This little guy has been sat in the back of my fridge for a while, and rather than crack into my newer ones I thought I’d dust it off. It came from the MBT 52WBC, and the label says it is “Inspired by the Red Planet, has a warm red glow and a smooth malty flavour”. They brewed it for the Beagle 2 launch (cool!) and contains Dark Crystal and Progress hops with a hint of roast barley.
Mars Magic (4.6%) opens with a gentle hiss and pours ruby with a dense off-white head. There’s an interesting toffee-apple aroma, I should have had this on bonfire night! Fruity and caramelly. Taking a sip, theres a very slick silky mouthfeel and a real toffee explosion – dried fruit, caramel, theres little hops on the flavour, but plenty in the aftertaste. The aftertaste lingers a while, its astringent and broad – a pleasant counterbalance.
Letting it warm, the aroma becomes more roasted, and it carries through to the flavour. Not so sweet now, more balance to it, there is a very interesting candied quality to the toffee, I guess that must be the dark crystal and roast barley mixing together. Very nice.
This like many is a much tastier beer when let to warm up a little. Very nice!
Rating: 4/5 (when warmed up, it would only be a 3 from the fridge despite its lovely aroma!)