Love of the Damned - Port Grape Must (Ghost 429)
Adroit Theory Brewing Company

 

 

L: Poured from a bottle to a pint glass. Had an amber color and a very thick, cloudy consistency. There was a two inch, creamy, fairly long-lasting head. Average lacing.

S: A decent aroma of malt, dark fruit, a vinous quality, and vanilla.

T: Tasted of some dark fruits (figs, and raisins, in particular), a bit of the grape / wine element, a lot of malt, a tinge of vanilla, and light caramel notes. If there's an overall problem with this flavor, it's that it's overly mild; none of the ingredients seem strong enough. It's possible I got an old bottle, in which case I blame the vendor.

F: A fair amount of carbonation with a smooth finish. Medium-bodied.

O: This is an uneven beer in some respects. Nonetheless, it's oddly drinkable.

Purchased at Wegmans in Northern VA. Poured from bomber into tulip glass.

L: Dark musky amber with thick head that lasts most of the glass. Light creamy lacing also dissipates quickly.
S: Tamed fruit, malty grape and raisin aroma. Musty port wine apparent.
T: Port wine and malt forward, mild sweetness balanced with mild bitterness, raisins and black currant finish. Mildly acidic, almost no alcohol bite for 9.6% ABV!
F: Light creaminess, smooth, dampness lingers on the tongue. Mouthfeel the most significant element of this beer for me. Definitely delivers on the "Old Ale" characteristics.

Overall, I enjoyed this beer more than I thought I would. It took 2/3 of the glass to really break down the old ale characteristics and begin to enjoy them. I'm not terribly familiar with the style but expected it to be a mix of a barleywine and imperial stout, and found it to be neither. Took some getting used to, but ultimately a well executed, enjoyable brew. I'd imagine it'd pair nicely with several lighter meat dishes like ribs or wings.

Too sour for an old ale.

 

 

The beer pours a nice cream colored and creamy head that takes a while to dissipate and has a rather interesting longevity to it. The beer itself is a nice and very appealing dark ruby color.

The smell is nice. It has a good strong dark fruit malt note to it with some light sweet port note to it. There is also a light toffee note.

The taste is pretty good with a dark fruity note resembling dates as well as a bit of toffee there to give a bit of a smoky note to it. The port is there but fairly light and only adds a touch of sweetness. The malt gives off a nice caramel note with a slight tartness that is easily missed.

The feel is good. It's a heavy bodied beer but drinks fairly easy with a smooth texture and only slightly tingling carbonation.

 

 

Poured from a bomber into a snifter, the beer is a dark, vibrant, toffee coloring, with a sparse surface coat of off-white head. Aromas of rich toffee and caramel sweetness, rich stone fruits, vanilla, subtle dry wine characters and earthy highlights. Flavors are tart and richly sweet forward, with the red wine dry and tart hitting first, ahead of the blend of toffee, caramel, date, fig, apple, and vanilla. Very rich and sweet characteristics, providing a robust and cloying profile. The body is big, bold, and slick, with a richly sweet and earthy aftertaste. The finish is slick and cloying, with a solid sweet linger. Interesting brew.