Short's The Magician
A rich lustrous dark red London ale. Rich malt complexities lending notes of toasted caramel, raisins, toffee, and slight roast chocolate. Very light hop additions let the true malt characters promenade throughout the tasting enjoyment this beer offers.
3.1
188 reviews
Bellaire, United States
Community reviews
Had Shorts the Magician on draft, ample bitterness, malt, and full bodied. Honestly thought this was more of an Imperial Red than an Amber beer.
Thanks to Pawola22 for sending me this bottle. Reddish-amber pour with an off-white head. The aroma is full of toffee and biscuit malt. The flavor is similar with some sweet toffee and biscuit malt, as well as a hint of light orange peel. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation.
Not a bad beer- definitely differs from my usual brew. Also not for everyday consumption. Most prominently a raisin taste, also notes of cereal, chocolate, with a kind of carob aftertaste, minimal head, tan foam, hazy, red, medium sweetness, lively carbonation, oily feel. Not a bad brew- though the artwork is atrocious and embarrassing- something a young Trekkie might draw on his geometry notebook.
Bottle. Chocolate, roasty nutty, and caramel aroma. Deep amber with a small beige head. Charred toast, nutty caramel, and roasty bitter flavor, as well as some tartness. A strange collections of flavors that don’t quite come together for me. Medium body, soft carbonation. I agree with others about most of Shorts’ label art., and this one is especially bad.
355 ml bottle.
Originally rated on 20110218.
Pours amber color with a medium head. Aroma of sweet fruits, some resin, hops and caramel. Flavor is pretty much the same with some nutty notes.
Draft. Raisin, chocolate caramel, and earthy root aroma. Amber with small head. Sweet caramel malt up front with mildly bitter ginseng/gentian finish. Complex.
Bottle. Pours a dark red color with a small head that fades quickly, leaves some lacing. Aroma is pretty malty, like a scotch ale. Caramel, toast, and light chocolate. Taste is not as good though. Very watery and bland. Some caramel and toasted malt, but mostly water. Medium body. Finish is fizzy, stale, and watery. I guess this is trying to be an accessible scotch brewed for the masses but I don’t even think it works as that.
Bottle (from backlog). Nice dark brown/amber pour with a medium head. Faint aromas of caramel and raisins. Then it got weird. Raisins, maybe chocolate and some all malts that didn’t blend well. I poured out the bottom half of my glass.
Appearance: Looks great. A deep, somewhat hazy red color with a tan head. The head doesn’t last long, but there’s some good looking lacing.
Smell: Sweet. Dark fruits, malts. Almost a bit of chocolate, but that doesn’t come out in the flavor. Caramel in there a touch as well, and alcohol can be traced.
Taste/feel: I haven’t had many Irish Reds, but this is my favorite of the four or so that I’ve had. As I’m not familiar with the style, I’m not completely sure about how they’re SUPPOSED to taste, but this is just a good tasting beer. The malts up front with the dark fruits, tartness, and sweetness on the finish makes me want more. There seems to be a mild hop presence there, too. Just tastes great. The feel is fantastic -- a somewhat prickly carbonation, but the beer still goes down smooth.
Overall, I’m shocked at the 77/100 rating. That’s a decent score, but I actually thoroughly enjoy this one, and it’s one of my new favorites from Short’s. That sour smell, tart flavor, malty finish.. all of it comes together well. May I have another?
22nd February 2012
Hazy dark red - amber beer. Little pale tan head. Light crisp palate. Semi dry. Sourish citrus on a caramel malt base. Minerals. Finishes with a carbonated sting. A bit clunky, especially for Shorts.
This bottled brew from a bottle shop poured a small sized head of foamy fine to large sized light brown colored bubbles that were mostly lasting and left behind a strongly carbonated slightly hazy dark red brown colored body and a very good lacing. The aroma was malty and mild vinous. The semi-flat mouth feel was tingly at the start and at the finish with a mellow hoppy aftertaste. The flavor contained notes of old ale brown malt and hops. An OK brew just nothing special.
Can a beer be downgraded for a nasty-looking label with a drawing that looks like a bad rendition of Star Trek: The Next Generation’s beloved Mr. Data with a bucktoothed smile? I’m saying the answer is yes, so there goes a point for "Appearance." There are scents of caramel malts in the aroma, but it has a tart taste that seems mostly like apple cider.
On draft at Churchkey in D.C.
The beer appears amber in color with a thin head that leaves a bit of lacing on the snifter. The aroma brings malt, slight sweetness, and a hint of caramels. The flavor is pretty simple - malt with a bit of caramel. It’s decent enough, but rather bland. Medium bodied with adequate carbonation. An OK beer, albeit unexciting.
