Lucid Duce

Lucid Brewing is from Minnetonka, Minnesota. Their motto is "Clarity in Thinking, Excellence in Drinking." This is a 7.5% ABV imperial red ale that is aged in oak. Duce is Italian for "duke", and it was the moniker for the fascist dictator Mussolini, so it is an odd name for a beer.

The beer pours dark copper and amber in color. There is an inch of thick and somewhat creamy off-white head. The aroma is malt forward, caramel, a touch of dark fruit and tanginess, and lots of vanilla and oak. The taste follows the aromas directly, lots of malt, an oak tree's worth of woody oakiness, and vanilla. It is creamy and medium bodied. The malt is dying to add some sweetness, but the dryness and bitterness of the oak immediately cuts it off. The finish is fairly bitter and dry as a desert. Complex, well constructed, flavorful; well done Lucid!