Fire Engine Red
John Harvard's Brewery & Ale House

A - this ale arrives a very dark reddish brown color, with a half finger thick tan head, no carbonation is visible

S - aroma is hard to discern through the head, can definitely smell the head and the chocolate, cant smell the caramel that the description claims

T - sweet chocolate taste is up front ant strong, there is a hoppy background, as it warms the caramel flavors come to the surface, very tasty

M - smooth, very nice, coats your mouth nicely

D - highly drinkable, even a macro drinker will love this, very sweet and mildly hoppy, a great balance, a great beer

Pour came to the table a nice deep red color. Very minor head, but see my other John Harvard reviews for a explaination. Some carbonation seen slowly moving in this beer. Very nice lacing.

The aroma is a nice huge blend of malt. There malt blended perfectly with the not so subtle smell of chocolate.

The flavor was a kick in the mouth of malt flavor. It was underscored with the same chocolate that was noted in the aroma. A very nice balance if you are looking for a beer with only very slight hops flavor.

Nicely thick in the mouth. The carbonation helped this beer react on all surfaces of my tongue.

A very nice beer for my non hop loving brethern out there. I would recommend this as a nice after meal beer. Enjoy one today, before I go back there and drink it all.

Had this as part of their ample sampler... quite a nice way of enjoying several of their brews.This beer was a clear red ale, with a low head that had a modest amount of lacing.

The aroma was sweet, with medium malts evident (Pale, Caramunich, Caravienna, and Chocolate were used). Unfortunately, it was rather weak. No hint of the Tettnang hops in this batch.

The taste was slightly sweet, with a lightly roasted flavor. No hops came through in the taste.

Mouthfeel was smooth, but not too chewy.

Overall a pretty good brew.

The beer is a deep mahogany red, topped with a huge off white head. The head is literally standing about an inch above the rim of the pint glass. Excellent clarity, with a couple slowly rising carbonation bubbles. Great head retention, standing about half an inch thick all the way through the pint, leaving tons of clumpy lace rings all the way down.
The aroma is a mellow toasty caramel maltiness, coupled with fairly subdued hops. Very clean, probably a chico yeast or something similar. Mild estery apple, with some tangy floral character. Some herbal hoppiness comes through more as it warms up.
The beer is extremely smooth, with a soft, gentle mouthfeel, medium body and moderate, even carbonation. Toasty malt starts out the sip, with some grainy caramel coming through as it warms up. Rather clean for an ale, with mild estery apple flavor in the middle, coupled with a continuing malt profile. Surprisingly agressive hops come through in the finish, meeting and balancing the pleasant maltiness. An almost spicy hop flavor carries through. Not quite like saaz, I'm betting it's a healthy dose of hallertau or tettnang. Maybe some cascade. A robust herbal flavor in the very end, with a touch of earthiness towards the end of the pint. A lingering mild bitterness with some toasty malt.
The hopping is surprising and fantastic, definitely not what I was expecting from the aroma. Chris Jacques is definitely an asset to the Harvard's chain. His beer keeps me coming back. I'm definitely a fan of this one.