North Coast Wintertime Ale

Formerly brewed at North Coast Brewing Company
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Fort Bragg, California USA

Bottle. Hazy amber color with a light tan head. The aroma has malts, citrus, spice, strong caramel, and grapefruit. The surprise from this beer is how light it is, but I found the spice and flavor to come through well.

From a brewery whose specialty beers (such as Rasputin, Pranqster, Old Stock Ale) rank among the finest in the country (but whose rank and file beers are indistinguishable swill). This one is a lightish interpretation of a Belgian strong ale. Presentation could be better, as the head is fairly tame and rapidly fades. The flavor is very good, featuring nutmeg, corriander, cinnamon, and a touch of yeasty-leatheriness. Body is a tad watery, especially as it warms. No one is going to confuse this with Rochefort 10, but it is an excellent introduction to Belgian big ales. Nice job, North Coast.

Alright brew. Seems like it got confused with trying to be a tripel and a spiced holiday beer. I love the winter brews but this year is a disappoint so far.

2002 edition: bronze in color with a thick head of microscopic bubbles..aroma hurt me with yeasty banana coriander..owe..not as spicy as the aroma lets on..which is a good thing..but not much flavor at all IMO..might be too cold at the moment though..the spice is warped to subtleness, some hop bitterness hiding in the background..not all that bad..

Nice slightly malty aroma with a touch of caramel. Malty body, not too heavy...finishes a little dry.

As I rank this I kept getting more and more out of it...I experienced the following: banana, corriander, yeast, spice, raisin, grapes and alcohol. It was like a cross between a spicy belgian and a good wheat beer....interesting!

I was actually making an attempt to like this more than I did. I like North Coast quite a bit, but while this one has a nice mouth feel and malt character, it just didn’t come together for me. Think it has to do with the type of malt used. Leaves a metallic aftertaste and something sharp that I can’t quite decipher. Guess I’ll head back to the Red Seal.

2002 version Medium brown color, small head. Aroma is malty, sweet and spicy (nutmeg?). A lighter bodied winter beer. Mild malts are spiced with nutmeg, cinnamon and coriander and ??. Starts out sweet and mellows to a spicy, slightly hoppy bitterness. Flavor is a little light for a winter beer, and its a little thin tasting, but there is something I like about this beer. Mouthfeel is full and round. Finish is clean and smooth. Aftertaste is slightly sweet.