Lakefront Holiday Spice Lager Beer

Pours a dark amber with a white head and an aroma that is stronly spicey. The flavor has a slight malty sweetness and is predominately spicey with ginger, cinammon, and orange peel.

Sampled at the Richmond Beer Industry Gathering 2006. Clear dark amber body with a small white head. Sweet spiced aroma. Strong spiced flavor with some light apples in the end.

Now, this is based on a 3 year old aged version. First off, points for the fact that it even held up. Second, that some funky bacteria didn’t appear over time and kill off the three of us who wearily tried this non-sedimented lager. Heavy spice profile with cinnamon, nutmeg and clove. Weak body and a slight cloying character to it, but drinkable. Poor head retention. Hold on........Santa, is that you? Dammit, you screwed me last Christmas! Gimme some Darklord or Westy and get that damn elf out of here. How the hell did you get in anyway!?!? Freakin’ elves always steal my hops!..................................wait, that must be some bacterial funk that’s tripping me out. Damn, non-bottle conditioned beers. Whoa........sleepy time. Better not forget to leave the cookies and milk out...........I better get some good beer this year or it’s venison cooked over the planks of a certain "sleigh"...........ZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Bottle... Murky orange lager with red highlights and a mid-sized, fizzy, beige head. The nose is of fruitcake and gingerbread. The flavor is sweet honey and toffee with ginger snaps. Lightly bitter and mildly acetic. Full-bodied and chewy with gentle carbonation. Finishes spicy and sweet. Thanks to headbanger for the bottle!

(12 oz bottle: Obtained 27-Jan-05 in trade with CaptainCougar, thanks Tom!) When they say "Holiday Spice Lager Beer", they mean it. Lotsa spice in this one, and it’s the usual assortment for the holidays: plenty of nutmeg, cinnamon and clove. Despite the significant spicing here, the underlying malt isn’t lost. It’s mildly sweet and somewhat bready, but also dark and earthy, the earthiness probably a product of the 18-month aging process. And with this beer going strong after 18 months, it could probably help you rock around the Christmas tree 18 months from now. Bitterness is mild to moderate, mostly due to the spices I presume. Modest tartness helps keep the sweetness in check. The nose is quite a bit sweeter than the flavor, but also very spicy and fairly malty. The dry and well-carbonated mouthfeel of this medium-bodied beer hints at a bit of dusty apple skins, and that comes through in the flavor as the beer warms up. Bright-amber in color and fairly clear in appearance. The off-white head pours fairly small and settles to a smattering of filminess encircled by a wide ring atop the beer. A few small spots of lace remain on the glass. Overall, the spicing seems a bit forward to me, but it’s still a pretty good beer that apparently ages wonderfully.

thanks goes to ughsmash for this beer. poured a brown copper with a small off white head that left no lacing. aroma sweet cinnamon, honey, ginger, alcohol got most of that before it got close to my nose, than got raisins, caramel. flavor honey just jumps out there in 1st place than all those spices the alcohol is well hidden, nice dryness good beer, wish I had this at the holidays

Drinking this is kind of like putting a few juicy oranges into an old sock (for that spicy kick!), pouring in honey until it begins to ooze out the heel, and then smacking yourself with it in the face. This is the most extreme over-the-top OMG’d bloody saccharine beer I’ve ever tasted. In order of noticing: Orange, honey, nutmeg, licorice, alcohol, molasses, raisin, apricot, cinnamon, ginger, pine. Smells awesome, though.

A huge head is creamy & tan over a rich, vermillion body. Aroma is soapy and piney, spiced with cinnamon and clove. Caramel holds the flavor together but there is a spicy sweetness that can overwhelm like an intense potpourri. Sugary-honey mouthfeel. This is better than many holiday beers in the fact that it has some real personality... many I’ve tried this winter have been standard IPAs or weak winter warmers.

<font size=-4>Single bottle from <a href=http://www.worldmarket.com/costplus/findstorelocation?selectState=14&stateId=14&selectLocation=Orland+Park>Cost Plus World Market, Orland Park, IL 60462<font size=-1>