St. Bernardus Christmas Ale

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

650 ml bottle sampled@RBNAG 2009, Vatlandsvåg. Hazy dark orange body with a fine beige head. Mild aroma of sweet fruit and yeast. Flavor is sweet malt, dry fruit, some acid, spices, yeast and brown sugar. A very nice Belgium beer.

750 ml bottle shared by toncatcher. Lots of bready yeasty aromas and caramel character off this clear brownish red beer. Flavors were similar with touches of spice to finish it off. Very good.

Cloudy brown body with a small light tan head. The nose is lightly sweet with caramel, plums and raisins. The flavor is lightly sweet, lightly bitter with herbal hops, grapes, cotton candy and toffee. Medium body is soft with high, but gentle carbonation.

Dark brown with offwhite head (actually consumed on Christmas day). Fruity nose of plums, prunes, raisins, apples, vinegar, sherry, brown sugar, and yeast. Flavor is sweet and sour fruit over brown sugar and bready yeast, with quite a bite in the carbonation. Tasty, and not full of "Christmas spice," as I had feared it might be.

FOOMF! The pour on this festive brew from St. Bernardus immediately explodes into a mushroom cloud of tasty foam. After a considerable wait, this hemisphere of bubbles slowly erodes into a huge, volcanic crater, allowing a more passable attempt at drinking the feer without getting foam on my eyebrows. The aroma is slightly spicy, exhibiting a sturdy whiff of black pepper, cinnamon and the more rounded white pepper, with a squeeze of both lemon and lime lending a Caribbean air. The whole of the aroma is extremely creamy, and though the scents are prickly, they’re delicious all the same, though I hardly see how this makes for much of a Christmas beer. The flavor has that same certain Belgian woodiness to it, which can only be wrought delicious by skilled artists, and indeed the workers at St. Bernardus are very skilled. Most of the wood and dry flavors encountered in the beginning flake off towards the end though, replaced by a boisterous alcohol flavor. Piercing notes of sharp wood flavors remain through the taste, though, and makes for an appropriately passive and pensive beer for drinking next to a holiday fire.

bottle - Pours dark amber with a huge, fluffy tan head. It smells of caramel malt, holiday spices, and some yeast. It tastes of malt, dark fruit, and spice. The finish is on the dry side with spreading alcohol warmth and lingering spices that really fit the cold months and the holiday season. Very nice.

Pours amber into a trappist glass. Medium to large sized head recedes at a medium pace to skim surface. Nutmeg aromas. Pit fruit and spices.

Bottle Pours a good dark brown with a big frothy off white head. The head is foamy and lasting. Produces some good lacing. Has a good aroma of spices, dark fruits, Bubble gum, and brown sugar. Has a high carbonation. The flavor is real good. Sweet but not over done. Good spiciness with a good balance of hops and malts. The alcohol is hidden well and its blended to perfection. Has a medium to full body. The mouthfeel is excellent. Has a dry texture. The finish is great with a very pleasing aftertaste. This is just a great beer, Merry Christmas.