Anchor Our Special Ale (2005 and later)

Brewed by Anchor Brewing Company
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
San Francisco, California USA

2007 version. Thick full white head on top of a dark, almost opaque beer. Nose of pine cones, spices, like a clear, cold winter day in the Rocky Mts. Taste is sweet, tangy, a bit hoppy with a nice malt background. Of course the pine cones and spices overwhelm this beer. A bit over-carbonated and the finish is a bit thin. One is enough. These are best aged for at least one year.

Bottle at home 2006 ...Deep black colour ... lots of spiced tones in the nose but definitly cinnamon ... yeast base with soft spices ... cardamon ... cinnamon ... cloves ... then some burnt roast and bitter dark chocolate in the linger.

06 Magnum. Shared with some friends during 08 new year. Pours a dark cloudy brown with a creamy tan head. Has excellent lacing. Hints of sweet potato pie (cinnamon, nutmeg, honey) some hop, lots of malt. Finishes thick with a creamy spice taste on the tongue.

This was not called "Our Special Ale" - this was the Merry Christmas Ale 2007, and I had a 12 ounce bottle. Dark brew with a nice, fluffy head. Cool-looking label that has a drawing of a tree on it. It is a tastefully hopped ale with a light-medium malt backing. There are hints of grass and pine. It is full-bodied, but still mellow, and the finish is dry and hoppy. Definitely out of the ordinary. I tasted some similarity to Stone’s ales.

Dark brown with thick brown head. Great aroma of cinnamon and nutmeg pie crust and other spices that I can’t put my finger on. Smells like the holiday season. Caramel malty flavor with a slight chocolate tinge. Beer has the backbone of a mild old ale with pumpkin ale style spice. Not overly sweet. Thin to medium body. Dry finish.

2007 version: 12oz bottle. dark almost black brown with a small beige head. Sweet chocolate aroma with tons of spices: cinnamon, ginger, mint... Spicy flavor with chocolate maltiness and fruit. Body is a little thinner than I expected. the smell is much better than the flavor. Not bad, but the spices dont seem to come together as well in the flavor as the aroma. (846312, 3.3) Rerate, 2008 version, magnum bottle: Lighter color, aroma of some spice, chocolate and alcohol, thin and astringent. Flavors of cinnamon and sour butter. Pretty hard to drink actually. (74429, 2.6)

2005 magnum. Pours a dark reddish brown with a huge tan head. All sorts of spice in the nose. Flavor of licorice, malt, cinnamon, nutmeg, sweet fruit, black jelly beans, smoke, and chocolate. Finishes interesting, light carbonation and just a bit oily. Very complex.

2007 Vintage. Pours pretty black very nice head/lacing. Aroma: Spices going every which way; on one hand the give a bouquet of freshly diced melon and pineapple whilst light hop aromas dance above. . On the other hand, the spices mix with light alcohol notes to show off, coriander, chocolate, and nutmeg set on malty background. The noticeable confusion suggested by the aroma is confirmed in the palate. Alcohol is fairly noticeable, as are the characteristics of the latter face of the aroma. Presents itself as a scottish ale at times, and as a pumpkin ale without much pumpkin at other times. Earthy spices linger on the tongue. I’m pretty sure this beer is an attempted clone by Anchor of a homebrew I recently bottled.