St. Bernardus Christmas Ale

Brewed by St. Bernard Brouwerij
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Watou, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

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Dark brown with amber and creamy tan colored head. Malty aroma with dried fruits, spice and alcohol. Malty flavor with fruity spicy flavors. Creamy feel in mouth. Get some warming from the alcohol but it is masked very nicely.

At cellar temperature and into the breweries own chalice. Deep mahogany and dazzling through the lights, interspersed by very fine streams of minute bubbles. Cap is a solid mass of Belgium’s finest export; a two inch pillow that lasts and leaves a thick, clotted lace. Strange, complex nose has me darting between carob, warming cocoa, chocolate icecream, mace and exotic spices, dark, damp timber and moss, bready yeast, marzipan and almond nougat. Pleasant, creamy mouthfeel with a noticeably warming finish. Bitter herbs in back, level candyish fruit sweetness with plum and chocolate heading the mid-palate. Nuances of marzipan, toffee, wood and heavily roasted grains give it depth. Long, dry, stone-fruit and dark malt swallow edged by more bitter herbs, yeast and a very subtle touch of metallic tannins. A clearly indistinct ale and sadly a shadow of this breweries other ales but still a delicious brew alone. (Corked 75cL, 2011 (?), Mane Liquor, Belmont)

Poured from a 750 mL bottle into a St. Bernardus branded goblet. The bottle creates a loud pop when I pull the cork, but it is no gusher. A burgundy brown colored beer is full and rich to the eye, with a full eggshell white head that is initially huge before settling down a little bit. The aroma is full of plums, dates, and a bit of raisins. Holiday spices light up the nose as well. All of these aromas exist in front of a full caramel malt. My first sip is quite sweet. Brown sugar, plums, dates, figs, and raisins are the most noticeable at first. The holiday spices from the nose come through as well; nutmeg, ginger, and cinnamon all work well with the fruit notes. A bit of bread crusts and sweet caramel provide the malt presence. There is a bit of booze and light dry bitterness toward the end of the sip. From the pop of the cork, it was obvious that this is a well-carbonated brew. It is a overly creamy carbonation with a little bit of a bubbly nature as well, as I am used to in the abbey ales. The flavor starts sweet and sticky and finishes with a light residue on the lips. Overall I thought this was quite complex and enjoyable. Pretty much what I would expect out of St. Bernardus.

750ml bottle from Bierzwerg

Pours dark brown with a foamy head. Strong fruity and malty aroma with ripe fruits, caramel, syrup and solvent notes. Very fruity and malty taste with hints of caramel, ripe fruits and solvent. Finish is malty and sweet. A bit unbalanced, perhaps slightly too fruity and has some unpleasant notes.

750ml bottle from Bierzwerg. Dark brown colour with small head. Aroma is spicy. Flavour is malt, sweet, spices.

This specialty beer of 10% alc. vol. is characterized by its deep dark colour, with a creamy, thick head and a full, almost velvety taste with a fruity nose. Water, malt sugar, hops and yeast.

On 15th Dec 2011 I wrote this: At last I’ve had an on-tap St Bernardus Christmas Ale that I could review (the other times I’ve drank it I didn’t really have reviewing opportunities, beerfests etc). This time however was different: the lovely Red Rose bar in Brugge being the venue. 33cl for Euro 4.00, worth every cent. Poured into a St Bernardus goblet it looked the business in every way: Jet black with a deep beige crown of tight bubbles sat on top. The head stayed and gave waves of lacing as I wolfed the brew down. The smell was of dark, rich, candied fruits with a good measure of caramel and malts thrown in. The taste always blows me away, creamy, rich and hearty in every way, yet it’s so mellow the 10%ABV does not show at all; this is a dangerous brew and so, so easy on the palate it just slides down the throat at an alarming rate. A brew to savour, but very difficult not to quaff at pace and order another, and another, and another. Whatever spices they use just enhance the flavours from the mash tun and helps to turn the brew from excellent to superb. A true classic and a beer I’ll never tire of drinking (if I’ve got the next day off).

Will pour a five+ finger cream head that fades very slowly, leaving some lace. Deep, opaque brown color. Good carbonation and medium bodied. Nose is Belgian yeast and flavor is sweet Belgian yeast and spice, nice Christmas ale. Higher ABV is hidden. $11.20 for a 750ml caged & corked bottle from Tully’s Beer & Wine Wells, Me.

So I figured, what better time to drink a Christmas ale than the middle of a abnormally warm February. . . .Pours a mahogany brown with a decent fizzy sticky off white cap. The aroma is spice, dark fruits, carmalized sugar, touch of apple, dough, awesome. The flavour is fantastic, starts out with a tingle of spice on the tip of the tongue, carmalized sugars and dark fruits sweeten things, a strange kinda bitterness at the back of the tongue, like apple skin sorta, mixes with a sweet warm alcohol note, it works, and it’s good. The foamy mouth feel. AWESOME!

UPDATED: FEB 14, 2012 (750ml Corked) Proper review when I sober up next week . A rich ,spicy , robust offering from that alcoholic monk . I love the smooth malt complexity profile located with in all St Bernardus beers.

A good Christmas beer. Spice flavor. Spice smell. Good pour strong palate. Would drink again