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Great Lakes Brewing Winter Ale

Great Lakes Brewing Winter Ale - Spice/Herb/Vegetable

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 Percentile 
66
overall
A Spice/Herb/Vegetable brewed by
Great Lakes Brewing (Ontario)

Etobicoke, Canada

bottled
available

on tap
available

Local Distribution
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 Ratings  Average  Score  Seasonal  ABV  Style Pctl  Serve in  Advanced 
563.29/5.03.23/5.0Winter6.2%70.8Lager glass, Tumbler P  Stats

Commercial Description:
Inspired by the long, cold and seemingly endless Canadian winter, our 6.2% alcohol Winter Ale is a true winter warmer. Handcrafted with specialty hops and malts, combined with generous amounts of cinnamon, honey, ginger and orange peel, this unique beer is brimming with flavour.
 Most Recent Top Raters Highest Ratings Who's Rated This?  
 TaktikMTL (2492), Montréal-Nord, Quebec, Canada
3.3 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/103/57/103/513/20
May 27, 2009  
Bouteille de 750 ml partagée lors d’une dégustation Ratebeer Montréal chez MartinT. Arôme: Odeur d’épices avec une pointe de caramel et d’agrumes. Apparence: La couleur est ambrée. Présence d’un mince col mousseux et d’une fine dentelle sur le verre. Saveur: Goût de canelle et de gingembre avec une pointe d’agrumes et de caramel. Durée moyenne de l’arrière goût. Palette: Le corps est moyen avec une texture légèrement aqueuse. Faible effervescence en bouche. Légère présence d’épices en arrière goût. (Rating #2427)


 MartinT (4781), Montreal, Quebec, Canada
3.1 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
6/103/56/103/513/20
May 24, 2009  
My Bottom Line:
Omnipresent cinnamon and orange peel control this very spicy Christmas brew, somewhat alleviated though by soft frothiness and hoppy bitterness.

Further Personal Perceptions:
-A veil of foam tops the lightly hazy red.
-This is still quite drinkable even though the spices are a tad overused.
-The body is pretty lean; a few more dextrins might have helped ground these spices.<br< -This might be a nice novelty item for neophytes, but I don’t see it reaching too many craft beer lovers’ hearts anytime soon. But that’s just me.

Bottle.


 Strangebrewer (140), Chatham, Ontario, Canada
3.4 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/55/103/515/20
Feb 14, 2009  
750ml bottle. Poured deep copper with creamy tan head. Aroma of gingerbread and cloves. Lot’s of spice, caramel notes. Full flavoured, creamy mouthfeel, a meal in itself. Light alcohol in the finish but it doesn’t linger. Delicious, recommend it on those cold Canadian winter days.


 probstk (851), Nepean, Ontario, Canada
2.9 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
6/103/56/103/511/20
Feb 11, 2009  
750 ml bottle from LCBO, served at cellar temperature in a tulip glass. DE31/08.

App.: Medium copper, clear with a decent light tan foam. Aroma: Brown sugar and molasses with lots of spice – ginger, clove and cinnamon stick out, there’s almost a cardamom-like perfume. Palate: Medium+ body with fairly soft carbonation/effervescence. Flav.: Just like a spice cookie – molasses, ginger, clove, cinnamon; a bit of the citrus comes through and a hint of alcohol; dry with some bitterness and lingering spice.

Like drinking a booze-soaked Christmas cookie. I think I’d rather have that, honestly.


 PaulHegedus (364), Georgetown, Ontario, Canada
3.3 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/56/103/513/20
Feb 8, 2009  
Draught. The beer is a dark amber with a small, fluffy head. It has a fruitcake aroma; there is cinnamon, pumpkin, clove, nutmeg, plenty of orange zest, candied cherries, molasses. Smells good. There is a very small amount of lacing on the glass. The flavour is full of molasses, toffee, raisin leading to some clove, ginger, then candied fruit in the finish.


mannika (94), Toronto, Ontario, Canada
2.7 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/104/54/102/59/20
Feb 6, 2009  
750mL bottle. Pours a dark reddish-amber. Aroma is lightly sweet and fruity, strawberries and banana. Also a bit of cinnamonny spice. Flavour is a bit bitter and earthy, no noticeable hoppiness or maltiness. None of the light fruity aroma makes it through. Finish is not much different. Overall, had high expectations from the pour and aroma, but fell short with an unremarkable taste.


AGAquino (62), San Juan, Puerto Rico
3.4 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/56/103/514/20
Feb 4, 2009  
On tap at C’est What? in Toronto. Clear dark ambar colourwith slight tan foamy head. Spicy sweet aroma. Spicy cinnamon sweet malt and dried fruit flavour. Balanced aftertaste.


 sebletitje (1499), Tampa, Florida, USA
3.9 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/58/104/516/20
Feb 2, 2009  
courtesy of Andrew. Thanks for bringing this as a gift. Pours copper, beige head. Aroma has a full nose of nice Christmas spices. Ginger is more prominent. Taste is malty, with a good side of the beer on the spicy side. All of them really come together in a nice blend and form a very balanced winter ale. Ginger, cinnamon, cloves. Some light notes of orange peel with a good presence of dark fruits.



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