Draught at the Cloak and Dagger, Toronto. Rich, well balanced dark ale. Hints of chocolate, caramel, molasses. Relatively sweet but with a very good hop balance. Rich malts and cereals, with a smooth, creamy body. Well done.

473ml Can courtesy MrManning from a long ago trade. Reddish brown pour, slightly watery with a thin white head. Caramel malt and bread dough aroma. Smooth malty taste with hints of caramel sweetness. Decent session Pale Ale.

Supercan. Sweet caramel, dry leafy tea-like hops, a little on the thin side. Decent enough.

Pours a slightly hazy brown with an off-white head with decent retention. Nice fruitcake aroma with notes of alcohol. Tastes much like my Dad’s homebrew, in that it has a wide range of malt flavours, a bit of residual sweetness, but it’s a tad watery. Good bitterness, no hop aroma or finish. Low carb, thin body. Sessionable, balanced, tastes more like a brown ale than a pale. Average.

Bottle from brewery. Pours a reddish-brown with a frothy head. Aroma is minimal and little to distinguish it. Really nice palate with mild carbonation. A lightly bitter finish.