Cigar City Sugar Plum Brown

Brewed by Cigar City Brewing
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Tampa, Florida USA

Serve in Lager glass, Tumbler

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Tap in taproom: Poured a reddish brown with off white head. Sweet roasted malt aroma with some spice. Taste is gritty with dark fruit, spice, nice roasted malts. Very warming to the taste buds and easily a nice winter seasonal from CCB.

Bottle, thanks to Diego at the Abraxas Lounge, Miami Beach. It pours very dark brown with ruby highlights and a thick beige head. The nose is clove, cinnamon, cardamom, cherry cola, sweet plum, caramel and earth. The taste is brown sugar, wood, earth, plum, prune, raisin, fig, light spice and cherry cola, with a dry finish. Medium body and moderate carbonation. Not actually as sweet as anticipated! Well balanced and delicious.

Medium, hazy, caramel with massive (big bottle cap pop), fine-bubbled, beige head / Sweet, delicate, carbonated, soda pop nose of root beer and herb / Light to medium body, super aggressive carbonation (open at sink - lot of swirling to calm it down), hint of tartness, with ultimately a beautiful, delicate balance and dry, lightly bitter, finish / Stylish, refined flavors nicely matching the stated spice & herb blend, over a base of some caramel, chocolate, cherry, plum, and oak / My bottle was shipped FL to Chicago, albeit 2 weeks ago, so I’ll assume that this accounts for the body. So, aside from the quirks of the carbonation and nose, this is just great. One of the best beers that I have ever had. Comparable to the Belgian ales of Jolly Pumpkin and Fantome.

750 ml bottle shared with Scott over sushi. Pours a rusty brown orange with a medium sized cream colored head. Aroma of plums, prunes, nuts and cranberry juice. Taste is much the same. A bit watery

Bottle sample from Jeff! Dark berry brown pour and an aroma of plums, spices. Flavor is burnt nuts, more spices, toast and finished a bit sweet. Not terrible, but not something I’d ever go back to.

[Bottle] shared by Jeff. Thanks! Aroma is a bit oude bruin - a touch of aceto and special b, some caramel, very light spice, just a touch of plum that you wouldn't otherwise know was there. The flavor isn't as nice. Dusty malt, a fair bit of cocoa, a little spice, and little to no fruit. The aroma is much better than the flavor. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Nose is very interesting and nice. Spicy and sweet. Taste has a lot going on, probably too much - my mouth can't tell WTF is going on. Interesting to try. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Pour out of 750 mL bottle Bacterial thanks for the bottle! Aroma brought notes of big cinnamon, ginger, hints of floral notes, touch of sugary berry notes, hints of roast, plum in there as well, this is odd. Taste is a mix of bitter cinnamon, plum, some rose and floral notes, hints of more spices that I can’t place, finishing bitter and dry.

750mL bottle, pours a dark reddish brown with a humungous beige head - takes forever to settle. Aroma is quite spicy, with cinnamon, ginger, cardamom and chicory most dominantly. Flavour is more earthy than the nose suggests, with chicory, cardamom, dirty earth notes and dry unsweetened carob. Nice experiment and the spices blend together without any jagged edges, but I can’t say this is too enjoyable. Solid attempt.

Appearance: chestnut browns under an average khaki head with bubbles ringing the side. Head fades into a small filmy puddle in the middle. Swirls thick along the sides but no lace.
Nose: cooked melted caramelized brown sugar and sugar in the raw. Meaty dates, prunes, and raisins find a home in dense, moist, chewy cinnamon laced bread. Fig cake, fruit cake. Maraschino.
Palate: yummy! Cooked brown sugar sweetness mingles with prunes and dates. Fruitcake underneath finishes with maraschino cherries. As it warms up, tannic tartness nips at the back of my tongue with plum skins, leather, and dry red wine. Surprisingly medium-light body with a clean, slightly silky mouthfeel. Stewed and boozed prunes, raisins, plums, and purple grapes.
Final Thoughts: I wasn’t quite sure what to expect with this beer. I feared excessive sweetness and cloying tendencies and got the exact opposite. Delicately rich and sophisticated, I hope Cigar City releases this winter wonderland again this year.

Bottle shared with friends. Pours a brown body with thin off white lacing. Aroma is bready, fruity malts, roast, smoked malts, toast, dark fruit. Mouthfeel is ok with notes of dark fruit, roast, nuts, sweet bready malts and spice.