St. Bernardus Christmas Ale

Dark mahogany pour, big almond head. Aroma is fruity with holiday spices as well with spicy belgian yeast. Flavor is much the same, fruity malts, some caramel, a touch of chocolate but lots of holiday type spices from the yeast. Very complex and hard to describe but the yeast is the flavor, fruity, malty, some chocolate and roasted notes but lots of dark fruits and caramel.

Bottle (2007). Head is initially average sized, frothy/fizzy, light brown, mostly lasting. Body is dark amber-brown, bottle conditioned. Aroma is lightly to moderately malty (cookie, toasted grain), lightly yeasty (cobwebs, basement), with notes of clove, sassafras, cinnamon, anise, candy sugar. Flavor is heavily sweet, lightly acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is moderately sweet, lightly acidic, lightly to moderately bitter. Medium body, watery texture, lively carbonation, moderately alcoholic. Crosses the line between soda (root beer) and beer, but kind of enjoyable nonetheless. Relies too heavily on spices for its aroma, but it’s a pleasant enough combo of stuff. Mouthfeel leaves a lot to be desired; watery and thin for its size, and the flavor is clearly getting quite a lot of sweetness from sugar rather than malt. A simple, guilty pleasure for casual holiday sipping, but "sugar and spice" doesn’t equate to a well-crafted beer.

Dark brown, thick creamy tan head. Soft fruity aromas of ripe plum and cherry that sit on spiced vanilla brown sugar tones. Dried fruit flavor is well balanced by yeasty sugary caramel notes and hints of rounding hop bitterness. Medium to full bodied, moderate carbonation, spiced dark fruit finish. A nice winter warmer without a doubt. Thanks for sharing, Brian!

750mL, 10%ABV. Dark haze, medium brown, Fizzy head. Aroma of yeast, malts, some cherry essence. Flavor is malt. Hollow mouthfeel. Empty body. Odd. Fizzy texture on the palate. Hints of dark fruits in the finish. Yeasty flavors left on the palate.

Mahogany pour with a fluffy off white head that lasted for a while. Nice lacing. Aromas of dark ripe fruits, plums, and hints of caramel. Bitter to sweet with lots of malty sweetness. Medium bodied.

bottle, tasty beer. Couldn’t tell this had 10% alcohol. Poued a reddish color. Spicy and malty. hides its strong alcohol with so many diffrent flavors. This was quite good.

Deep brown, reddish-tinted beer wth a lively head and the cheeriest bottle of the season. Fruity, delicious aromas of figs, pit fruit, coriander, ginger and other spices, and caramel malts. Impressive palate; light, slick, but with rich flavors and a dry finish that maintains its cherry fruit and slight effervescence. Tastes of caramel, figs, plums, coriander, candied nuts and fruit.

This reminds me of the Grottenbier. Full bodied and loaded with malt. Good, thick palate, tall thick head. Very sticky and sweet. The aroma has fruit and malt, flavor more of the same. Some coriander, plums.