7.2

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

Can - turbid purple pour - pours with a fairly substantial head - nose is plum, fig, treacle, burnt sugars - I can see an earlier rater’s criticism that this is a little sugary - I’d say so, too - all the elements to make it great are there - earthy, peaty malt - dark fruits - a touch of smokiness - a vaguely barleywine-ish treacle note - touches of acidity - but yeah, the high level of sugary sweetness keeps any of it from completely coming in forward - this does get better as it warms, allowing some of those qualities to at least be equals with the sweetness - warming finish - a mixed bag - dial down the sweetness and you’d have a winner.