Dark Toad Dark Ale
Josephs Brau (San Jose, California)
Style: Brown Ale
ABV: 5.3%
My dad picked up a six pack from Trader Joe’s. I was delighted to try Joseph Brau’s (Trader Joe’s brewing front) “Distinctive Dark Ale.”
It pours a consistent, opaque, dark brown with a red tinge. The beer had little to no head.
Dark Toad smelled like coffee, but its scent was not strong. It also had an underlying nuttiness to its smell. At first whiff, I really couldn’t detect much of a scent, but it became more complex as it warmed up.
The beer has a medium mouthfeel. It is slightly carbonated. The ale smells like coffee, but not strongly. It tastes very malty with a medium hoppy finish.
Dark Toad is just a bit too strong-bodied to be sessionable but maybe manlier men can throw down a few. It’s a very interesting flavor that certainly has more to offer than you would expect from a Trader Joe’s beer.
3/4
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