Tröegs The Mad Elf Holiday Ale

Brewed by Tröegs Brewing Company
Style: American Strong Ale
Hershey, Pennsylvania USA

Serve in Snifter, Trappist glass

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Dark amber color with almost no head. Smells of fruit, malts and honey with a simliar flavor with a hoppy/spicy tone. The malt hides the alcohol well but it will catch up to you if you sip this brew.

Pours an amber cherry color with very little head and no lacing at all. Aroma of cherries, bananas and spicy Belgian yeast with alcohol in the back. Taste follows more sweetness and cherries. Smooth and silky mouthfeel. This is a tasty complex beer, I really like it!

Vintage 2008 (consumed on 2/23/09): Poured into my snifter. Pours a ruby-tinted deep orange color with the thinnest of foamy sheets coating the top. No lacing or webbing whatsoever. Disappointing. Smells of cherries, licorice, raisins, alcohol, and some clove. Fruity esters dominate this big brew. Definitely some cherry and possibly hint of banana in there as well. I can taste the licorice as well. Warming brew. Easier to drink right away for me. As the brew warms the alcohol becomes more pronounced and this just turns into a boozy mess. Mouthfeel is a little on the thin side, but not that bad. Crisp. Well done. L: 2.5 S: 4 T: 4 F: 3.5 D: 3 Overall: 3.55 = B [EDIT]: Vintage 2008 (consumed on 1/5/10). 22 oz. bottle poured into my tulip glass. I’m interested to see what a year did to this beer. Pours a ruby-tinted deep amber with a thin off-white head on top. Leaves just a ring along the edge. No lace present. Scents of strawberries, cherries, grass, and a sharp astringent cleaning-solution-like scent. Full creamy body on this beer still. Moderate amount of carbonation. Still has a subtle crisp bite to it. Flavors of red licorice, some light yeast, and faint tannins? This has become more of a fruit-beer, than a Belgian, with time. Much sweeter than I remember as well. I like what some time did to this beer. I’ve still got an ’07 in the cellar that I’ll have to pull out sometime soon and see how that one held up.

Bottle. Odd yet inviting aroma that hints at a fruit flavored barleywine. The small head over the murky brown liquid disappears to a flat appearance. Flavor starts full and malty like a scotch ale, but fades to a medicinal finish and leaves the mouth sticky. A unique beer, but not one I'd seek out again.

Bottle @ home, courtesy of arminjewell. Thanks! Hazy ruby orange appearance with a small, tan head. Black cherry, a bit nutty, light caramel, sweet aroma. Tangy, a bit syrupy, cherry, almond, light raspberry flavor. Smooth for 11%.

Hmmm. Bright reddish hues, fading head and no lacing. Nose is sour cherries and red clay dust, both of these fade after a while, leaving malt and the chocolate malt component is definitely noticeable. Same on taste. Interesting, alcohol very well hidden. I can see why some raters were going on about cough drops, but it’s not that bad/strong. One’s enough...share it with a friend or two.

Amber color with a fast disapating head. Tastes of fruity plums, honey, and cherries. Finishes dry with a rummy note at the end. Easy drinking.

a: nice dark amber color, translucent with slight carbonation. When it arrived at my table, there was no head but lots of sticky lacing. s: alchohol and cheery t: cherry sweatness dominates flavor. Also taste alchohol. I think I taste a bit of honey too.

Tap. Pours a deep ruby red with little head. Strong alcohol flavor with lots of spice. Pretty good overall.

12 ounce bottle that poured a reddish amber color, aromas of caramel, fruits, and spice. Flavor is sweet fruit, carmel and malt, a nnice winter seasonal that didnt taste like a heavy 11%er.

On tap. Clear reddish with no head. Aroma pleasant if unexciting, caramel, slightly fruity. Medium full body, a little syrupy but not overwhelmingly so. Would not have thought 11% alcohol. Malty caramel flavors with background of red fruits, spices. A pleasant drinking experience.