Pours deep amber into a snifter. Tan head recedes to skim surface and hug rim. Tear lacing. Alcohol aromas. Sweet and sticky with a lasting alcohol finish.

Cloudy golden with a copper tint and moderate lacing - quite a sweet, fruity, almost candy-like aroma, with a medium aromatic hop profile - almost none of this sweetness is in the flavor - it is actually quite dry and bitter, with a hint of bready malt I associate more with ESBs - medium-bodied, with an almost creamy mouthfeel - finishes floral and almost spicy - not terrible, but nothing special.

Draught pint at Redbones on 9/1/06.
Thin, beige head is not long retained, fading in to the edges, with no lacing. Liquid is highly unfiltered, near-black and opaque.
Before even picking up the beer, the bourbon wafts up. Strong and deeply bourbony, it certainly seems to be dominant. Closer inspection and there really isn’t much other than bourbon. Granted it’s not overly harsh, tannic, dry wood notes alongside it, but it barely smells like beer. Some light chocolate sweetness, fresh yeast and a bit of roast plunging through the bourbon...but mostly bourbon. And to its credit, the bourbon smells lovely, but I didnt order this to delve the deep depths of a bourbon nose. I wanted a beer.
The flavor, then, is not surprisingly overdone with bourbon. Wood is lightly dry on the end, but otherwise not harsh and tannic. Chocolate and some light ashiness/chalkiness are contributed from the roasted barley, but the extremely low carbonation, and more English-like watery, sessionable texture/body certainly don’t hold up to the heavy bourbon. Some peanut skins, coconut and light vanilla sit on the end. But it’s just too much for too easygoing a base beer. Odd, as Berkshire is usually very dedicated to balance.

Draught pint at Redbones, 7/9/06.
Dark, murky, unfiltered chocolate brown body with very faint mahogany-auburn tresses. Head is quite small for a BBC beer, no doubt it must be the wood tannins knocking down the head/retention. Not much, if any, lacing.
At first, the nose is very subdued and dull. Only minor traces of sweet bourbon break through. Some dry, nutty yeast and a hint of chocolate swirl about lightly on the end. With warming and breathing, the bourbon really comes out strongly. Bits of coconut, dry wood tannins and a touch of vanilla, but the scotch ale behind it is quite timid in the aroma even after warming.
The flavor is decidedly strong on the bourbon, with lightly dry alcohol, oily woody character and plenty of vanilla. Not terribly drying or astringent at all, but very full of coconut and pure bourbon. Some sweet chocolate slowly enters the mix and helps add balance and beer flavors to the mix, but it’s too little too late in my opinion. Certainly nothing subtle about this one, and though the bourbon is certainly flavorful, without all of the harsh tannins and alcohol sharpness, it still dominates the flavor and allows for little "Scotch Ale" notes to develop. Body is a touch loose at times, but nothing out of the ordinary for BBC. Low carbonation, lightly sticky, with some residual sugars adding body.

Cask (tapped about 20 hours prior) pint at Redbones on 06/06/06. Not exactly bright, but far from muddy, the dull brown liquid, tinted with coal and a touch of ruby, shows medium-low to low clarity. A small, but well-retained dirt colored head sits atop, remaining at cover and providing moderate lacing. A huge blast of chocolate covered roasted coffee beans rise up and seem like a cloud sitting in your face. A touch of candied plum and definite black malt ashiness are also apparent. The black malt seems to dull things, barely allowing the round, simple plum and port-like notes in to the edges. Strong, almost sour-like molasses almost seems smoky. Hops are no where to be found, nor is the alcohol. Strong roast, alternating between barley and black malt (seems like black malt ashiness, with bits of charcoal) provide most of the flavor, while light chocolate and dried dates provide some chewiness. Not really sure what to make of the yeast, seems rather dull, not fruity at all, with very little ester/phenol production. With warming, the roast seems to take hold and alleviate some of the acrid black malt, but the nuttiness builds up on the palate, and some wateriness seems to undercut the usefulness of roast. Still, the flavors are quite strong and clean, with ample chewy mouthfeel. Very low carbonation, no alcohol noted.

Draught pint at Redbones on 5/30/06. Deep brown, milk-chocolate appearance, though not completely opaque. Dark beige head fades fairly rapidly to ring, with little to no lacing. Hazelnut and husky coffee beans are prominent in the nose, with a strong roasted barley lying behind it. But its staying power is rather weak, as light milk notes and lean caramel move in to the mix. Some light papery, dry yeast notes, quite nutty on the finish, with soft vanilla tints. The flavor is watery at first, with light chocolate malts hints up front and soft caramel quickly transitioning in to the coffee bean flavor, which is not subtle, by any means, but quite flavorful and not overdone either. Dry, bitter black malt notes ride on the tail-end, and then a heavy wateriness begins to build, as soft milky/chocolate sweetness (though quite lean) sits on the end, with plenty of fresh yeasty nuttiness and more of the light vanilla notes. Carbonation was rather loose, and it did seem just a bit too watery, even for a session porter, but the flavors, as usual for this brewer, are all well-done. Alcohol is not apparent in aroma or flavor.

Pours cloudy gold into a shaker. Nice, full head of microbubbles. Bread and yeast aromas. Flat and stale with long, bitter medicinal finish. Let down.

Reddish amber ale with a light white head. Light raspberry aroma with alcohol wafting through. Sweet corny alcohol in mouth, with raspberry extract. Unidimensional. Mondial 2005.