Lakefront Holiday Spice Lager Beer

2005 bottle, consumed December 2005.
We’ve lost some splendor. Aroma has some bandaid and plastic covering it up. Flavor is much more lucid and watery. Slight tobacco element at the cusp of each sip as well. I really have a sinking suspicion that the new brewmaster at Lakefront is botching the recipes. We’ve dropped the rating from a 4.1 to a 3.6.

2002, 2003 and 2004 bottles.
A very flavorful beer, predominantly because of the juxtapose of oranges and spices. Also, because of all the honey in it, the brew is very sweet, but the spices (nutmeg, cloves cinnamon) and malt help to offset that. A great seasonal beer by one of the best breweries - guaranteed to warm you up.

Beautiful mahogony color with a big spice aroma (clove, nutmeg, cinnamon) and toasty, warm malt. Intensity of flavor though it is incredibly balanced between malt and spice. Malt sweetness provides a perfect foundation for the spices. There is a crispness and the smooth character of a lager but I notice a fruity flavor like that of an ale (maybe it is the honey or the orange doing this). This is great with a fresh baked, chocolate chip cookie.

12 oz bottle: cloudy mahogany. Off-tan head that has a hint of red and is incredibly persistant and creamy. Spicy aroma full of nutmeg, cinnamon, clove-punctured oranges and ginger. Tingly palate completely over-loaded with ginger. A sweet honey underbelly sticks to the sides of the mouth. Spices are a bit overwhelming, so small quantities are recommended, but this would be a great Christmas treat…

YOu want what Ole Fezziwig drank? YOu want the epitomy of a winter holiday brew? This IS it! Don’t ask questions,just keep it in mind and when winter comes find it and buy it. 2004 edition doesn’t seem as in yer face. That is either good or bad depending upon how wild you like yer brew. My rating is down graded for the new edition.

Sort by:  Latest High Low Top Reviewers   feloniousmonk (1291.4) ( Minneapolis, Minnesota ) [ 4.3 / 5 ] Dark brownish color, lighter-red at glass’s foot, with a nice, tight, tannish ring of foam above. Aroma: an instant stand-out, with cinnamon, vanilla, cloves, big, beautiful spiciness, quite nice. I love it! Taste: verrry nice, deep and hearty, fully spiced, full-bodied, with a medium finish, and thoroughly tasty, if at times a touch hollow. That’s just me feeling the lager of this brew, but the thinness I detect at times doesn’t detract from the fullness of the flavor. All my old anti-Winter-Lager prejudices are rescinded and I can enjoy this brew in full. Really, a wonderful creation, not too far away from the likes of Anchor OSA, I don’t mind saying! Mmmm, this was a bottle whose contents did not falter at all throughout it’s stay on my palate.

Pours a rich brown color, not quite a chocolate hue. The aroma is filled with nutmeg and cinnamon. The taste is quite similar with a little extra in the malt department. I would certainly not drink this all the time, but it was very good. I will be sure to find some next winter.

From a bottle... this brew poured with a small, rapidly diminishing head and gave off a unique banana-cinnamon-allspice aroma. It's taste IS different - kind of brown ale mixed with cinnamon and allspice. Overall, it was tasty but not the sort of beer I'd enjoy drinking every day.

Whoa, this is unique. Deep amber body, slightly cloudy (unfiltered?). Thin dense head. Aroma is mostly spice (cinammon), which left a BAD first impression because it was so similar to the Pumpkin Lager's aroma and that's nasty stuff in this raters opinion. Flavors expand a bit, however, and include strong orange notes, honey, and toasty malts. Long sweet finish waxes cloying near the end.