Moylans White Christmas 2006 (Belgian Wit)

Formerly brewed at Moylans Brewery & Restaurant
Style: Belgian White (Witbier)
Novato, California USA

Points off for the look of this ale. It’s the clearest, most golden bodied witbier that I’ve ever seen. Nice creamy head and plenty of lacing. The spicy aroma is a bit overpowering at first, but it settles down as the head rapidly vanishes. It’s got coriander and chamomile and ginger and a bit of orange peel. The spices totally define the flavor, as I struggled vainly to find some signs of wheat malt or barley malt or any malt at all. It finishes on a powdery spicy note. One of these was enough for me.

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Ok...so having experimented with quite a few spiced ales and not liking any of them, I was not exactly looking forward to this beer. Turns out, it is great. Many spiced ales end up having the spice being the main focal point. This has a nice and subtle spice profile to create the warmth that is looked for in a beer this style while still maintaining drinkability. I drank the whole bottle which is something I have never done with a spiced ale.

22 oz bottle. 2007. Copp0er colored with a nice carbonation level and wispy head. Spicy aroma with notes of pepper and a very vague sweetness. Hint of orange peel and cinnamon as it warms. Spicy flavor but muddled. I had a hard time discerning what was what when it came to the spices. You note the pepper and some other non-descript things. Mostly just giving me a bitter sensation that is different from hop bitter. Wet medium mouth fell. Not a fan.

Draught at Toronado, San Francisco. Clear golden, no head. Papery lightly spicy nose. Sweet and medium, bodied with rounded mouthfeel. Mild and well balanced with notes of vanilla and fudge. Low bitterness. Laid back.

Bottle. Transparent orange pour with a white head. Aroma of musty malt, coriander, earthy hops and yeast. Flavors of pale malt, coriander, yeast, and some earthy hops. Medium body, sort of savory flavors and a bit of dryness. Not bad, but not their best by far.

22 oz. bomber bottle, description and list of ingredients on the right side of the label, no bottling/freshness date, sampled in a tumbler glass. Reddish orange in color with active micro bubbly carbonation that buoys a frothy white head. Good head retention and a small amount of sticky lace at the top of the glass. Not bad start, more lace I would have scored this witbier higher. Given the list of ingredients I was anticipating an overly sweet spiced, orange citric bomb, but the smell is actually pretty balanced and I found it appealing. The first aroma I noticed was a curacao/dried orange peel liqueur and then orange licorice from the coriander. Soft nutmeg from the mace, cinnamon with allspice and pinches of white pepper to keep things from being overly sweet. Wheat grassy cracker-like grains and herbs round out the smell. A different tasting witbier for sure, but with Moylan’s, a twist on the style is be expected. Smooth feeling moderate body with some malty heft, giving this a light creaminess. Raw wheat and grassy pale grains make up the malt profile, but it is the spices that lowers the appeal of this for me. Plenty of pepper, cinnamon and soft tasting mace, but the orange peel and coriander are too subtle, and the curacao is lost. A mellow hop spiciness comes out in the dry finish, but none of the advertised tart and zesty flavors, just touches of baking allspice and grainy wheat crackers. An interesting holiday witbier, there is enough here to make me want to try a couple of more bottles before Christmas. If you like Moylan’s in general, I would say that this is worth trying.

Bottle, at argo0s xmas party, thanks BBB63. Pours golden, clear, with a small white head. Malty, yeasty nose. Flavor is spicy, with coriander, orange. eh, better than having no beer at all...

Bottle, courtesy of BBB63. Surprisingly, pours a clear COPPER with a fading white head. Lightly spicy, with a touch of coriander and orange in the nose. Flavor has notes of light caramel, coriander, alcohol, light dustiness, a little spice, orange peel and herbal noble hops. Medium bodied with a smooth texture and moderate carbonation.