William's Wonder
Parker's Hilltop Brewery

32 ounce crowler into snifter, filled on 3/17/2019. Pours fairly crustal clear dark ruby red/brown color with a 1-2 finger dense and rocky light khaki head with fantastic retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lasts. Thick soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Fantastic appearance. Aromas of big caramel, brown sugar, toffee, dark/brown bread dough/crust, toasted biscuit, roasted nuts, chocolate, cocoa, and coffee; with lighter notes of molasses, licorice, raisin, plum, prune, fig, date, cherry, currant, apricot, red apple, red grape, wood smoke, char, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, pine, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/roast/bready malts and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop notes; with great strength. Taste of huge caramel, brown sugar, toffee, dark/brown bread dough/crust, toasted biscuit, roasted nuts, chocolate, cocoa, and coffee; with lighter notes of molasses, licorice, raisin, plum, prune, fig, date, cherry, currant, apricot, red apple, red grape, wood smoke, char, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, pine, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness. Light-moderate pine, herbal, floral, woody, grassy, peppery hops; and roast/char bitterness on the finish. Lingering notes of caramel, brown sugar, toffee, dark/brown bread dough/crust, toasted biscuit, roasted nuts, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, molasses, licorice, dark fruit, cherry, currant, apricot, red apple, red grape, wood smoke, char, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, pine, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Awesome complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malts and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; with an awesome roast/hop malt/bitterness balance; and no cloying, acrid, astringent flavors after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering hop/char bitterness. Medium carbonation and fairly full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/bready/grainy, and fairly sticky/chalky mouthfeel that is great. Mild increasing warmth of 9% After the finish. Overall this is an awesome old ale. All around great complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malts and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to drink for the big ABV, with the mellowly bitter/drying finish. Very clean/rich English malt complexity, balancing earthy English hops, and restrained English yeast fruitiness. Not overly sweet/heavy from lingering dryness. A really enjoyable offering, and impressive style example. A bit more roasty than expected, but still very well made.

a very well done american made take on a style i dont think we see nearly enough of. it has a deep chestnut color, lazy but lasting half inch of off white head, and a ton of malt depth to it. lots and lots of character to this, english ale yeast beneath layers of raisin, toffee, molasses, dry cocoa, fig, plantain, black tea, root beer, caramel, and tobacco, all from the grain, not overly sweet, and not as old in the traditional sense of old ale, it doesnt have a yeast maturity, a tang, or any oxidation, but it does seem patiently fermented and rather complete as they go, very well built. the body is light to me for all the flavors, which is both good and bad. good because it adds to drinkability, but bad because some of these flavors need more structural support than is provided, and it moves a little too fast without it, not quite fully appreciable in all its complexity because of it. good carbonation though for the style, a well hidden alcohol strength, and a pleasant warming nutty autumnal vibe. overall delicious after dinner conversational brew, mellow and enjoyable as a sipper.