Troegs Rugged Trail Nut Brown Ale

Part of cleaning our old apartment in preparation for the move to the new house was looking through our beer fridge and tossing some of the older beers that got buried in the back.  However, when I came across the year and a half year old Troegs Rugged Trail I couldn't bring myself to dump it without giving it a chance because the beer is now discontinued and so when else would I get a chance to write about it?  It's not a beer for aging, but I figured since it was in the refrigerator for most of that time there was still a chance for it to be good.

Roasty and hazelnutty aroma.  Very nutty.  I couldn't find any signs of cardboard or off flavors resulting from the aging which was good.  First sip the flavors were very mild.  Some vanilla sweetness, but the roast and nuttiness were very muted compared to the nose although there was a little more of both as I made my way through the glass.  It had been a long time since I've had Rugged Trail as it's been discontinued for quite a while now but I remember it being a bit stronger tasting.  Still, for a one and a half year old 4.5% brown ale, this held up remarkably well.  The flavors were muted but not off and I had no issues finishing the whole glass so that's a win in my book.