If you're picking up a few brews for suppin' whilst helping hand out Hallowe'en treats to the (sometimes not so) wee ones this coming Saturday evening, Wychwood's Hobgoblin would be a no-brainer.
This 500ml bottle pours a clear, dark copper amber hue, with two fingers of foamy, frothy, and somewhat bubbly beige head, which leaves some decent layered and webbed lace around the glass as it evenly falls away.
It smells of mildly bready caramel malt, middling, kind of sour dark fruit, a small metallic flintiness, and earthy, leafy noble hops. The taste is lightly biscuity, bready pale and caramel/toffee malt, wet wheat crackers, ethereal dry cocoa notes, a soft raisin and date fruitiness, and more flowery, earthy hops. The carbonation is quite low, manifesting as just a mild edginess throughout, the body generally smooth, and a solid medium weight. It finishes a bit off-dry, some nutty breadiness and pithy earthy hops closing things out.
While the label may be scary here, the beer inside is certainly not – it's more a slightly above average brown ale, and definitely not as hoppy as the packaging would suggest. That said, this is simple, drinkable, and perfectly adequate to go with some of the proceeds (or leftovers), depending on your role in the evening's activities.