Nice clean dark malt aroma, nothing overly sweet or “black licorice-esque” like a lot of these can be. Nice even grain flavor with no harshness, with a minor dark malt aftertaste that lingers slightly. Good hop crispness that cleans the palate but stays out of the way. This is from their 2015 seasonal, drank on 12/23/2015, well before the best by date of 05/06/16. Having had this on tap before at the bar, I know these go down really well and you don’t have any idea of the 9% ABV, until you feel your head buzzing a bit.
5 out of 5 Stars.