Hurlimann Samichlaus

Formerly brewed at Hürlimann (Feldschlösschen)
Style: Doppelbock
Zürich, Switzerland

'97: Deep brown, cream colored head that wasn't all that large. No lace to speak of. Nose of malt, molasses, brown sugar, caramel, toffee. Taste, about the same. Rather thin mouthfeel for such a high gravity lager, left a sticky sweet finish. Very warming. Nice, winter beer.

strong beer tasting '04: 1994 bottling. clear deep brown, small ring of beige bubbles. big malty and comp,ex candy aroma - tootsie rolls, dark chocolate, maple syrup and a bit of soy. meat broth-ish mouthfeel. sweet chocolate and nutty flavours, smooth finish. aged very nicely.

[Vintage 1996, sampled January 2nd 2004] The aroma is strong and sirupy with notes of alcohol, plums and prunes. The color is a clear dark brown and it has a small but extremely fast disappearing head. The flavor is extremely sweet - too sweet or not balaced well enough for me. But the flavor contains notes of prunes, plums, alcohol, wood and caramel - a lovely complexity. The alcohol runs slightly over the tongue. I must admit, that I like a fresh version of the Eggenberg better than this one - I don't know if it is the age or the recipe - I'll get wiser as time passes, since I'm storing some Eggenbergs for enjoyment in the future. A big thank You goes to Alex (fiulijn) for trading me this one - I really appreciate the opportunity to try this beer.

bottled 1996. i absolutely hate sweet beers so this rating may a bit biased. smell of raisins and yeasts. dark molasses color and consistency. taste of raisin-y, alcohol-y sweetness. too much for me but it must be appreciated for what it is so i'll score a little higher than i normally would

I only have two bottles left of the 1996, and I don't intend to try the 2002 for awhile yet. Don't get this too cold and think brandy, or you may be disappointed. Very complex, strong, and warming. Great cold weather sipping beer, not your refreshing kind of beer in any form. Sad to see the ratings of the 2002 are not up to the old original. If you run across this, stock up. It's not cheap, but each bottle has the ingredients of 3 beers in it. If you take it home and don't like it, you'll certainly be able to trade. A classic who's day hasn't completely passed.

Bottled 1996: Dark amber; absolutely no head; so thick, bubbles are suspended in the glass; very sweet, wine taste, with caramel, toffee, and raisins. Nice to sip on a cold night.

Vintage Bottle 1997, Sampled September 2004
Pours a bright, clear, pretty ruby color. It has a light carbonation, but with no head. The aroma as I pour has notes of apple, cherry, and molasses, as well as notes of sherry, a rich fruit cake, and a hint of alcohol. If I sniff too long the alcohol begins to dominate. The beer has a lightly sweet and malty taste up front. the finish is actually dryish, lightly bitter, and actually fruity tasting. There is a light twang in the finish that almost seems hop derived, which is surprising after all this time in the bottle. The end of this beer is lightly hot with a bit of alcohol, but it is not that intrusive at all, it definitely contributes a nice warming sensation as it flows down my throat.

Bottled 1997, Sampled 12th of December 2003
Presentation; I much prefer the stubby bottles of the original Samichlaus, the long necks of the new one do not quite do it for me.

Pours a deep amber color. The malty, perhaps even a bit sour, aroma is pervasive as I pour this beer. Notes of alcohol are evident in the nose as well. It pours with no head, when roused it forms a thin light brown head. Malty aromas are coming out all over the place in this beer. Slight notes of oxidation only add to the complexity of this brew. My first thought when I take a taste is that this beer has lightened up a bit, then the malty domination kicks in. This is perhaps a bit oxidized after 6 years, but the malt profile is still so powerful that the oxidized/ sherry profile is quite well surpressed. There are some soy sauce - Worcester - super malt flavors that are still quite evident in this beer. No hop aroma or flavor is detected, though there is still a bit of balancing bitterness in the finish. The alcohol is fairly well hidden, especially for a 14.7% alcohol brew. The finish is quite persistent, it is malt to the nth degree. This is a sipping brew. This beer just required to be noticed. The malt just screams as it escapes from the glass. Deep fruit/ strong fruit is even evident in this lager, though it is malt derived as opposed to yeast derived. This beer is quite thick with an oily tongue coating consistency. Still quite good after 6 years in the bottle.

1996 VINTAGE: Maybe the best beer I ever had. Followed it with the 02 vintage. The 02 was great, but didn't even come close to this. I'm told it was very expensive to brew, and that's why Hurlimann stopped brewing it. Don't know if this is correct or not.