Dark Horse 4 Elf Winter Ale

Brewed by Dark Horse Brewing Company
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Marshall, Michigan USA

bottle, 2 years old. surprisingly well-preserved, both for your typical winter warmer beer and being a dark horse bottle. rich toffee and maple-coated roast pumpkin and scorched/caramelized/reduced brown sugar - basically nails the pumpkin pie flavor (graham cracker, nutmeg, cinnamon). rich, malty, full and frothy, chewy and resinous. surprisingly good.

bottle, by trade with ogglethorp, dark chestnut color with slight foam, aromas of cinnamon, clove chocolate, nutmeg, flavors of clove, rosemary, chocolate, woody, could be incredible but the flavors dont quite meld

Received 12-oz bottle from Secret Santa 2008. Pours a semi-clear dark brown colored brew with an average sized beige head that slowly dissipates to a thin ring. Aroma of caramel and chocolate malts, ginger, a hint of black licorice, and cloves. Taste is medium to full bodied, flavors of chocolate malt, nutmeg, cloves, licorice and ginger. Finish is semi-sweet and spicy with some floral hop aftertaste.

Bottle thanks to dukefan. Deep mahogany with a decent sized beige head. Aroma is delightful with notes of chocolate, clove, spruce tips, ginger bread, pumpkin pie and allspice. Taste is of roasted malt, chocolate, spruce and pumpkin.

12 oz. bottle - pours clear dark brown with white head along the edges; sharp nose of spice, ginger, cloves and maybe juniper; malty, dry and tons of spice flavors; interesting and maybe a tad too much spice; not quite as enjoyable as the stone/nogne one; certainly not boring though as many holiday ales tend to be

courtesy of frampin. pours dark brown with beige head. Aroma is just wonderfully loaded with spices; ginger and cinnamon. Just felt like sniffing a pine tree. Flavor, spices are as in aroma, very present, mostly ginger and cinnamon. Malt is also to be noted adding a ncie chocolate profile to the beer with hitns of cocoa nibs. Medium carbonation, and seems to be more than the announce d6.5%. Interesting festive beer for sure.

Bottle… Pours a murky dark brown. The aroma is straight-up ginger snaps. Full-bodied and ultra creamy with soft carbonation. Spicy and sweet with lots of ginger and holiday spice. Sugary, but kept from becoming cloying by moderate bitterness. Finishes modestly spicy and mildly bitter. Bottle courtesy of GoT!

Pretty good holiday ale. Lots of spices but lacks the sweetness that would make it undrinkable. Easy drinking for a holiday brew. I like it. Lots of Ginger snap in there.