Bavarian Barbarian First Snow Ale

Brewed by Bavarian Barbarian
Style: American Strong Ale
Williamsport, Pennsylvania USA

Growler, from brewery. Pours a rather murky looking coffee brown colored body with a small creamy beige head that faded to a wispy film. The nose is quite a melange of Christmastime spices, there’s an emphasis on the cinnamon and nutmeg for sure. There’s not a whole lot of malt making it past the spices, but what’s there is toffee-like and slightly chocolaty. Kind of a non-descript malty base beer, again, mostly caramel and toffee with a little toasty malt. The spices are what’s on show here. It’s a pretty nice mix and not terribly overdone, though it could be toned down a bit and still be OK. The cinnamon really lingers. Really tastes like there’s some star anise in here, but I was told that there was none used. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with a slightly cloying finish, but not overly so. Moderate soft fizzy carbonation. Overall, pretty decent, I could see pairing this with a Christmas ham.