Ottos Arthurs English Old Ale

In short: A rich malted beer unsuited for its Cask serving (IMHO)
How: Cask at brewpub
The look: Clear mahogany topped by a very small beige ring of foam.
In long: Shy nose but surprisingly tasty. Medium full body with a whole lot malts. Smooth molasses and caramel, some single-malt/whiskey hints, some woody notes. Warming alcohol finish. Could have used more hops. Body felt lifeless even by cask standard. Alcohol was a bit too present. The beer felt heavy and I think that some carbonation could have lightened it up. This could potentially be a very good beer but the cask conditioning was not appropriate. Like a NFL defensive line player in a Mazda Miata, the cask was the wrong vehicle for this beer.

Cask @ Otto’s. Dark amber body with a small off-white head. The nose is sweet toffee, dark fruits, light cherry and a touch of smoke. The flavor is moderately sweet, lightly bitter with light roast, light berry, prunes, toffee and smoke. Medium body is very soft with light carbonation.

Cask @ Otto’s. Pours a dark reddish-brown color; light tan head with patchy fine-bubbled lacing. Pleasant amounts of plum, dried dark fruits, and a touch of caramel in the aroma; still, a bit one-dimensional, basic sweetness. Relaxed carbonation. Medium-to-full mouthfeel: chewy dried cherries and plum, dark fruit and some caramel; generous, chewy beer, with plenty of dark fruit character. Medium, sticky finish: breadiness, dried dark fruits, and some residual sugar.

Cask draft. Old ales are a style that I enjoy greatly, and this one is great. The pour is deep brown with tan head. Nose is scotchy malt, brown sugar, vinous fruit, peaty earthy. Solidly hefty palate, very smooth with well hidden alcohol, starting peaty malty and giving way to hops, brown sugar, nuts, raisins, and mild spirity notes late. This one is wonderful.

Dark, thick, rich. Good when in the mood for a smooth dark beer without the bitter aftertaste. Looks like tar, though!

On cask at Zeno’s Pub. It’s good, but doesn’t match to foreign old ales. Rich, not so thick taste, strong dry flavor accented with moderate alcohol.

Otto’s rating #40. Served in a 20oz imperial pint glass, from cask. Color is dark purple/brown with a creamy tan head that looks bumpy and frothy and leaves a web of foam on the sides of the glass. Nose is sticky, woody, malty plums, semi-sweet cherry tobacco, but the sweetness seems more of a raw fruit skin sweetness, not a sugary sweetness, and it’s balanced so well by the drier side of this beer - tingly, prickly, tannic, woody, toasty, amazing dryness that excites the tongue. Body is moderately thin - this is a 7.5% cask ale, but the semi-prickly and dry texture is really interesting. Warming, stemmy, pitty, and other words that end in -y. Awesome beer.

On cask at the brewpub. Aroma is deft, glowing with sweet raisins, graham cracker, light port, and generous malt character. Wisps of alcohol and hop leaf blend in. Nice. Pours a rather dark cherry-stained mahogany, with a supple, fading cask-head in pale sienna. Flavor is dense, tight and packed with great malt and alcohol character. It moves gracefully between dense raisin paste, light chocolate dust, and some sweet molasses. There’s more refined pale fruits, delicate flowery essence, and a bit of bread and brown sugar. This is dangerously drinkable, with the cask presentation giving the typically dense style real airy lift. Finishes in faint older hop leaf, calvados, and pastry dough. Subtle. Delicious through and through.