Anchor Our Special Ale (2005 and later)

Bottled. A pitch black beer with a slight brown shine under a huge brown head. The aroma is sweet with strong spicy notes among them strong notes of spruce and cardemomme - a bit too much for me. The flavor is sweet again with strong notes of spices - especially spruce and cardemmome, but then a note of roasted malt joins in, and combines with the spices to give it an extremely dry finish.

Bottled. Very dark ruby, rich firm off-white head. Spruce aroma. Medium sweet with clean mouthfeel. Spices are evident - spruce needles, cinnamon and nutmeg is what I get. Hops lay unerneath togehter wih ligtly roasty malt. Due to the clean mouthfeel the body feels light. Finishes with medium bitterness.

(Bottle 35,5 cl) Vintage 2005. Pours a very dark brown with a reddish tint and a fine, light brown head. Very delicious aroma - spicy almost cola-like. Medium body with very roasted - but never burned - malt accents and some spices although they’re hard to pinpoint. The finish is dry. Lovely. 280607

2007 Magnum
Dark brown. Spicy, minty, cinnamony aroma doesn’t disappoint. Grk. Thin and flat body. Spices limp along without any particular malt to back them up. Liquorice flavour is strong but comes across far too bitter - again showing a lack of residual sugar. Thin, weak, poorly executed. Far below Anchor’s and this beer’s standards. Had to choke it back.

Clear brown coloured with a beige head. Aroma of liquorice, chocolate and spices with notes of orange peel. Flavour of liquorice and chocolate with notes of spices and orange peel. The palate is a bit watery.