Anchor Our Special Ale (2002)

Formerly brewed at Anchor Brewing Company
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
San Francisco, California USA

This would be from the 2002 year. A nice dirt color with a nice mist of eggshell head. Definetely cinnamon in teh aroma along with some spices and maybe some brown sugar. A really nice brown sugar/maple syrup flavored slightly burnt malt. Damn impressive. Kinda has a gingerbread man cookie feel to it. I must say that I am enjoying this 2002 recipe.

Well, it was 2.99 a six pack but very old (it was bought in April). I drank it warm, and i have to say it was terrible. I am not a fan of the winter spiced beers, but this was one was especially bad. Poured it down the drain and threw out the rest. Looking at the rest of these ratings I must be on crack.

Bottled. But Wow!! This was a very lovely beer. Dark brown, just short of black, with a red tinge to it. Lacy head that stayed throughout. The most unique of aromas, that was intimidating in its difference but lovely. Taking a little help from those who have gone before me, the nutmeg and socked fruit aroma, beautifully and effortless transferred to the taste and palate with increased complexity and variety. All this was kept in some sort of proportion, such that it went down a treat. Its been a good night of sampling thus far…..

Just like a liquid christmas pudding. Baked fruit flavours, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves, slight brown sugar flavour. Finish is sllightly on the thin side though.

Pours dark brown with a dark head, much like the 2001. Spicy aroma. A mixture of spices. Slight vinous quality. Better than last years, but still pretty weak.

Very dark brown red, thin head. Aroma is spicy and as others have said medicinal. Medium bodied spicy flavor a bit sour. A hard beer to describe lets just call it unusual

Dark, muddy, thin head. The aroma is unique; medicinal, ginger with some herb and/or pine scent. It reminds me of something, but I can't say what; the closest thing I can think of is an old tonic called Geritol. The taste is as different as the aroma; clean, but medicinal. Not a beer I would choose to drink again.

Nearly black in color with only a thin ring of head and spotty lacing. Aroma is very unusual and I'm having a hard time putting my finger on anything--molasses, dried fruit, alcohol, pine. Has a mouth-coating, sticky thickness when tasted. Some notes of vanilla, burnt sugar, coffee, and citrus. Resiny bitterness begins early and progresses to overpower all other flavors in the finish aside from some sour notes. Complex but poorly balanced, Anchor's Our Special Ale is interesting more so than it is good.