Dogwood Winter Ale 2003 (Special Edition)

Formerly brewed at Dogwood Brewing Company
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Atlanta, Georgia USA

I’m not 100% sure this is what I had last night on bottle brought by a ratebeerian, but it seems close. Bottle was numbered, 788/2500. Nose was very interesting and complex, cider crossed with a touch of.. fish?! Odd, but good. Mouth was malty and complex as well, quite good. Too bad I won’t get to try this again as they’re out of business.

12 oz bottle, snifter, 52 degrees F. Tall, brown, creamy head diminishes slowly and sits on a very deep brown-red body. Ginger and nutmeg (I think) are the predominant aromas. Black coffee malt (M); doughy yeast (L); pepper aroma. Moderate sweetness throughout is matched by a heavily spicey finish. There's also moderate acidity in the finish. Medium-heavy body, oily texture, soft carbonation. The bottom line is: despite this beer's youth, it's quite tasty

Bottle: Wonderfully spicy aroma of nutmeg, ginger, cloves and a bit of cinnamon. Add a little pumpkin and this would make a great pumpkin ale. Pours dark with a thin head. Great spice flavor that I really enjoyed. This is what a Christmas ale should taste like but could use a little bit more body.

Bottle (1litre #437of2500). Shared with Sammy and DrJay, Sammy’s bottle. Huge gush on opening, I contained it and bled the swing-top cap for a couple of minutes before it was safe to pour ... which was maddening, because this one smelled great!. Poured very murky deep mahogany - some floaties, who cares - with a large foamy-creamy lasting off-white head. Rich, sweet, yeasty aroma of apples, apricots, sweet mulling spices, and yards of sweet yeasty roast caramel malt - terrific, this smelled like an honest-to-God Belgian to me. The taste was just as sweet, yeasty and fruity as the nose, but there was a building counterbalancing bitterness to it - like biting into an apple core - and some nice eartip warming alcohol too. Had a smooth, thick, sticky-syrupy mouthfeel, perhaps a tad light-bodied, but overall one of my favourites of the evening, a real winter warmer! Thanks again for sharing, Sammy - and are sure this isn’t the 2003 Special Edition?

I don’t know what kind of crack the other raters are on. This is a top-notch brew. It’s kind of a cross between an American IPA and a mild. Very dark, great 1L bottle, although it’s a knockoff of the big Sweetwater Festive Ale in Atlanta. Fruity, semi-sweet, spicey. Tanginess and coffee clinginess hang on in the finish. Lots of character and a good regional.

Bottle #448 of 2500 - Dark, almost purple appearance, with a trailing off white head. Aroma is very sweet with some citrusy notes and a chocolate back end. Flavor has a sweet and sour thing going on that is quite pleasing. Some Christmasy spices and fruits with a little bit of chocolate. Tasty. Mouthfeel has a bit of carbonation, that I usually do not enjoy but find refreshing in this one.

Very spicy ginger bread,All spice clove pine malt aroma.Dark chestnut appearance with small head.Heavily spiced flavor of what I'm guessing is cinnamon,rosewater ginger nutmeg and a little chocolate with a long lingering spicy dryish finish.Kind of like Anchor X-mass on steroids.

Cant catch me I’m the gingerbread man. :) Tasted like a gingerbread cookie. mmmm... cinnamon and spice and everything nice. word.