Zinnebir Christmas (X-Mas) 2007

Formerly brewed at Brasserie de la Senne
Style: Belgian Ale
Brussels, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

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This label art is about as weird as their Taras Boulba, maybe even weirder...computery, with another Picasso character, some animal woman with a bob holding a beer, lit by a star, and there’s another animal in a suit opening an enormous bottle. Strange. I won’t look too far for the meaning! Dark brown/burgundy, plummy appearance, litte head atop. Very aromatic, wafts out from the start, but let’s go in...dark fruit & spices, cola & a bit of cocoa, licorice...raisins and pepper. Taste: darker, spicier, but none too rich. Hot. Bigger spice that I expected. Light bodied, compared to the fierce flavor, and the spice sticks out way too much without some tasty malt to back it up. More I drink, the more annoying is this prickly heat. I’m not digging the Zennebir, nossir. There’s some taste, but it’s overpowered by this intense spicy, cola-y...Dr. Peppery thing...not what I’m looking for ! C’est la vie!

Pours a three finger cream head that fades slowly to a ring leaving some lace. Cloudy amber color, yeast left in bottom of bottle. Slight spicy nose. Light-medium carbonation and light-medium bodied. Flavor is a spicy caramel, some hops at finish. Better choice is Ridgeway’s Pickled Santa for price and flavor. Pricey at $7.22 for a 330ml bottle from Tully’s Beer & Wine Wells, Me.

bottle. i believe this is the 2007 version as there is no date. labels match. the beer is dark brown and murky under a huge foamy beige head with lots of slow moving carbonation bubbles and a viscous appearance. sweet red apples, caramel, and some tangy tropical fruits (pineapple) in aroma. palate is medium bodied and foamy with plenty of carbonation. flavors don’t really seem to blend well. i’m getting a mix of really bitter and lightly sweet. not really spiced enough for a christmas beer.

330ml bottle. Light brown color. Aroma of plums, some spice. Flavor is dry, oxidized malts. Balanced.

Bottle. Pours a nutbrown beer with a beige/lightbrown head. The aroma is sweet and spices. The flavor is spices. The palate is likewise spices. Overall a spiced beer.

Pours brown with a beige head. Aroma is caramel, spice, cinnamon, cardemom. Flavour is caramel, pepper, cinnamon and cardemom. Bitter aftertaste.

Name: Zinnebir Christmmas
Date: August 09, 2009
Mode: Bottle
Source: Tasting, Ticker
Vintage: 2007
Appearance: clear dark amber, fine beige head
Aroma: sweet caramel aroma, fruity esters, light spicyness
Flavor: sweet malt flavor, nice fruityness, hint of spicyness yields to an earthyness followed by a light bitter finish
Aroma: 6/10; Appearance: 6/10; Flavor: 5/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 11/20
Rating: 2.8/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: *4

This Belgian Ale pours a murky dark brown color from a 33cl bottle. Medium sized white foamy head. Aroma is roasted malts, fruit, yeasts and sweet. A medium bodied Ale. The malts are fruity and sweet with a touch of brown sugar and toffee. There is a roastiness that is prevalent and a touch odd. The hops are earthy. Perhaps a touch overly spiced. There is some astringency going on here that is hard to ignore. Nice carbonation. Mouthfeel is full. Finish is clean and crisp. Aftertaste is slightly bitter and astringent.

$.99 clearance 11.2 oz bottle from Bottle Barn. Beer’s #100 rating. Nose is candi sugar, yeast, and toffee. Clear brown with a small beige head. Flavor is light oxidation, a slight bitterness, and caramel..

Aroma is a light spicy hop scent. Color is a hazy amber/brown with good carbonation and a thin tight off white head. Taste is spicy and cider like. Starting with a medium body it goes down with a cidery like feel. Finish comes in with a spicy taste, a slight maltiness that is cider like and then a sharp bitter bite. After taste is a little dry as the bitterness lingers on. Another poor Belgian, reminds me of a poorly done home brew, its too cidery and bitter. I am very disappointed, this is the third beer I have had from a box set called Christmas in Belgium and none of them have been very good.