 Indra (1815), Prairie Village, Kansas, USA
Mar 4, 2008
12oz. bottle, Christmas 2007 release. Dark malt aroma, lightly roasty with notes of caramel, spice, earth and hints of tree bark, cocoa and floral perfume. Mostly clear dark copper color, head is thin and slight. Flavor is similarly malty and spicy, roasty and sweet, but with a dirty, grainy background and an ashy, metallic bitterness underneath. Indistinct fruity, tangy, dark caramel finish. Effervescent, somewhat watery palate, body is medium. Doesn’t seem very festive.
General_Gao (2357), Iowa City, Iowa, USA
Jul 15, 2008 12oz bottle. Less than pleasant aroma of hay and dry dog food. That combination really reminded me of Christmas in an ’away in a manger’ sort of way. Poured a clear reddish orange color. The head was two fingers high and off white. It reduced over a minute or two to a thin film and left a bit of lace behind on the glass. Light to medium bodied and dry. The flavor wasn’t any better than the aroma; dry dog food, bitter grains, and unsalted whole wheat pretzel. Merry Christmas!
EithCubes (1751), Indiana, USA
Jul 13, 2008 Bottle. Sweet dusty nose with evident sticky malt, brown sugar, fruitcake, figgy pudding. Deep dark amber pour with a brown-infused beige head. Very dry, bitter taste, woody and earthy with toast and lots of hard nuts. Crackers and slippery malt, medium-full body, crisp initial carbonation. Remains dry and earthy - would have been a solid brown ale in the regular rotation. Enjoyed it. Much better than previous seasons, it appears.
djbuddha (87), Many, Louisiana, USA
Jul 12, 2008 I have tried this several times, ending with the 2006 release. I usually love an amber ale, but there is a taste I can’t pin down in this that really turns me off, maybe a spice.
SDalkoholic (1005), Chula Vista, California, USA
Jun 24, 2008 Bottle from Pizza Port Carlsbad. Color is reddish amber with a short O-ring of head. The nose is a sweetened version of caramel malt and a blend of assorted nuts. The flavor is a mellow dosage of malt in the style of caramel and toffee yet very subdued into a nut brown ale style. Overall a decent ale with no major highlights and I have no plans to revisit.
blklab2007 (498), Connecticut, USA
May 28, 2008 2007 bottle poured an amber in color with a quickly falling light tan head. aroma has hops, lightly roasted malt, and faint spice. mouth feel is thin with medium carbonation. flavor has some drying resinous hops, light malt, faint roast, and spice. flavor just seems a little washed out and hopped perhaps a bit much for a Christmas ale. almost like pouring some ipa into a Christmas ale. the hops flavor is thankfully good as the underlying brew is somewhat ho-hum.
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