First sip is not what I would expect from a red ale. It is very malt-heavy with sweetness and grains mixed with nuts, wine, oak, and a bunch of other flavors that take the sweetness into a kind of dry bitterness that is likely the hops. It's freaking complicated, which is unlike most reds, so let's sort it out with a swig.
Tip-in is light carbonation tingle with sweet malt, wood, grain, and a kind of... what the hell is it? Sorghum? It's a very odd integrated taste. The middle is smooth and has a clear flavor of caramel, grain, and toffee. The middle is quite good... and then the finish comes. The finish is a mess of tart, bitter, sweet, nuts, oak, sorghum, toffee, and some other things I can't comb out. It's really not a nice taste to end with.
Bottom Line: Red ales are supposed to be mild enough to not be offensive even when you are a little off. This is more than a little.
1.5/5