The nose is all roasted grain: hazelnut and cocoa lead, with wholemeal bread underneath and a soft coffee note. That character carries right through on the palate. Raisin and dried fruit add some quiet sweetness without tipping it into pudding territory, and the finish is dry and earthy with a long malt presence. The carbonation is smooth and gentle, much closer to a cask pour than most AF beers manage. Samuel Smith still ferments in stone Yorkshire squares, a method almost entirely abandoned by British brewing. Whether that makes a measurable difference in this particular beer is debatable, but it's part of why this brewery moves at its own pace. Brown ales are thinly represented in the AF category. This is a solid example of the style.