Suddabys Auld Bob
Hambleton Ales

Contract-brewed for the Suddaby's Ltd.(The Crown Hotel). Coming in a long-neck 500ml brown bottle, BB 08/2006, served cool in a straight imperial-pint glass.

A: deeply dark reddish brown colour with ruby hues, a tan head comes thick and slowly dissipates;
S: smoked woodchips buttressed by a complex and profound aroma consisting of treacles/caramelised brown sugar, rum-soaked cherries, apple-peel, dark plum jam, creamy toffee, and a strong scent of licorice+cinnamon stick... The overall nose is thickly malty and aromatic fruity, but not OTT. Very solid, very colourful indeed.
T&M: semi-smoked flavour of dark/crystal malts with bitter-sweet dark fruits (dried longan-fruits) hit the palate upfront, followed by coffee-flavoured toffee, licorice-tea, plum-preserve, and woody taste... slowly giving way to a superbly-lingering herbal bitter and lightly-roasted nutty finish. Soothing, silky smooth, and full-bodied throughout the drink.
D: this strong ale retains a complex and colourful flavour like an old ale+porter, and a texture as moderate as a premium bitter. An utterly enjoyable, fullsome ale. Highly recommended!