Red Brick Winter Brew (2008)

Brewed by Atlanta Brewing Company
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Atlanta, Georgia USA

bottle. pours a deep brown with little to no head... the clear alcohol lacing shines throughout. very pleasant aromas of banana, yeast and candi sugar. This is a very typical dark Belgian. thin to medium body with a touch of alcohol up front, dark fruits on top, big soft sides and a wonderful finish. There is a lot of warmth on the back and the dark fruits and sugar really come forward. This is a really nice beer from Atlanta Brewing Company... but I do not think this deserves to be in a four pack... nor does the double chocolate oatmeal porter - which was in sixers last year...

12oz bottle. deep chestnut brown. Dates, candi sugar, raisin, lots of dark fruits in the aroma. Prune juice dipped sourdough bread. Fruity and doughy. Nice dark malt complexity. Finishes with a nice alcohol burn with some woodiness. Classic Belgian style big beer with dark malt.

Wow....nicely done. Lots of esters and bananas.....liked this a lot. The color was a dark auburn, the aroma was bready and almost warm, the flavor was like eating circus peanuts candies. Yum....

12 oz. bottle. Pours a reddish-brown. Thin, light tan head. Aroma of raisins and candi sugar. Flavor is really nice. Hints of dark fruits, burnt toast, and yeast. Finish is lightly bitter with dark chocolate hints. Glad to see these new beers coming from ABC.

I am really happy that in the last few years Atlanta Brewing has turned into a brewery where I am excited when they release a new beer (or turn the previous version of the Winter Ale into a year-round offering, because that beer was awesome). This actually comes across as a pretty good Belgian-style dubbel. There is a bit of a hazelnut quality to it, and there is a slight hint of chocolate. The yeasty aromas and flavor show they used an actual Belgian strain here instead of ignoring the importance of yeast to the Belgian styles like some American brewers. This is a good beer.

Name: Winter
Date: November 26, 2008
Mode: Draft
Source: Brewery
Vintage: 2008
Appearance: muddy brown, creamy beige head, bits of lace
Aroma: sweet malt aroma with lots of fruity character
Flavor: rich malt flavor, lots of fruity esters, brown sugar sweetness, light balancing spicy hops, touch of chocolate

Name: Winter
Date: December 09, 2008
Mode: bottle
Source: Green’s
Vintage: 2008
Appearance: cloudy dark ruby red, wispy beige head
Aroma: big sweet fruity aroma, lots of sweet esters, peaches and apricots, touch of peppery alcohol
Body: sticky sweet body
Flavor: big sweet fruity ester flavor, caramel sweetness adds to the fruityness
Overall: bottle and draft are very close on this one

Aroma: 7/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 7/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 16/20
Rating: 3.7/5.0
Drinkability: 8/10
Score: **4

12 oz. Cloudy reddish-chestnut with a lasting quarter inch of cream. Aroma of banana liqueur, clove, nutmeg, light cocoa, and hints of tart cherry and oak. Flavor is the same combo plus some mixed dark fruit: prune, raisins, plum. Some additional spiciness, oak and alcohol show up on the finish. Maybe some wheat in there as well. Medium body is tingly and the sweetness is well-dried with the alcohol-wood on the finish. Nice warmer.

Poured cloudy dark brown with no head. Aroma of dark fruit, yeast and spices. Tastes of dark fruit, raisins, cocoa and a hint of spice. Notes of Belgian yeast. Touch of bitterness.