Full Rut Imperial Red
Buck Hill Brewery and Restaurant

DATE: JULY 21, 2018... OCCASION: watching Casablanca with Shan for her first time... GLASSWARE: Affligem chalice... pours a reddish brown amber body, thin on its off-white head, with little activity to be seen in its murkiness... intimidating! First aroma is rye, prune, pomegranate, candied sugars, orange peel... a nostril full of intense weight... first sip is heavy, warm, and boozy... presents like an old-fashioned, with the orange peel implied... buttery, smooth, agreeable, lasting, powerful, and the kind of cordial that sees one into the wee hours... a bourbonlike quality pervades the experience, slowing the roll but holding steady... the toasted malts bed a stinging sweetness, while honey, jasmine, lilac and caramel engage the tastebuds most appreciably... hard fruits like apple and pear are present too... this one fulfills the hope I had when I first heard Buck Hill was small batch brewing... punchy, effectively weighted at nearly 10% ABV, and dry at the finish, it makes a great dessertif, though a grunt may be much for its heft... it also is priced WAY to cheaply for such a wallop....