ReaperAle Ritual Dark Ale

Brewed by ReaperAle Brewing Company
Style: American Strong Ale
Lake Elsinore, California USA

Poured from a 22oz bomber a dark brown with a beige head. Aroma was caramel malts, dark fruits(date/fig), and a touch of hops. Flavor was complex with dates and chocolate and roasted malts and a bit of hops all mixed together with just a bit of alcohol warming. My complaments to reaper for a great beer.

The pour reveals a clear dark brown color with ruby highlights and a thin light brown head. Aroma of roasted malt, soy and dark fruits with some sweetness. The flavor has diverse elements which is good but the roasted malt, dark fruits and the sweetness in the finish don’t seem united and blended, they seem to be battling each other to get the drinker’s attention. The body is light with a dusty and chalky texture and moderate carbonation.

Clearish dark ruby brown pour shows a thin beige foam with gentle lacing. Rather chalky, dry nose offers whiffs of raisin bread, figs, general fruit juice and a dry dark malt counterparts varying from ashes to dusty cement. Seriously roasty, slightly yeasty though in a simplistic manner. Rather thin on the palate, bay leaves and growing chalkiness shuts the flavour experience promptly. Light carbonation, thin body.

22 oz bottle, via FlacoAlto. Pours a clear dark mahogany under a firm and creamy beige head with good retention. Aroma is fruity with some toasted and caramel maltiness, light alcohol, light chocolate malt, and a little bing cherry. Flavor is caramel, chocolate malt, and dark fruits up front with alcohol, bitter hoppiness, and caramel on the finish. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with moderate, fairly soft, carbonation. Texture is fairly creamy. A decent drinkable beer, but I can’t help but think that it’s lacking in direction. One of those beers where you drink 22 ounces and you’re still wondering what style it is. I guess that’s why we have the catch-all of American Strong Ale, but I’d like at least some frame of reference.

Pours with a deep, almost black, amber color that shows a brilliantly clear dark ruby-amber color when held up to the light. The head is frothy, fairly large bubbled, and is an amber tinged tan color. The aroma is malt focused with notes of toffee, sweet caramel and a bit of a fruity sweet raisin note. I can’t quite tell if it is just the maltiness, but there might even be a hint of oxidation here already.

The beer is pretty thick and chewy, I should have guessed from the concentrated malt notes in the aroma. Notes of sweet caramel and toffee are found up front, but quickly a roasted note begins to become noticeable. The roasted note gains a burnt grain astringency as it moves towards the finish. This note in the finish is joined by a solid, astringent hop bitterness. Actually this beer is fairly malty throughout, hoppy notes of citrus and sharp herbal notes. While this beer is pretty enjoyable, and has lots of flavor, I just can’t quite get past the fact that it seems too unbalanced. The sharp, astringent notes from both the hops and the dark grain just don’t jive with the rest of the flavors.

<font size=-4>Purchased: <a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp? Liquors, Tucson, AZ<font size=-1>

Bottle shared with Hogtown Harry and Blankboy, courtesy of Blankboy. Dark brown, lots of red - very small head. Nice aroma - lots of alcohol, chocolate malt, roast, and some baker’s chocolate. Strong alcohol in initial flavour. Lots of roast, some caramel sweetness. And lots of hops come through as well. Full bodied. An excellent beer, very enjoyable.

Bottle shared with HogTownHarry and tupalev -- courtesy of DarkElf. Pours a very dark ruby-brown with an average size mostly lasting tan head. Nice sweet roasty aroma of caramel malt, dark fruit, chocolate and light hops. Flavour initially hits you with lots of hops and alcohol followed by some roastiness, chocolate and caramel malt and finishes with a nice hoppy, slightly alcoholic finish. Medium bodied. A damn good beer!

Bottle (650ml). Shared with blankboy and tupalev, blankboy’s bottle. Poured very dark mahogany with a solid creamy tan lasting head. Decent balance of light resiny hops and slightly lactic toasty malt, chocolate and yeast and fruit, alcohol on warming. Taste - initially big hit of booze and hops, orange juice woody malt takes up the rear, almost grassy bitterness, and a burnt caramel malt finish. Mouthfeel is a bit burnt, decent body, sort of acidic - these guys make solid beer.