Cask at CPK. Pours a dark, ruby-brown with a tan, cream head. Nose holds dark malts, plums and toffee. Very sweet flavor, with strong caramel, lightly breay malts, more toffee, dark fruits, licorice and earthy bitterness. Medium in body with fine carbonation. Finishes has lots more sweetness, more ripe, dark fruit like plum and cherry, light bread and toasted malts that linger. Solid.

Cask (gravity) @ NWAF 10, National Winter Ales Festival, The Venue, Sheridan Suite, Manchester, England.Clear dark brown color with a average, fizzy, fair lacing, mostly diminishing, off-white to beige head. Aroma is moderate to heavy malty, roasted, caramel, licorice, dried fruit, light to moderate hoppy. Flavor is heavy sweet and bitter with a long to average duration. Body is medium, texture is oily, carbonation is soft. [20100120]

Cask. Deep rubyish black colour with small brown head. Aroma is chocolate, caramel malts, toffee, some red berries and mild notes of coffee. Flavour is quite much the same, but the alcohol is a bit too strong.

Cask. Pours a cloudy and opaque dark brown with an orange hue and a small, rough off-white head. Nutty nose, as well as plenty of dried fruit and alcohol up there. Fairly solid body, loads of licorice, dried fruit, a little cough syrup and a warming alcohol in the finish. Lovely. 200110

Cask-Mugs-Split They Skull-4 oz snifter. Second Western Hemisphere rater (only beaten out by Notalush who did not even realize, way to keep your eye on the ball Brandon). This is a weird ESA, poured very dark with a foamy light tan head. Overall there is a novel kind of cookie texture and flavor to it. Not sweet but take a nice cookie, get rid of any of the sweetness and leave the baked essence. A very cool maltiness. There is some detectable alcohol. Its not a heavy beer and easy drinking but I woud say the the mouthfeel feel very nice with the reduced carbonation on the cask, pillowy on the cheeks. There is a flavor at the end of the flavor which does not follow the flow of the beer, one coud say tartness but its really just something on the opposite end of the spectrum from the baked essence. At times cool... at times weird.

Cask at Mug’s Split Thy Skull - dark brown, nearly black pour, with a thick off-white head - lightly woody aroma, with some roasty notes, a rather prominent spice profile, and carmelized brown sugar - somewhat sweet up front, with the roasted flavors one expects from the style - this is quickly undercut by a strong, spicy hop profile, and a touch of tartness - a little thin on the palate - I was expecting a lot more from this brewery, but it’s still nice.

Small beige head over opaque black body. Light milky burnt licorice aroma. Soft, sweet earthy licorice taste with light burnt aftertaste. Some alcohol heat. Fruity, with banana flavours and notes of milky chocolate. Dry aftertaste. Nice! A beer to savour. (0.5pt on cask.)

(Cask at White Horse, Parson’s Green, London, 26 Nov) Dark brown, almost black, with ruby notes. Small beige head. Malty, roasted nose with prunes, raisins, chocolate and hints of blueberries. Malty, fruity taste with notes of dried fruit (prunes, raisins), chocolate, spicy hops and liquorice. Slightly sweet and vinous. Well balanced and warming. Very nice.

Cask gravity at Planet Thanet BF 2006, Ramsgate. Very dark brown colour with lasting dark beige head. Hoppy coffee aroma. Some liquorice. Intense aromas. Syrupy in mouth with dark treacle flavours. Unctious oily feel in mouth, thick but with only some alcohol burn. This really woke me up. Finish has dryness and more dark treacle. I liked it.