McNeills Ducks Breath Ale

Brewed by McNeills Brewery
Style: English Strong Ale
Brattleboro, Vermont USA

Name: Duck’s Breath Ale
Date: 05/20/2006
Mode: Bottle
Source: Tasting, Noog II

clear yellow, whispy white head, lightly hopped sweet malt aroma, balanced malt and hop flavor, light tart lemon essence,

Aroma: 3/10; Appearance: 4/10; Flavor: 4/10; Palate: 5/10; Overall: 7/20
Rating: 1.9/5.0
Drinkability: 5/10
Score: *+/4

Muddy dull amber. Very low carbo visible. The aroma has floral hops with some woody notes and a yeast backdrop. Yeasty, heavy taste...thick, simple malts and oxidized hops. OK, it was best before an hour ago. Must’ve gone down the gurgler in those sixty minutes. Very light florals and esters. Pretty run of the mill stale Englishish ale.

(cask) Lightly haszed amber body with soft beige head. Aroma is medium sweet, mandarin orange. Taste is medium sweet, orange, some grapefruit. Some earthy and light mint in the finish. Soft ligt-medium body, soem duskiness in the finish.

22oz bottle Poured a medium and slightly hazy orange color with an averaged sized light off white head. Aromas of caramel, flowers, grapefruit and light oranges. Tastes of lighter caramel, flowers, and light citrus. Thinner body. I found the flavors did not live up to the aroma.

Proficient, sweet berry malt transforms into a pine hop-powered palate heater...A touch of lemony acidity softens the bitter flow as a gloomy, humid conifer floor carefully rises...The firmament has echoed the fall of summer into my glass...

On cask at McNeills. Pours amber with a thin film of bubbles. Smells like a true English bitter with some of the funk notes. Some perfumey notes also present. Taste is sweet and caramelly with some citrussy elements.

2001: I'll say this for McNeills, they're consistent-consistently great! I can almost assume a '4' or better before opening the bottle, and am usually right. Strong, bitter, hoppy, with a great floral aroma; but much more drinkable for me than, say, a very hoppy American PA, because of the strong malt underpinning. Go McNeills!

2003: Wow. Significantly better 2 years down the road, with a lot more rating experience under my belt. Hoppier and more assertive than something like a Fullers Vintage, but still mellow and sippable. Maltier and sweeter than I remember, with a distinct smokiness. Wonderful.8/5/9/4/7

August '04. This sample seems a little watery, less potent and flavorful. Alas, another sign of McNeills batch-to-batch (and sometimes bottle-to-bottle) inconsistency. At it's best, this is remarkable, but I have to downgrade the average...start bottling professionally, Ray!

Strong citrus-grapefruit/orange pine hop aroma with underlying caramel maltiness. Hazy tan copper coloured body is topped by shy cover of white head. Spicy, woody tones to the malty flavour with plenty of citrus hops, bread-like yeast dough and notes of vanilla. Medium body with fair carbonation that is engaging on the tongue. Bottle.