2.8 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 2/5 OVERALL 10/20
2010 Autumn Festival of Ales - This was labeled as a red ale and as such was very red in color. I don’t know if there was much malt in there, cause I just smelled and tasted the hops. Too much for me.
3 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 12/20
22 oz. bottle. Pours a mostly clear reddish amber with a thin tan head that is gone by the second sip and leaves partial lace. The aroma is malt with a bit of dried leaves. If there is Cascade in here, there’s no sign of it in the aroma. The flavor is malt and starts drying out almost immediately. Mild-moderate hops bitterness at the finish contributing little flavor. Dry at the finish as well. I’m not getting any impact from the Cascade hops. Dull and uninteresting.
2.5 AROMA 3/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 5/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 11/20
Sample at the brewery - Faint malt, shortlived head, light body, watery texture
2.3 AROMA 4/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 5/10 PALATE 2/5 OVERALL 9/20
22oz bottle, purchased in upstate NY, courtesy of my dad. Thanks! Pours a bright, orange-amber color with pretty high clarity; yellow edges; thin, mixed-bubbled light-tan head with patchy retention and lacing. Some diacetyl most definitely in the aroma (appearing as butterscotch, so not terrible), a modest spicy hop note, and possibly some quiet toffee notes and fruit getting mostly lost behind the diacetyl; very quiet, though not especially off-putting. Medium-light mouthfeel; modest carbonation. The diacetyl / butterscotch note is more pronounced in the mouth, coupled to some basic red fruitiness and a very quiet crystalline sugar character; more troubling is a slightly lactic (I think; it’s not huge) tartness that didn’t show through in the nose; there’s some citrus hop flavor present along with that mild spiciness from the nose; overall, a couple brewing flaws atop a very basic amber ale recipe; the carbonation is very sloppy and just falling out of this beer. They really need to work on sanitation and brewing technique (that diacetyl needs to be the first to go). Medium finish showing some nice spicy hoppiness and a light fruit note.
3.3 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 14/20
Pours amber with a light, thin tan head. Smells of berries, pine, grass, toffee. Tastes of blueberries, slight grain. Very smooth, good overall impression, drinkable.
4.7 AROMA 9/10 APPEARANCE 5/5 TASTE 9/10 PALATE 5/5 OVERALL 19/20
I absolutely loved this beer. I tried it as part of their sampler, and I wound up buying a growler of it to take home. It’s got a really intriguing taste that is sooo familiar, but I just can’t quite place it. When you go to the brewery to try this beer, ask them to let you see/smell the malt. It’s got a rich odor, and it helps you isolate the taste of the malt from the tastes of the hops.
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