation. Warming finish with more prominent dry, burnt wood. Fine.

11th August 2015
GBBF Day 1. Cask. Clear dark brown beer, no head. Palate is smooth and semi dry with mild fine carbonation. Toffee malts. Juicy red wine vibe. Vanilla. Dark toffee. Mild spice. Sherry. Light savoury touch. Light finish. Rich and lovely. One of the best beers of the festival.

Cask gravity at GBBF 2015. Black beer no head. Slightly sour aroma some fig dates. Very date like. Interesting dry acidic. Good though.

Special, limited version of Colossal I, aged on red wine barrels; at GBBF 2015. Loose and coarse, light beige head, colour almost opaquely black. Rich and vinous aroma, a lot of red wine coming through, mingling with the beer, wood, vanilla, black chocolate, raisins, sweet cherries... Very inviting. Intense flavour, fruity yeastiness (feeling a bit Belgian indeed), thick and ’fluffy’ body, very vinous with the red wine being very apparent as a tart and ’added fruity’ flavour, caramelly, nutty and chocolatey malts in the basis, tingling alcohol already present in the first sip and needless to say, increasing in the finish, drying along with the roasted bitterness, the woody tannins and the coarse flavour of the red wine itself. Too much wine in this one, to my taste at least; it is not because you put an average imperial stout in some barrel which has contained another alcoholic beverage, that a masterpiece automatically comes out of it. Still, a complicated and warming sipper, well worth giving a try.