Goose Island Oak-Aged Christmas Ale

Brewed by Goose Island Beer Company (Brewpubs)
Style: Old Ale
Chicago, Illinois USA

Serve in English pint, Snifter

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Very delicious caramel and roasted malts with subtle hops as well. Pours dark red with a large and disappearing head.

Not exactly sure where I tried this, but it’s in my records, and it wasn’t at FoBAB. I’m pretty sure I had it on tap at Clybourn while in Chicago over a Christmas break. I was busy, though, and didn’t take good tasting notes.

On tap at FoBAB 5. Poured a brilliant reddish-amber with a moderate cap of creamy off-white head. The aroma picked up soft caramel and lighter fruity notes with a nice interlaced oak presence.. very inviting. The flavor was centered around sweeter, toasty caramel and lighter fruits with oak and deeper caramel through the finish.. light, but well-placed pine bitterness was nice and complimentary.. bit of chocolate near the finish. About medium-bodied and a touch slick at times on the palate.. overall a nice feel, and a very good beer.

FoBAB Chicago, 2007. All right, this may get itself deleted, but I’m taking that chance because the description is completely different from the one for the original GI Christmas ale, but GI says they alter the recipe each year just like Anchor OSA, and besides, this is the FoBAB version. Nothing in the description for the commercial bottled version suggested wood aging. So:
Big brown color under a big white head. Is it too early to be tasting Christmas beers? Not if Walgreens’ has Christmas stuff in two ailse already. Nice blend on holiday spices settles in with the brown malts and oak aging. No overdoing the spices even on a fresh beer.