Summit Winter Ale

Brewed by Summit Brewing Company
Style: English Strong Ale
St. Paul, Minnesota USA

Serve in English pint, Trappist glass

12oz bottle from Pick’s poured into an English Pint. Pours black with a half finger of off-white head. Aroma of coffee, caramel and roasty malt. Taste is light bitter. Coffee and caramel. Medium bodied with a somewhat thin texture. Lively carbonation and a long coffee finish. Overall, I’m digging this beer. Great for tonight when it’s a solid 15 degrees outside.

TAP. Dark, brownish red pour. Hops, coffee, chocolate, malt flavors come through in this drinkable winter.

Dark copper brown with a creamy off white head. Malty caramel and roasted grain aroma and taste. Meh.

THOUGHTS: Nice. Better than I was expecting. A little bit all over the map, but not in a bad way. Fairly British. Tons of flavor and complexity in a fairly low ABV beer. Very nice. I could see myself drinking this in after shoveling out of a big snowstorm. They should really do a better job describing this one on the label. I almost passe up a great beer because it seemed unexciting in name and had no description. TECHNICAL: Bottle. Poured a very dark red that was basically black in the glass with a small, off-white head that mostly diminished. The aroma had moderate to heavy roasted and nutty malts, caramel, molasses, and coffee; lighter chocolate; raisin; plum; cherry; toffee; brown sugar; a little fruitcake; hints of vanilla; ever so slight vinegar; hints of some sort of spice toward the end and hints of Baileys Irish Cream. The initial flavor was moderately sweet, lightly acidic, lightly bitter and slightly sour; while the finish was moderately sweet, light to mod bitter and lightly sour. There was caramel, cherry, a little chocolate, hints of coffee, toffee, prune, plum, roasted malt, slight hops that were just enough to balance things out. The medium body was a bit oily and then dry with rather fizzy carbonation and a slightly astringent finish.

Dark brown, medium lacing, strong, malty aroma and firm body good malt flavor wkth slight roast.

Bottle to glass. Brown pour with small white head. Lots of caramel and toasty notes with some roastiness as well. A bit of cocoa also. Full bodied beer with a nice long finish. Also pick up hints of the spices as well. A pretty good winter beer.

12oz. Bottle: Aroma of malt, caramel, toasting, and toffee. Poured deep amber/light brown in color with a large, creamy, dense, brown head that greatly diminished but lasted throughout as a film on top of the beer, as well as around the edges. Clear. Some medium and large-sized particles throughout. Very good lacing. Flavor is lightly sweet. Tastes of malt, slight cocoa, slight chocolate, light caramel, and a hint of wood. Medium body. Slightly dry, slightly chalky texture. Average carbonation. Malt, cocoa, caramel finish is slightly dry and slightly chalky.

On cask. Pour opaque dark brown with a thin head that lasts. Moderate malt aroma, other aromas but can?t nail down. Wonderful malt flavor, some roast, caramel, hints of juniper. Medium-heavy body, light hop bitterness. I?m not getting the spices, just me. I?d try it again.