Affligem Noël (Christmas Ale)

Brewed by Brouwerij Affligem / De Smedt (Heineken)
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Opwijk, Belgium

amber coloured body with a off white head a spicy hoppy aroma a spicy hoppy little fruity taste with a spicy bitter finish

Thanks go out to joe1510 for a long time want and great Christmas offering. Bottle poured into a chalice produced a finger worth of off white head that turned to a nice healthy lace. The body of this ale is a hazy burgandy in color Aromas’ of dark fruits, spices and candy sugar filling my head. This is just what I expect from a Belgian Christmas ale. Great taste the first thing I get is dark fruits followed up with the spices of Christmas and Christmas candy. Again I say a great Belgian Christmas brew. Medium mouthfeel good carbonation on this brew as well. This ale goes down quite remarkably No alcohol in the flavor and yummy in the tummy is the only thing I can say right now. Defiantly a good beer to finish the holiday with

A cloudy, warm amber. Dark. Scent and flavor were both spicy and fruity. It is a crisp, light burst in the mouth. Fun beer.

Nice mahogany pour with a solid tan head. Very mild aroma of sugar coated cherries. Overall a very sweet flavor. Caramel, dried fruits, plum, brown sugar, lightly toasted grain, vanilla. Medium-full mouthfeel that works nicely for the style. Creamy. Pretty unique, pretty tasty.

On tap at McMenamin’s. Very mild sweet aroma. Brown sugar, caramel, and light cherry syrup. Not too much spice or any exotic aromas. Dark amber clear with no head. Medium watery body with medium carbonation. Starts sweet with caramel, raisins, brown sugar and toasted grain. Very little bitter at all. Not very spicy. Sweet and warming and not much else.

caramel malts dominate the aroma. very clear reddish amber/brown. mellow caramel malts perhaps with a touch of vanilla. very fizzy palate, carbonation heavy.

2008 Bottle. Very well-made Belgian ale...not sure what distinguishes it as a "Christmas" ale, but who cares? Faint aroma of caramel and spices. Fairly balanced palate with a slightly pungent spice that seems somewhat out of place. Not a bad beer, but probably forgettable compared to the excellent Belgian ales that I’ve had.

33 cl bottle, ’bbe’ Oct 2010. Pours clear ruby red with a brown hue and abundant off-white head of moderate stability. Rather sweet aroma; raisins, red fruit, chocolate. The taste is, however, quite dry, vinous and fruity (apricot?), finishing on earthy hops. Slightly astringent palate. A decent Christmas brew.