Proud brewers of fine Scarecrow Ale and Fiddler’s Elbow return with cordial copper-hazed orange-highlighted pale ale. Buttery caramelized malts confirm bread-y yeast nose as lemony candied sweetness and soured citrus twang backup encrusted grain smear to crystalline water finish for light-bodied elegance.

Crisp light ale with “100% Fuggles hops”” contains floating insert to preserve flavor, but lacks distinct English grain-malt character and creamy resilience, hurting chance to deliver knockout punch. Disappointingly un-Special, though pint can features snazzy elephant insignia.

Creamy prune-hued alcohol-battered dark ale perks fig-raisin-fruitcake emphasis with nutty caramel cluster and sugary toffee tinge as peach-pear confluence ascends. Earthy bottom deepens hard water texture.

Superior 9.3% alcohol-soaked strong ale merges sweet whiskey frontage and dry Scotch waft with heavily creamy malt concentration, picking up sturdy bourbon, burgundy, and chocolate liqueur illusions as well as subsidiary bruised orange-cherry feistiness. Sinewy floral yeast thickens tertiary banana-marshmallow hint and brown sugared anise slip. Heady slow sipping digestif conveys irrefutable character and strength.

Easy drinkin’ brown-bodied fleshy-headed Belgian strong ale lacks advertised anise-coriander seasoning. Instead, heady burgundy-bourbon warmth permeates brown-sugared spiced chocolate drift and awakened prune-raisin-beet sift. Sharply carbolic floral hops tamed by mineral watered smoothing.

An ‘aggressive beer’ indeed. Sticky molasses malts preside over up-front floral hop insistence, earthy grain thrust, and juicy tangerine stint for surefire opening salvo to brilliant rosy amber ale. Bittersweet dark chocolate overtones fade in and out, providing wonderful conduit ambushing lingering medicinal quilt. Fully formed red fruited finish shows off sundry character – each ingredient complementing the next with curious precision. For an added treat, 22-ounce bottles’ hilarious label brags about being ‘an honest microbrewery’ while deriding major corporate sludge. On tap, highly-hopped alcohol-laden malts convey full spectrum of pear-apricot-apple-cherry sweetness.

Agile moderate-bodied ‘Special London Ale’ with chameleon-like characteristics. Initial burgundy flow, roasted barley punctuation, and malt creaminess give way to black cherry fruitiness. Then, sweet yeast finish kicks in, underscored by bitter-hopped caramel nuttiness perfect for after dinner splurge.

Ambitious white-foamed pale-toned double-fermented dessert fodder. Lively champagne effervescence, ample cider tartness, tingly cherry mint julep motif, acetous fruity wine graze, clove-hopped spicing and floral dusting integrated perfectly. Concentrated yeast immediacy adds spunk to turbidly dry quince finish. Mellow crystal malting lightens the mood.

Dry prune-hued 8% alcohol ‘Grand Cru of the Emperor’ opens with cork-y plum-prune thicket. Smooth aging allows alcohol to dissolve nicely into sweet Cordial warmth as honeyed yeast sediment subsides. Carbonation flattens a tad, but dusty allspice-nutmeg seasoning integrates holiday splendor with moist basement dankness and expressive grape tannin tenure.

At 7.5% alcohol range, this fine spiced-up raisin-kissed barleywine-styled elixir serenades syrupy Scotch malt sweetness with buttery port nuances to sticky medicinal finish.

Brewed since 1654, this full-bodied strong ale has a certain grain-malt thickness, honey nut lucidity, and complacent chocolate quip. Spicy hops preserve hearty caramel-cocoa finish, remaining uncommonly consistent from head to body.

Over-inflated connoisseur’s version of award-winning Sawtooth Ale, ‘designed to befuddle silly generalizations about life’ lacks depth. Rich bronze-bodied strong ale counters sweet brown chocolate, butterscotch, and toffee parch with piney hop bittering as well as hastened walnut-hazelnut-chestnut waver. But toasted almond reticence casts astringent shadow.