Anchor Our Special Ale (2005 and later)

2008 Bottle. Pours a dark brown color with a rather large, frothy, off-white head. Aromas of nutmeg, spices, hops, and spruce. Texture is slick and oily, but very thin. Has a nice aftertaste with Christmas spices, but rather thin in the mouth. Not bad but not great.

Had the 2008 version. This one pours a dark chocolaty opaque brown with a fine-bubbled tan head. Rich, malty aroma has strong hints of spice. Flavor is strong and mouth filling, malty, very spicy, with a solid undertone of unsweetened chocolate. Texture is smooth and a little syrupy so it goes down well.

Very active dark fruits and spice aroma. Hops and a slight peppery, spicy kick on the taste makes this a memorable ale.

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Appearance- A dark, dense eggplant purple with a tight half inch tan, active head. Aroma: Fig newtons not fruit and cake, carob, chocolate, juniper, cut holly and ginger bread. Taste-Evergreen flavored hops. figs, cocoa powder, spicy bitter hops. After all the darker, savory flavors, you get a nice tart berry flavor, perhaps cranberry or not-quite-ripe raspberries. Mouthfeel-Chewy and coating. Overall-A heavenly beer. So much is going on, that you could definitely draw a winter/holiday experience from the burst of flavor you experience in each sip. I have yet to be dissapointed with an Anchor Our Special Ale/Anchor Christmas, and I would bet money you would not be either.

2005 bottle. Pours a dark brown with a small tan head. Aroma of spices, dark fruits, slight raisin, and lots of pear. Flavor of pear and apple skins with a slight roast to it. 2008 bottle. Pours a dark brown with a thick tan head. Aroma of strong spices , pumpkin, apple, and lots of pear. Flavor is similar with lots of fruits present, some mint leaf, and lots of sugary sweetness. These bottles were sampled side-by-side and they were pretty similar. Essentially the 2005 tasted like an aged version of the 2008. Nonetheless, this beer was ok, but nothing special. Mouthfeel was a bit wearing.

Very tasty. Nice Christmasy aroma. pretty dark red brown color with a nice head. Flavor is spicy with a dry finish. Not a typical winter beer.

07 bottle. Pours a real dark brown with a thin off-white. Smells like a Christmas tree and roasted barley. The taste is overly spicy with little balance. I thought a year would help, I was damn wrong. Not on my wish list.