Breckenridge Christmas Ale

Bottle (12oz). Clear mahogany, decent foamy beige head. Grainy malty aroma, hint of roast caramel and chocolate, soft mild lightly spicy hops. Taste is similar, less grainy, a little spicier and roastier, alcohol and hops come in a bit in the finish. Decent body, a little astringent, slightly flat, quick finish - pleasant, a little strong, would have liked more alcohol, malt and spice.

Breckenridge Christmas Ale 12 oz bottle Bottled 11/05, imbibed 07/06 Medium pour in a tulip glass Poured burnt umber with 1/2" foamy thin head that dissipated into a ring. Smelt of spices and sweet maltiness. Slowly starts off with nice soft hop instantly balanced by spices, pleasantly decending into a balanced blend with a sweet raisin maltiness that intertwine nicely, although sweetness lingers a bit too long. Caresses the palace too softly. Mouthfeel is soft but light, with slightly overdone effervescence. Overall, an intruguing yet alluring color, and a very pleasantly balanced albeit subtle taste.

12 oz bottle, assuming a bottle of 2005 since the label is not dated: Chestnut brown body w/ a lasting creamy off white head. I thought I smelled a bit of ginger initially, but as it warms it gets toasty and roasty w/ toasty being dominant. HInts of clover honey and dried light fruits like pears and apples and pney aromas in the nose as well. Some herbal hop notes late in the nose as well as some grainyness. Well balanced, toasted and herbal hops up front. Medium ginger flavor and some grainy malts mid palate Lightly estery w/ pear fruitiness. Finish is on the dry side w/ an aftertaste of toasted malts and light spices. Medium body, smooth m/f, well hidden alcohol, low medium carbonation. Not a bad beer. Not heavily spiced (may have to do w/ a bit of age as well) which I prefer. Fairly enjoyable!

Clear copper body, thick light tan head. Aroma is a light blend of corn, grain, hops, and sweet spice. Flavor is sweet and unexpectedly unobtrusive. A little too sweet, and has a stale cardboard component in finish... also some piney hops are lingering. Easy and soft on palate.

A light spicey aroma and a reddish brown pour. The head is tan and of decent size. The taste is dominated by a spiceness.

Mahogany color with very little head. Aroma is malty with a spicy sour twinge.. Flavor is grainy (seems to be a dominant factor in all the breckennride brews) with some bitterness towards the finish. Not alot of hop flavors or complexity. A warming beer that......although boreing... is easily quaffable.

12oz bottle
Looks like I just poured a flat soda into my Chimay glass. No head at all. Just a few bubbles. Cola colored as well. Aroma is dominated by spice. Cloves, cinnamon, maybe ginger. Smooth, malty, spicy flavor that disguises the alcohol quite nicely. Nice beer.

Definitely a winter beer. Slightly more alcoholic than the standard, with a lot of flavors blended together (caramel, chocolate, cloves, etc). The downside is that all of these flavors almost negate each other.