Colonel John Hamilton Gray Brown Ale
Prince Edward Island Brewing Company

 

A murky dark reddish brown colour. One inch of foamy creamy beige bubbles. Some fine carbonation.
Good lacing with excellent retention.

A nice aroma of sugar candy, brown sugar and cognac.

A nutty dark malt taste predominates with the taste of brown sugar is under it. Grassy, floral bitter
aftertaste. An overall steely taste.

Medium and dry feel. This ale needs more carbonation.

A very good brown ale. Closer to the standards of this style than others that I have tried.

Bottle 3 of the sampler pack from Gahan. Under $4 CDN for the 500 ml bottle. Served well chilled into a pint glass.

Appearance - chestnut and mahogany in color, capped by just less than a finger of off-white head. Not hazy but sufficiently dark, to not be able to see the carbonation patterns. Gives the appearance of a suitably serious English ale. Nice retention time despite the lack of lacing.

Smell - nuts and a bit of leather dominate up front, some grainy malt and a vaguely sweet butterscotch come through. Enticing.

Taste - moderate bitterness, with a coffee, mild chocolate and leather conclusion. Some nuttiness throughout with a slightly wild floral taste throughout. A well crafted English ale to be sure that is full of flavor and seems to enhance the aromas after a couple of sips, even more so than most beer. Roasty throughout as well.

Mouthfeel - mild, a bit decadent with moderate carbonation, and moderate feel. Medium body as well, that seems a bit lighter than the flavor profiles would otherwise indicate.

Overall - a seriously well crafted English ale, that is full of flavor and provides a great aroma, with being just easy going enough to be downright quaffable if you're in the mood. Wish I had access to this particular one in singles format, since the four pack is good but not brilliant so far, but this is definitely a beer I would reach for again.

Malts, nuts, and sweetness. Nose is malts and a whiff of alcohol. Looks like coffee with a moderate head that ends up as a short cap, lots of lace, so looks good. Medium bodied. Well-made, best of the sampler pack so far.

 

 

 

 

 

500 mL bottle from a sampler picked up at the LCBO; bottled Mar. 17 2014 and served slightly chilled. It's great to finally see some beer from Canada's smallest province becoming easily available in Canada's most populous.

Pours a beautiful copper-mahogany hue; technically clear, but a little too dark to make much out through the glass. Two fingers of creamy, resilient off-white head sits atop, gradually dissipating into a denser, more manageable cap and collar. Lots of lace too; this is just a beautiful dark ale all around. The aroma falls on the sweet side, with notes of chocolate, toasted malts, hazelnut and butterscotch.

This is a nice, approachable brown ale that drinks smoothly. Malts command most of my palate's attention, especially at the start of the sip - with toffee, toasted malts and a hint of nuts coming at you initially. Milk chocolate and caramelized sugar soon join in, with a bittersweet finish that combines roasty dryness with the aforementioned caramel. Medium-bodied, with light carbonation that gives this one a velvety-smooth mouthfeel that suits the flavour profile perfectly. It's been a while since I've had a good English pub-style session ale, so this one is really hitting the spot.

Final Grade: 3.71, a B grade. Colonel John Hamilton Gray Brown Ale is a solid, highly quaffable brown that should come off as agreeable to most English 'real ale' fans. A little too sweet for my tastes, but in the end this is still a fine brew that I'd happily drink again, and likely select over several OCB browns. A good start to this Gahan House sampler, which looks to be a worthwhile pick-up so far.