Ravell
Magic Hat Brewing Company

RavellRavell
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From:
Magic Hat Brewing Company
 
Vermont, United States
Style:
American Porter
ABV:
5.8%
Score:
83
Avg:
3.66 | pDev: 15.3%
Reviews:
148
Ratings:
283
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jun 06, 2015
Added:
Mar 06, 2002
Wants:
  8
Gots:
  16
An enormous play in one significant act, Ravell is a porter brewed with whole vanilla beans, once available whenever young William and father John deem it so.

28 IBU
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Jadjunk:
Photo of Jadjunk
Reviewed by Jadjunk from Georgia

3.33/5  rDev -9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25
Magic Hat's Ravell is brewed in the style of an American Porter with vanilla. Previously available during the fall/winter season, this beer last appeared in the Winterland 2011 Variety pack. I missed the pack but was fortunate to find a single bottle of this in an Athens Bottle Shop.

Poured from a 12 oz. bottle to a pint glass. Served upwards of 55º Fahrenheit.

(Appearance) Pours a frothy light creamy brown head. Retention is below average as the head settles out rather quickly to a light surface cover. Body color is a dark brown with deep ruby highlights. Less than pleasing head quality and a lack of lacing doesn't make for an impressive appearance. 3

(Smell) Chocolate cake, very roasty, sweet and robust in delivery. Light icing profile, a touch of cream with faint vanilla bean profile. Touches of alcohol are here and there. Very low hop profile and faint bitterness. Overall, its a simple, chocolate heavy scent but with a warming aroma. Balance is heavily sweet but may tone down by the flavor. 3.75

(Taste) Thinner texture, much less emphasis on chocolate than in the aroma. Tart, mildly bitter black patent malt, dry cocoa powder, and heavily roasted malts with a faint vanilla note in the midsection and increasingly prevalent smoke presence growing on the finish. Sweetness is not as intense as in the nose, but the finish is notably burnt wood and even a touch of cardboard, perhaps a bit strikingly intense. Overall I found that the vanilla didn't have as much of a presence as I had hoped and that the flavor was notably more bitter and even a touch out of balance. The finish, while unique, dominated the majority of this beer and was lasting on the finish. 3.25

(Mouthfeel) Low carbonation presence with a mild creaminess. Finishes dry and chalky. Body is medium amongst porters and heavy amongst all beers. alcohol presence is mild. The creamy carbonation would have better worked with a heavier body and a sweeter flavor. 3

(Overall) I hoped that the beer would have tasted similar to the way it smelled; a chocolate cake with vanilla cream icing would have made for a enjoyable dessert beer. The flavor was significantly different, with possible oxidation, a dry flavor profile and a pretty intense lack of balance, less malt than anticipated. While I don't mind a good puff of smoke on the finish, it seemed overly intense when compared to the pale malt profile of the beer. Vanilla was also faint but added a bit of welcome complexity, complimenting the smoked finish. I'd recommend getting a small quantity of this beer at a younger age, but many of the flavor characteristics, minus some oxidation should still be present. 3.25

Magic Hat Brewing Company's
Ravell
3.31/5.00
Jan 12, 2013
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Ravell from Magic Hat Brewing Company
Beer rating: 83 out of 100 with 283 ratings