Serving type: on-tap
Reviewed on: 06-16-2011
Draft. Poured a clear reddish-brown color with an average frothy brown head that mostly lasted with excellent lacing. Moderate toasted sweet malt and dark fruit aroma. Medium body with a smooth texture and soft carbonation. Medium toasted sweet flavor with a medium sweet finish of moderate duration. Good drinkable beer.
12 oz. bottle served in shaker- poured a 40% transparent when held to a light source maroon/copper/brown color (that’ll work), white ring around the glass for a head that did not lace at the slightest. Aroma of toffee and notes of molasses and cream chocolate. Hits the mouth with an even medium body, malt is full on kung pow and is very rich, middle has a raison feel, finish is sweetening and lasting. So it’s a Magician huh? Take me out of this hellhole- BAM- well, that didn’t work, not even after an ice bath...
This was courtesy of Strykzone. It poured from the 12 oz. bottle a dark amber color with a medium sized off-white head and light lacing.. The nose is faint, and mostly of caramel malts and toffee. Light in body with a sweet mouthfeel. The flavor is a bit odd with some caramel, fruit, and a hit of hops. Drinkable, but barely.
Backlog autumn 2011
Bottle at Schouskjelleren
Medium body & complexity
A bit bland, but enjoyable
I have to say this is NOT my style of beer. I found this beer to be way too sweet and fruity for me. I’m not a hops fan and this beer says it has "light hops". So I either really hate hops, or they use more of them than the review says. But to be perfectly fair to this beer, a friend bought a 6 pack. Gave 1 to me, drank 3 himself (with the same review as mine) and gave the remaining 2 to a co-worker that likes hoppy beers and the co-worker REALLY liked this beer.
Poured from a 12 oz. bottle into a tulip.
Out of the bottle, my pour has a full amber color with a moderate off-white head.
The aroma is nearly non-existent. What smell does come out of the glass is toasted bread, caramel,
Some sweet caramel or toffee go along with a touch of toasted bread. Unfortunately, this is a very faint flavor and there is a processed, metallic flavor that is almost as noticeable.
The Magician has a very light body and medium carbonation.
This beer really does nothing for me except encourage me to dump it out.
Bottle. Not really digging the aroma. Caramel, molasses, dark fruit, plum. Hint of sour. Murky dark reddish brown. Red is prevalent. Thin tan head. Taste is very much what the aroma promised and it’s underwhelming. Perhaps the least interesting of the shorts beers I’ve had. Tastes dated with a slight off flavor. There’s no magic in this beer, although its drinkable.
Jale bottle at Flossmoor’s pre-DLD gathering. Yep, it was a slightly hoppy amber ale. Next please....(that might be unfair but it was in a big lineup this night).
Bottle… Hazy, dark, Longhorn-orange ale with a small, fizzy, khaki head. Decent retention. The nose is malty, toasty and grainy with a whisper of yogurt or sour cream. Medium to full-bodied with a milky mouthfeel and soft carbonation. The flavor is malty and rich - caramel and toffee - with none of the lactic acidity that I expected due to the nose. Toasty, nourishing finish.
Bottle. Red/brown color with a modest off-white head. The nose is a bit spicy, some red currant, toffee, malts. The taste is moderately sweet. Medium duration, medium mouthfeel. Overall, a strange beer that I don’t particularly rate.
Dark reddish brown pour with a cream colored head. Definite dark fruit overtones. Smooth pleasant finish. A nice amber.
On tap at the Claddagh. Pouts clear dark amber with off-white head. Aromas of toasted malts, caramel, toffee, and bread. Flavors of caramel, bread, toasted malts. Mouthfeel is smooth and creamy, maybe a little on the thin side. Nice amber overall.
Pours a nice caramel reddish brown. Very malty, slightly tart and sour. Hints of berries and raisins. Very mild hop presence.
Bottled. Reddish brown colour with a small slightly off-white head. Aroma is sweet malts, some mild hops and quite floral notes as well. Flavour is sweet malts with some fruity and wooden hops as well as some herbal notes. Mild spicyness in the finish as well.
Poured from 12oz bottle, pours a very dark amber with a red hue in the light and a thin soapy white head, aroma is sweet with notes of dark fruit and malt, the flavor has a touch of chocolate mixed in with the dark fruits and malt, fruity character in the finish, not terrible.
Bottle. Pours amber with a white head that quickly dissipates. Aroma is dark fruit. Flavor is chocolate, dark fruit, and some sourness. Not great.
Pour from a 12 oz bottle. Ruddy brown ale with off white head. Aroma of raisens, figs, roasted malts, a bit of caramel, a bit of tart fruit. Taste starts with a sweet caramel malt that transitions to a sour / tart fruit taste that verges on the unpleasant. Finishes with a bit of lingering sour and tart. Interesting.