soulgrowl (52), Kitakyushu-shi, Japan
| 3.8 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 4/5 | 7/10 | 3/5 | 16/20 | May 7, 2008 Aroma: Toasty malts and nice spicy hops. There’s also an egg-like tone and a hell of a pine scent. Yum! Reminds me of wheat toast with just a touch of cinnamon sugar.
Appearance: Darkish pumpkin pie orange, slightly cloudy, with a fluffy, lumpy off-white head. Lots of carbonation and big bubbles give this excellend head retention (but no lacing).
Flavor: Strong, very leafy hop character throughout. Some alcohol comes through along with a subtle flavor of pumpkin pie spice (clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.). Malts take a backseat, but somehow this beer is still on the sweet side. Hops turn citric in the finish.
Palate: Medium bodied, fairly clean, and a tad sticky.
Overall: This is the winter brew I’ve been waiting for! Complex and spiced just enough. moseslikesbeer (183), conestoga, Pennsylvania, USA
| 2.6 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 5/10 | 4/5 | 6/10 | 2/5 | 9/20 | Apr 29, 2008 bottle from afireinside. nice amber color with an off white head and good carbonation. aroma of pine and grapefruit. Lots of grapefruit in the taste with a bit of orange. This has that hoppy finish that I just don’t care for. found this to be an odd brew for a winter. overall not bad but nothing I want to have again. TheCaptain (549), Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA
| 2.9 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 6/10 | 3/5 | 5/10 | 3/5 | 12/20 | Apr 28, 2008 Bottle, thanks afire! Poured a brown amber with rather foamy off white head. Spicy aroma with some citrus that carried into the pallet. Spicy sweet and sour citrus with a dry hope sweet bitterness towards the end. It’s a holiday brew but not for my taste. Lothore (276), California, USA
| 3.3 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 6/10 | 5/5 | 6/10 | 4/5 | 12/20 | Apr 26, 2008 A- Pours a reddish amber hue with a huge off white head that just does not quit. Some carbonation is present.
S- Smell is very mild, some piney hops a bit of sweet malt but very hard to detect.
T- Taste is very malt forward with a hop bitterness at the end that grabs onto your tastebuds and doesn’t let go. Last year I remember this being extremely piney and unbearable but maybe I just got a bad batch. All in all I think it is a bit too sweet and the way the bitterness lasts on the tongue is somewhat annoying.
M- Very carbonated and fairly viscous.
D- I don’t dig this one. Had it for the first time last year and absolutely hated it. This year i’ve warmed to it but it just doesn’t seem drinkable to me. The first sip is fine and I don’t mind hop bitterness, in fact, I love hop biterness, however the bitter stickiness that lasts for minutes after every sip doesn’t appeal to me. mgermani (864), Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| 4.3 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 4/5 | 9/10 | 4/5 | 18/20 | Apr 23, 2008 Pours a slightly hazy amber with a good off-white creamy head with nice lacing. Aroma is very pleasant - sweet amber malt, fresh hops, light fruitiness. Wish it were stronger. Tastes quite nice - hoppy, malty, reminds me of the optic floor malt they use in Fuller’s Vintage. Lots of fruitcake in here - cherries, currants, lingering molasses astringency, very very nice. Each sip yields new flavours. Good carbonation, nice and creamy. What a great, great beer - everything is strong, very assertive flavours, doesn’t shy away. Many thanks to Degarth for the trade! BeerGestapo (738), Windsor, Pennsylvania, USA
| 3.8 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 7/10 | 4/5 | 8/10 | 3/5 | 16/20 | Apr 16, 2008 Updated: Feb 5, 2009(USA) Courtesy of AFI96, thanks Waylo !! Good looking amber color with a med-white head. The aroma is of grapefruit / spices and a nice hoppy / citrus taste, And the finish is kinda dry and bitter.
I know sitting by a fire place in winter makes this a perfect brew for the season. esjaygee (1519), Oak Creek, Wisconsin, USA
| 3.7 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 5/5 | 7/10 | 3/5 | 14/20 | Apr 10, 2008 Cloudy orange with thick orange-ish slowly diminishing head that looks like a root beer float after awhile. Floral hop aroma with some caramel, light roasted malts and bread. Nice and hoppy with a long bitter finish. Starts out a little sweet and spicy but moves on to a full hop burst that produces a pepper, semi-acidic and long bitter finish. Ramenen (453), San Salvador, El Salvador
| 3.4 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 6/10 | 3/5 | 7/10 | 3/5 | 15/20 | Apr 9, 2008 Drank it in Carmel, CA. Pours nice golden color. Piney/citrus aroma, medium bodied, nice hop balance. Also drank it in Firkin Festival, however it was cask conditioned. This one was very spicey, some nutmeg.
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