Hurlimann Samichlaus

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

Thanks to Nate for the old ass bottle. 1995! Dark, dark brown with no head. Smells like soy sauce, molasses, chocolate, burnt sugar, caramel and coffee. Crazy, super sweet taste with way too much alcohol. Intense tootsie roll notes. It’s almost as if age brought the heat out in this one. Way too intense for me..

9/17/08 From 1995 bottle, courtesy of Nate, shared with Exec Board. Murky brown with no head. Nose is soy sauce, Tootsie Rolls, maple syrup, molasses and brown sugar. Taste is Tootsie Roll, chocolate, caramel, molasses and an unfathomable amount of alcohol hotness and flavor, with the heat lasting well into the after. An all malt-tastic, chocolaty, yummy treat. Thanks, Nate.

From 1995 bottle I bought in Hammondsport, NY this summer. Great aroma on this one! Chocolate, alcohol, soy sauce (can you smell umami?), Tootsie Rolls. Sweet and delicious. Dark brown cloudy with no head. Heavy chewy oily body with light carbonation. Still hot after all these years! Sweet start with warmth and Tootsie Rolls, caramel. Heavily malted and warming. Delicious and very much enjoyed.

bottle 1995: pours a good clean caramel brown a little oily on the glass with no head. aroma is a strong alcohol, slight soy sauce, but some deep caramels plenty or raisins in the aroma too. flavour is very good with excellent caramel, slight alcohol warmth, raisins and just a little spice. very good.

bottle 1996: pours the same clena caramel reddish brown with a slight head that vanishes quickly. aroma is bright with a nice mix of caramel, slight alcohol, some decent dry fruit, very small soy and just real nice aroma. flavour is a good blast of caramel, some carbonation tickles the palate a lighter flavour than the 95 but great fruits and a slight burntness.

Bottle 1997: the wor4st of the 3 years by far. pours just like the previous 2 years same caramel brown colour with no head. aroma is thinner and just hints of hops semm to pop out a little burnt caramel, but a brightness that is a little hard to describe. the flavour is is way below the 95 and 96 very oxidized with a bit of sour and the caramel is much sweeter and an alcohol burn to finish it.

the rating is a combonation of the 1995,1996 because they were so close to each other, the 1997 was well below the other too so i did not calculate that into my ratings. this was a great treat to try at one sitting.

I had the same 1995 version as bman1113vr did! It was an honor! I can only desribe this beer in one way because it looks, smells, and tastes like one thing and one thing only! SOY SAUCE!!!!!!!

1995 Bottle listed at 14.7% when bottled. I cannot thank Klint enough for bring this to my "Open Eyes Tasting". Pours with a light brown, quickly dissipating head covering a dark brown body with some yeasty particles sinking to the bottom (although lots of small grainy particles are left on the side of the glass (like a 50+ year old bottle of wine)). Aroma is complex and constantly changing. I get, sherry, oxidation, soy sauce and raspberries. As far as taste, I get vanilla, raspberries, soy sauce, tawny port, sherry and raisins. Again, amazing, and I cannot thank Klint enough. Syrupy mouthfeel, with light carbonation poking through. Amazingly and endlessly complex!

Had a very old bottle of this - from 1983. The year of my birth. The bottle looks great, the beer in the glass also. Almost black, no foam. Very strong and malty beginning. The middle is a bit "milder", still prickly-alcoholic. Warming finish, goes down oily. Scratchy for a moment. A light sweetness in the background. An amazing beer!

Can’t remember what year I had, but I’ve heard this beer just gets better with age. Has a complex smells, including chocolate, coffee, and raisins, among others. Taste is also extremely complex and sweet. Drink this slow and savor every sip. I would love to get my hands on some of this and age it even longer!