Chronomancer
Round Guys Brewing Company

Round Guys Brewing Co. "Chronomancer"
16 fl. oz. can, "CANNED 10/15 21" and sampled on 16 February 2022
$4.49 @ Total Wine & More, Cherry Hill, NJ

Notes via stream of consciousness: The "Chronomancer" has poured a beautiful slightly hazy dark ruby colored body beneath a massive head of yellowed-khaki colored foam. It's dropped just a bit while I've been writing this and I can already see that it'll have great lacing based on what's already left behind. The aroma is malty, bready, sweetish, caramelish, fruity like dark raisins or dried figs, and gently spicy. By this point the head has dropped and there's a bulbous island in the middle of the glass surrounded by a thin sea of foam that then leads up onto shores of lace that become like mountains in the distance. I'm not quite sure how to describe the shape of it... ah, yes, it's like a small pizza with a puffy outer crust and right in the center of the pie it's also puffed up. Quite nice. So good, so far. Let's taste it. The aroma has not led me astray. It's sweetish, fruity with red berries and dark fruit (cherry, black raisin, elderberry), bready, sugary with brown sugar and caramel, but also bitter, earthy, and spicy. Unfortunately there's also a little bit of a metallic note that's less than pleasant, although I will say that after a few sips I've gotten used to it. There's more to the malt than just bread and sugar, and it's as if there's a touch of roastiness to it as well. That could be from a small bit of roasted malt, a little bit of chocolate malt, or even just very dark caramel malt. That edge, even though it's minor, helps to balance it given the amount of sugar and fruitiness it has. I also think the bitterness level is pretty good. It could be on the cusp of becoming just a bit much, or it could just be a harsher rather than smoother bitterness, either way I'd rather have it where it is than on the cusp of becoming sweetish. A little bit of age with smooth that out, but for the most part I don't recommend aging beers. The alcohol is nicely cloaked. It has a presence that's both expected and desirable, and it doesn't go any further than that. In the mouth it's full bodied and gently crisp with a fine-bubbled, seemingly natural carbonation. I'm quite happy with that, but there's also a little bit of astringency to it. I'm not sure that other people will pick up on that but I do. Going back to the lacing, it's not as good as I'd expected it to be initially but I do have some thin, solid mountains of lacing rising, and some other areas with beautiful splashes and spots that look like waves crashing down upon rocks. In the end this is a decent enough beer, and a very good take on the style, it just suffers from some minor stumbling blocks.
Review #7,787

 

Very nice quad that can compete with many others. Maybe it’s been done already but I’d love to see this barrel-aged in bourbon or whiskey barrels.

 

750 ml corked and caged bottle - marked Batch #1, bottle 7 of 36 "Force Carbonated". Dated 19 December 2016.

Dark brown in color, but clear. Thin white head. Aroma of caramel, raisin, fresh bread. Taste is a bit hot and boozy, with similar flavors. Just a bit too harsh for a 10% beer. Body is thin, carbonation feels fizzy, mouthfeel could be better.

Overall, a bit disappointing based on the quality I typically expect from Round Guys. Locally, Sly Fox's Ichor is closer to the quality of the Trappist made beers of this style.