Pours cloudy copper with a huge, rocky, long-lasting off-white head. Apples, malt, hay, sugar, metal, and bread in the nose. Taste was pleasant, but lacking. Brown sugar, malt, grain, cereal, honey, and noble hops, but unbalanced.

<b>12-Jun-08</b> <i>(22-oz bottle: Purchased 02-May-08 for $3.69 at Holiday Wine Cellar in Escondido, CA)</i> Nicely balanced aromas of earth, toast and sweet caramel lead the way. But despite the caramely sweetness of the nose, the flavor appropriately trends more toward dry maltiness. A lightly sweet entry of toasty, caramely malts and light, airy earthiness dries out for a finish that adds unsweetened tea and multi-grain bread. Hops are practically indiscernible in the aroma, but shows a touch of floralness, light citrus and light bitterness in the finish. Dense, dry and chewy malts make for a creamy, full-bodied and filling beer. Soft carbonation furthers the heavy mouthfeel. Murky, deep-red-amber body is capped by a generous foamy cap, light-tan in color, dense and tightly knit, and long-lasting. Minimal lacing. This malt-focused beer is fairly simple and straight forward overall, but unlike what the style dictates, it’s is a meal unto itself. Well-made and enjoyable, but not something I’d drink very often.

Bottle... Clear, deep amber ale with a large, foamy, white head. Terrific retention. Perfumey, fruity aroma. Medium-bodied with pillow-soft carbonation. Medium caramel, fruity sweetness; mild tannic bitterness. Lengthy, bittersweet, lightly acidic finish.

I thought it was pretty honest to its style.. Although not that red, it did have a malty, earthy and slightly caramely nose and taste. Some grassy hops and bitterness in the finish. Crisp and refreshing with some nice flavor.