Taste test two -- Nut Brown and Altbier

My wife and I had a wonderful and educational experience last night. We tried the Nut Brown and the Altbier for a second time. They have both conditioned two weeks in the bottle now. A few thoughts:

Brewing to the gravity is definitely the way to go. Ideally my technique will improve to the point where I can the right volume regardless, but for now I will be satisfied with slightly less beer but the right strength of flavor. Both Nut Brown and Altbier are richly textured, satisfying draughts, complex at the start, middle and finish.

Serving temperature matters! I have read many an article about the importance of hot cold one serves various alcohols, whether wine, beer, or liquor. In the past, with commercial beers, I have always preferred the drink as cold as possible, just short of freezing. In fact with a clear, crisp lager, this is still my preference.

But with both these darker ales, serving too cold stifles the flavor overall, and worse, seems to emphasize less pleasant aspects of the beer. In the case of the nut brown served very cold, there is a bitterness and a bit of an oily texture; the Alt, conversely, tastes overly sweet. However, let the beer warm a bit to the room ("cellar temperature"), and the entire taste profile changes, and both taste and feel wonderful: the Nut Brown goes from oily to velvety, bitter to complex like a fine espresso; and the Alt's former treacle taste is subsumed by the hops. Very pleasantly surprising. I will have to read up a lot on serving temperatures.