Breckenridge Christmas Ale

Brewed by Breckenridge Brewery
Style: American Strong Ale
Denver, Colorado USA

Deep copper colored pour. Average head retention with a nice, but slightly overdone, malt character. Needs more hops and possibly a Belgian yeast strain to impart a nice spicy character.

tasted at crescent moon winter beer tasting. Brown beer with a molasses aroma. Brown beer with high malt content doesn’t have a stand-out particular flavor. Mostly just a brown higher alcohol beer.

A so so American strong. There are some Christmas beers that I consider "Christmasy" and this just doesn’t fall in that category. Aroma of caramel malt with a hint of alcohol. Pour was a nice amber with just a hint of a white head. Taste was like a subdued Arogant Bastard with a hint of spiciness and not as much flavor. That’s the best I can describe it and it barely works.

A fine looking beer, pours a deep mahogony with a light tan head. Smooth palate, but the aroma and flavor were unremarkable (at least, when compared to other winter beers). Not bad, to be sure, but nothing really jumps out at me here. I’ll probably repeat this one, but I’ll reach for another winter beer first.

dark amber-red pour with very little head. Aroma is not "Christmas-y at all", and I can’t even put my finger on what it is other than to call it a malty-earwax like smell. Flavor is of darker malts, with some nutmeg-like spices present. A bit flat on the tongue. Not impressed overall.

Poured a clear dark copper color with some ruby highlghts. The head was barely one-finger tall, off-white and only lasted for a moment. Flecks of lacing struggled to survive. The aroma was mostly malt with some thin hints at nutmeg and roasted nuts. The flavor was of an average ale doused with nutmeg. A lot of dryness in the mouthfeel that I’ll attribute to the nutmeg, not the hops. The alcohol provided a nice kick.

Bottle, 2007. Pours a very dark brown with minimal off white head. Aroma is light, with roasty malt and nuts. Flavor is very earthy and malty, somewhat burnt, lightly nutty/roasted nuts, hint of chocolate, hint of caramel though that caramel has been overcooked. Not very sweet and lightly astringent towards the end. Finish is long and roasty. Thick and smooth in the mouth with light carbonation. For some reason it’s just not that good. I want to like it, it’s got a lot of good things going on, but it’s not really that good.

I thought this was OK, but far from the best holiday/winter/Christmas beer I’ve yet had this season. A coppery taste combined with a fruitiness/witbier blend did not really work for me. Pours a dark, clear, sparkling red color with a centimeter and a half of head which quickly faded to a scummy coating, but left nice lacing. Aroma is nice hoppiness and some vaguely unpleasant natural earthiness. Flavor is hoppy at first, an odd bit of fruitiness (like fruitcake or candied fruit) in the middle of my mouth, and a bit of coppery maltiness at the finish. After a few more sips, the fruitiness in the middle seems more like a witbier...perhaps citrus and coriander. Mouthfeel’s a bit thin. I’m not a huge fan of this. I wouldn’t really recommend this beer, although it does taste a bit like the holidays. I bought this bottle at 3 Cellars Liquor in Franklin, WI.