“On February 4th 1852, George Cory set out with his pack horses for his fellow gold miners at Sofala. It should have been an easy two-day journey along flat tracks. Eight days later George arrived completely buggered. He told of how for days he had been chased to hell and back by the legendary ‘Hairyman’. To spare his poor nags it had been necessary to lighten their loads, which for the record consisted of six firkins of fine dark ale, rich in hops. Fortunately, George had managed to bring though almost a whole firkin. His mates were just glad to have their cobber back safe after his ordeal at the hands of that fiendish mongrel.”
Glassware: English pint.
Appearance: Deep cola hue with a short cap over the top. Steady reduction and a spotty lace working its way down the glass.
Aroma: Quite similar to their lager and by that we mean similar in composition. The nose is brimming with nuts, chocolate, coffee, vanilla and caramel/toffee. A hefty malt structure is providing that subtle roast/smoky character at the base. Very basic but executed to perfection.
Flavour: It comes on quite strong actually. An unexpected bitterness quickly lays down for the nutty malts, chocolate, cocoa powder, coffee and caramel. The lingering bitterness takes on some of that roast through the mid as it delivers a bold finish which offers hop bitterness, roasted malts, coffee and nuts in the tail.
Mouth feel: Very slick and velvety but also a touch dry and forthcoming. How they’ve achieved that with only a 4.7% ABV is phenomenal. Good weight. Mild-moderate co2.
Overall: It has been many years but we think the Lord Nelson ‘Old Admiral’ has finally met its match! It has lambasted a long reign at the top of the table when it comes to dark ales but this right here….this would give it a run for its money. Superb.