The Road Goes Ever On
The Bruery

 

a real clever botanical red ale here from these guys, done with elderflower, heather tips, and dandelion root, a lovely early fall drink, distinctive with the additions, solid as a base beer, and another fun one in here, a little more drinkable than all the monsters i usually get into when i visit the idaho location. deep brick red to even chestnut colored brew, with a modest off white head from the tap that settles out after a few minutes, just a little lighter on carbonation than it could be. the nose on this is lovely, light for its color, the elderflower really lifts it, pollen and blooms at first, sweet caramelized malt, and with the heather seems to almost have a scottish ale vibe in the middle, the dandelion root adds an almost roasted chicory sort of bitterness and earthy soil-like property to the back end, a light yeast note, almond nuttiness, a hint of maple, wildly interesting, faint astringency as it warms maybe. the flavor is just a bit compact compared to the winding expansive aroma, but it does the same thing, floral first, but i do taste the elderflower all the way through this, probably the most robust of the extras in here, and sort of effortlessly floating above the richer malt. the dandelion is late, adds nice round bitterness after the sweeter middle, heather is in support but also apparent, this seems fresh to me, almost healthy, tea-like, deeply interesting, and i love it being in a red base like this, a sturdy one at that. subtle bergamot, lavender, and chamomile character to this as well, botanical and fresh in a way red ales almost never are, even the hoppy ones. some body here, not a ton of carbonation, but nice flow anyway, and this is a memorable one. i just love beer like this, that incorporates these sorts of elements, the dandelion root is awesome, and the beat goes on for the bruery, so glad to have them in idaho now!