I, uhh, forgot to clean out the beer-line hose and faucet and what-not when the previous keg was done, and it got kinda funky. Rather a lot, really. So I've been waiting to taste this batch until I could replace the hose and clean out the ball valve and faucet...
...which I was able to do today! Hence, the first tasting of Batch 15, about 2 weeks after it was brewed.
First impression: It's good! It's really sweet, so 6 cups of honey is too much. The wintergreen is just right. Anise is there, but just barely; I think it'd be good to bring it up a touch. The NaISCF-O-M][(tm, pat pend) is doing its job; the drink is very clear and not bitter at all. There wasn't even the obligatory first pour of sludge that every other batch has had. I'm _VERY_ pleased with this aspect of this batch. The sassafras flavor is a little weak too, but this is expected given that I didn't have enough sassafras.
The fizz is there, but kinda weak. I don't know if I should just up the pressure. I've shaken the living hell out of the keg, it's nice and cold (though not frozen), so it should be fizzier than it is.
One change: I replaced the beer line with 3/16" hose instead of the 1/4" hose it had before (still 10' of it) which should help prevent it from generating too much head.
I'll be very interested in Cindy's impression. This is nicely wintergreen-ie, which she likes. It's not very lick-a-tree-ie, which she doesn't.
Hmm. More response after folks from our holiday party try some.
Updated: 10 minutes later... Ok, the first glass I tried has left a bit of a taste on my tongue. I'm not sure if its the wintergreen or something else. If feels like wintergreen. It's not entirely unpleasant, but it's not what I would prefer. :-/