When I bought this, I asked Brian if he’d ever had anything from King Brewing
in Pontiac Michigan. He said he had, and he didn’t think it was anything to write home about. He didn’t say anything bad, just that he wasn’t supremely impressed with what he’d had.

I was kind of bummed, but I like supporting Michigan beer, so I was determined to not let Brian’s opinion effect my own at all.

I’m really glad I bought this beer.

To start, it has a fairly dark brown color, with just a bit of red in it. It pours with quite a bit of head. Like, a lot. And apparently, I’m not the only one who says so. But that’s okay with me, just have to let it settle.

Once it did (and I finally got the rest of the bottle in the glass), I was pretty pleased. The aroma isn’t anything amazing, but pleasant. One of the reviews on RateBeer.com describes the aroma as “musty”, which isn’t totally inaccurate (maybe that’s why they call it an OLD ale. I’m hilarious!). I’m not sure of its alcohol content (not on the label), but you can smell a bit of that too.

The flavor is also nothing revolutionary, but solid. A nice mouthfeel with a bit of malt weight to it. There is a nice roast flavor to it - almost like the time Brian and I burned a homebrew IPA, except not as bad.

The aftertaste is good. Hops and malt are both there, but not the sticky, sweet malt you get sometimes with some beers.

I would totally go for this again sometime when I wanted something a bit on the dark side, but not a stout or a porter. Not worth over $2 a bottle to drink regularly, but it’ll find its way into a mixed six pack of mine again.

5/10

Ian!