St. Bernardus Christmas Ale

Brewed by St. Bernard Brouwerij
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Watou, Belgium

On tap at OBriens. Murky brown color with rocky head and plenty of that St. Bernardus classy appearance. Malty aroma similar to that of the Abt 12, with raisin, plum and potpourri. Flavor is a bit sweeter, with more attention towards cinnamon and ginger spice. Some gingerbread sticking through on the finish. Still retains the Trappist-like yeasty body on the palate. Firm and thick mouthfeel. Goes down easy.

shared 750 ml bottle. pours a brilliant deep red with a quarter inch off white head. some cinnamon and spice in the aroma. very nice over the palate... big full body up front with some yeast, spices, plum and raisins. soft on the sides and a nice strong finish. a bit of alcohol at the end as well as bigger notes of the dark fruits. this is a really nice Holiday beer...

Cloudy brown pour with a huge and lasting light brown head. Spicy aroma with some yeast, orange and dark fruit. Mouthfeel is creamy and nicely carbonated. Very smooth. Moderately sweet. Lots more dark fruit, plum, raisin. Some banana towards the finish. Slightly hot from the alcohol, but not bad. Finish is malty, sweet and has lingering alcohol. Pretty good seasonal.

On tap at the Fort Worth Gingerman. Cloudy brown pour with a nice white head. Faint aroma is light and yeasty. Taste is roasted malts, yeast, lots of spice, and plum.

Pours beautifully with a reddish mahoghany color and a large tan head that sticks forever with nice lacing. Can it look better? Aroma begins with cinnemon, apricot, cloves and follows up as the beer warms with toffee, cocoa, and a little bit of berry. Tastes slightly drier than expected with some cocoa and toffee, toast, chocolate, lots of pear and apricot, mild cinnemon spice and small amount of heat. FInishes, spicy and warming with the taste of almonds and christmas bread on the throat. Medium to full bodied, highly carbonated, and very creamy. Well made for sure, just not as awesome as the Abt 12.

400th rating. Bottle shared with potter. Pours a cloudy amber color with a large frothy light tan head that lasts awhile. The aroma is a sweet malt with dark fruit. Good sticky lacing on the glass. The taste is caramel, raisin and brown sugar. Hides the alcohol well. A good Belgian strong ale from at bernardus.

Bottle. Used this as an accompaniment to a spareribs stew with spicy paprika. Based on that your mileage may vary. Pours with some effervescent carbonation and a nice brown color. To my great dismay my wife likes it as much as I do. In any case this is a great beer. It has great flavors of dark fruit, some spicy yeast and some toffees. very supple, rich mouthfeel and finish. This one works also well with cheese.

bottle courtesy of homer321: pours a clean dark brown with a small tan head. aroma is awesome with fantastic cherry adn sark fruits, bright caramel, jsut fantastic araoma. flavour is a tingly bright malt wth some to the cherry comes through nice adn the dark fuits are good but not overpowering.