Magic Hat Batch 372

Aroma: 5 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 6

Well, my "hat" is off to Magic Hat for mixing things up, and for introducing the "Rave Or Grave" mystery beer angle -- a bit of mystery does tend to mix things up a bit...., for even for Magic Hat who's beers are routinely hard to categorize, label-wise.

But when I grabbed this during the yearly mixed six pack gift exchange at the Form On The Brain (homebrew club) Holiday Party, I was kinda hoping for something a bit more interesting than this. I'm normally not wholly opposed to Scottish-style ales per se, but they need to be done well to wow me.

This doesn't wow me.

Didn't help that this poured in a rather over-carbonated manner, with a huge head of foam, that quickly disappeared -- but remained overly fizzy in the mouthfeel. With no head on top, but lots of bubbles rushing to the surface, this reminded me (in appearance, nothing more) of a glass of Dr. Pepper in my pint glass.

At least things seem to pick up a bit in the flavor department. Enough semi-complex malts to give this some basic character. Semi-sweet/malty in the flavor profile, with more-or-less enough hops to give some balance to the whole affair.

[Quick comparison here: this is better than 3F's Robert The Bruce in a bottle, and about the same as Robert The Bruce off the tap]

But really? The mouthfeel on this guy -- fizzy/filling from the carbonation, with lingering sweetness -- doesn't lend itself very much to what I would call a nicely quaffable beer. As other reviewers have said, this is definitely an "one-and-out" beer for me.

Not bad, by any means, but just rubs me the wrong way. Finishable, but not something that I would ever think about getting again, should it cross my path...

Music: Nightwish's "Century Child"
//TB

Aroma: 4 | Appearance: 5 | Mouthfeel: 3 | Flavor: 5 | Overall: 5

Part of KCC Rnd 4. Great idea--brew up a mystery beer and see how it sells before you even name it. Reddish-brown, with 0 lace and 0 foam. Smells like cherry coke and some kind of flowery spice. Taste is like flat coke with a decidedly peppery finish. Mouthfeel is flat, thin, and watery. Every attempt is not destined for superstardom. Keep or send to the deep? This one's a goner.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

Poured a dark brown color with the typical mahoganey edges and a nice initial head. The head subsided and provided ok lacing. The aroma was smokey, rich in malts, with somewhat of an off smell (couldn't place it). Flavor was comparable to the aroma with a rather thin mouthfeel and somewhat of a charred wood flavor. I'm unmoved by this, definitely not impressed, but not disturbed by it. Within style, much better out there.