Brewmaster's Choice Brown Ale
Roughneck Brewing

 

From notes...
A - Deep mahogany brown, clear, short head dissipated to thin cover
S - Rich buttery caramel, mild coffee, woody aroma, slight leafiness
T - Nutty and lighter caramel malt, leafy hop compliment, light smoky cedar finish
M - Creamy smooth, moving to light dry finish
O - a flavourful and very easy drinking brew, I look forward to more from this upstart brewer

A - Pours a dark ruby red colour, finger of beige head with little retention and no real lacing.

S - Some nice burnt sugar and caramel notes, molasses and coffee grind undertones.

T - The coffee malts come through nicely, a bit of a caramel Coca-Cola finish lingers alongside subtle molasses and bitter leafy hops.

M - Comes across a bit overly carbonated and goes down a little prickly. The finish is nice and wet.

O - Overall a full flavoured brown ale with some nice dark malt flavours, though the mouthfeel was a bit of a turnoff. A pleasant offering nonetheless and am definitely glad I was able to test it out. Would be another easy go-to local offering, assuming it were available. I would suspect it could be super tasty on tap!

Bottle in trade. Decent aroma, mid-brown colour. Thin, little taste. Should not be a cask beer. Would try again fresh on tap.New brewery, I will consider changing this review in the spring when I am there, or if I somehow get to try it elsewhere changing my opinion.

One of two new offerings in Roughneck's recent re-tooling as a craft-minded brewery, the other being their English IPA.

This beer pours a clear, dark ruby brown colour, with two fingers of tight creamy pale beige head, which leaves a very low horizon of painted lace around the glass as it recedes. It smells of sweet bready/biscuity/caramel malt, almost nougaty, and strongly floral, earthy hops. The taste is very lightly roasted bready malt, a bit of oily nuttiness, and leafy, almost citrusy hops. The carbonation is on the soft side, the body a solid medium weight, smooth, and a wee bit creamy. It finishes fairly dry, and clean, the malt fading away faster than the drying hops.

For a style that usually leaves me with the blahs, I can't help but be effusive about this particular incarnation, and it's made practically in my back yard. Well balanced, tasty, and easy to drink - perfect for covering a wide swath of beer drinking preferences at imminent X-Mas parties, methinks...