“Gramarye is the practice of learning magic. For thousands of years, people have used a grimoire (book of magic) to cast spells and summon spirits. Of course, magic fell out of favor over the centuries, the same as brewing with rye. Interest in magic seems to be on the upswing these days and so is the interest in brewing with rye. A coincidence? This is our take on a session pale ale made with a dose of rye malt to give it that luscious feel and snappy finish. We think it is magical.”
Served in a shaker glass the deep copper red pour produces a thick one and a half finger off-white head that swells but disappears quite quickly. Standard lacing. The spicy rye malt does play the feature role in the aroma, leading from the front with wafts of black pepper and sharp pine. Backing it up are mild floral hints of citrus and dark fruits with a really subtle touch of toast and cedar wood. Quite a thin mouth feel though, low carbonation and moderate body makes the flavour of this ale quite dull. Bready malts and a delicate hop bitterness upfront makes way for a soft spicy mid-palate. A touch of rye and a mild return of hop dryness in the finish rounds off a pretty pedestrian beer in the end. Disappointing. On the brighter side, it’s only 4.4% ABV and very sessional. But other than that, an unusually subdued beer from this normally top notch American brewery.