The Carrot Conspiracy
Jailbreak Brewing Company

A thanks to the commander of the canquest, woodychandler, for this beer. Poured from a 12 oz. can. Has a very hazy, brown/orange color with a 1/2 inch head. Smell is of vanilla, spices. Taste is spices, vanilla, light notes of carrots and alcohol. Feels medium/full bodied in the mouth and overall is a unique and pretty good beer.

As I CANtinue with New DELMARVA (+ DC) Beer Sunday (Week 774), I scored this one while visiting my aunt & uncle at one point. I have a knack for sniffing out CANned beers, no matter where I go. The CANQuest (tm) is an awesome thing!

From the CAN: "Amber Ale brewed with Carrots, Raisins, Lactose and Spices, with Vanilla Beans added".

Before I beCAN this review, I pulled out my CANlection of Flaming Carrot Comics to refresh myself on some of the most surrealist artwork this side of Dali. Having satiated my CANiosity, I was ready to Crack! open the vent & do battle! My slow, gentle C-Line Glug still managed to infuriate the Carrot & he foamed forth mightily in response. I finally got him settled down, just under two fingers into his eyes later. His head retention was amazing & we simply gazed at one CANother, sizing the other up. I have no idea what he saw, but I was looking at Deep-Amber/Light-Copper to Copper (SRM = > 13, < 17) with NE-quality clarity. Nose was an odd amalgam of root vegetables, spices & raisins. Do NOT assume that I simply looked at the label & transcribed this! It smelled intensely/immensely of carrot soup with its inherent spices, but the raisins were equally pungent. I would love to cook for others again & make carrot soup as an appetizer. Mmm. Mouthfeel was medium-to-full, not quite creamy, but certainly big & solid in the mouth & on the tongue. Mmm. The taste was principally carrots - shaved, julienned, grated - the essence of carrots, along with a peppery spiciness, like mace (?!?) or clove as well as that same raisin-y fruitiness. This was apparently made in response to the pumpkin beer craze & I CAN totally dig it. This finished really dry, especially due to the inclusion of spices. Phew. Well done! YMMV.

 

 

Can. Murky, rusty orange body with a spotty, off-white head. Sweet, malty, fruity aroma. Pumpkin-like character. Low carbonation with medium-high sweetness. Ok in small doses. Not something I feel compelled to try again.

Got in a BIF from oline73. 12 ounce can into tulip glass, canned on 8/12/2016. Pours slightly hazy deep reddish copper color with a 2 finger dense and rocky light khaki head with good retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lasts. Nice dense soapy lacing clings around the glass. Fantastic appearance. Aromas of caramel, brown sugar, brown bread, carrot, raisin, vanilla, cream, toasted biscuit, cinnamon, nutmeg, light toffee/roast, and herbal/toasted earthiness. Nice and pleasant aromas with good balance and complexity of dark/bready malt and fruit/spice notes; with solid strength. Taste of big caramel, brown sugar, brown bread, carrot, raisin, vanilla, cream, toasted biscuit, cinnamon, nutmeg, light toffee/roast, and herbal/toasted earthiness. Moderate herbal/spice bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of caramel, brown sugar, brown bread, carrot, raisin, vanilla, cream, toasted biscuit, cinnamon, nutmeg, and herbal/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Nice complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malt and fruit/spice flavors; with a good malt/bitterness balance, and some light lingering bitter spice astringency near the end of the glass. Light dryness from bitter spiciness, lightly increasing through the glass. Light-medium carbonation and medium-full body; with a very smooth, creamy/bready, and moderately sticky mouthfeel that is good. Alcohol is very well hidden with minimal warmth lingering after the finish. Overall this is a nice and unique spiced amber ale. All around good complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malt and fruit/spice flavors; very smooth and easy to drink, despite the lingering spice astringency. A nicely enjoyable offering.

 

 

 

What a great beer - made with all carrot sugars for a very distinctive but not over powering taste. I have found this to be a favorite for all palates.

Pours a dark, slightly murky copper color. The head is three fingers high and almost light orange in shade. It features a very soft, thick texture, as well as excellent duration. Plenty of lacing sticks to the glass.

This has a very earthy aroma - even better, I actually pick up a little bit of carrot. Cinnamon and nutmeg show up assertively, as do large amounts of crystal malt. Disappointment sprouts when the advertised lactose, raisin, and vanilla notes fail to show up - and that means this offering doesn't have particularly good balance between its notes. And ultimately, the nose simply doesn't accomplish as much as was expected.

Large amounts of spicing wash over the palate immediately - too much, in fact. Crystal malts and (surprisingly) carrot line the middle. It finishes with a light amount of vanilla, and a fairly assertive bitterness. The sweeter elements are present, but overwhelmed by the crystal malt and spices. And the carrot. Carrot cake works because a carrot's earthiness is subtle, and plays well with the frosting and spices. Here, it's almost all spice and carrot, leaving an imbalanced and messy product.

It feels quite substantial over the palate, which isn't a great pairing with the moderate bitterness. Put it like this: it feels sweet, but doesn't taste sweet. Carbonation is medium-low, and the bubbles themselves are fairly small. This is a slow sipper in general.

Something like this is a great way to pop the balloon of mediocrity that are pumpkin beers. But it's just not sweet enough to counterbalance the spicy and earthy qualities, leaving this as over-spiced as the glut of underwhelming pumpkin beers. I'm glad I only picked up a single, because this isn't very good.

2.8/5: No conspiracy here - it's a cool idea with flawed execution

 

 

The bizarre name and artwork drew me in, even as I was put off by the price. Also, it's now apparently "The Carrot Conspiracy," with the cake omitted. Also, the bottom of the can is marked "Smashing Pumpkins," along with an expiration date, so I guess they keep editing the name.

Pours very nice. Rusty amber with a billowing, white head that sticks around the entirety of the pint.

Smells earthy and malty with just a hint of pumpkin pie spice. After last year's ascension of excessively sweet pumpkin beers, this is a breath of fresh air. Though, thankfully, it's not too spice free, a la Ship Yard, as those tend to be very uninteresting.

Tastes... perplexing. Defnitely more of a spiced ale than a pumpkin, but also not unlike a pumpkin. Very malt heavy, essentially a British pale all the way through with lots of biscuit and toffee, but then a firm finish of nutmeg and cinnamon. Not what I would associate with carrot cake, but that's because the main flavor of carrot cake is the frosting.

At any rate, this is a unique, flavorful beer that is very well balanced in spite of its complexity. Perhaps a sleeper hit of the autumn. If it cost 10 bucks a 6 pack, instead of its current mark of 10 for a four-pack, I'd probably buy a lot of it.

 

 

 

 

Had at the Jailbreak Brewery taproom.

This is a deep amber/orange beer, very clear. The smell is light and inviting. This tastes, to my pleasant surprise, a lot less spicy than I had anticipated. It's subtle and sweet and far from overpoweringly autumn-y or wintery. I like the idea of using carrots instead of pumpkin for a fall beer. The feel is good, not too heavy and not too light. Overall I think this is a great beer for fall and if I ever drive up to Laurel again this is what I'll get.