Schlafly Christmas Ale

Brewed by Saint Louis Brewery
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Maplewood, Missouri USA

12 oz bottle from Lukas Liquor Superstore. I know this is a holiday beer, but I saw it and just couldn’t wait to try it. I love beers like this. Pours a very hazy and cloudy, lighter amber. I can see the particles floating around, it must be the orange peel or spices that they claim is in this. Small, frothy and fizzy, off-white head that doesn’t stick around too long. A little lace. Smells of cinnamon and nutmeg...very holidayesque, sweet and spicy malts, toffee and gingerbread cookies, and oranges. I like. Medium to full body and creamy. Initial taste of spices and sweet malt. Slightly bitter hop taste throughout. Finishes spicy with a buttery feeling, almost like a cinnabun taste with too much cinnamon and nutmeg. Overall, not quite balanced. Needs something else to go with the spice driven tastes. Still, because it is a holiday ale, I understand why it would be this spicy, so I will take that into account.

Very festive beer. Has a big aroma with cinnamon, spice and pumpkin notes. Tastes of orange peel and cardamon and maybe a bit of cloves and ginger. It has a copper-brick color and it tastes through with a bit of sweetness and toastiness that remains on the palate. A very nice drinking beer.

Pours a redder coppery brown with a thin white film of a head. The nose is sweet with lots of ginger. Toasty, malty, with a bit of orange peel and a bit more cloves. Something resembling burnt socks, slightly. The mouthfeel is creamy, full and smooth. The flavor is a lot like the nose, only those socks come through more, and they are toasted, not burned. The flavors are still very ginger dominated. A bit of spice in other directions, though more subtle. Lingering sweetness. The 8% is well enough hidden.

Bottle. Poured a dark amber color with small head. Nose was of spices (clove) and some citrus. The palate was dominated by the spiciness of the cloves and hops. Tasted reminiscent of pumpkin pie. Long spicy finish. I thought there was just too much spiciness in this beer, not enough malt. But then again, I’m not a big fan of this style, probably a good treat if you do.

Bottled 10/30/07, tasted 2/22/08. Poured reddish- amber with an off white head which went away quickly, also lots of sediment. Spicy, with a hint of cinnamon on the nose. Tastes mildly hoppy with orange zest and spicy hops in the finish. I enjoyed this beer.

Tasted 2/11/08. 12oz bottle. Got this from Dan and the sticker on the bottle cap read 10/25/06. I don’t know if that’s bottling or purchase date? Regardless, its 2006 vintage. Hazy with an amber hue. Spotty beige head. Totally spicy nose. Cinnamon nutmeg and clove. Totally spicy palate. Quite similar to the previous pumpkin beer, sans the pumpkin. Similar spice. Clove. Sticky finish with an English style dry palate.

Bottle from Party Source. This beer is a hazy amber color with a medium thin light beige head. Spotty lacing on the glass. Aroma of citrus peel, coriander and sweet cookies. Light-bodied with a sweet spiced character. Flavors of clove, caramel malt and mild hops. The finish is citrusy with a lingering sweet spice aftertaste. Slightly above average overall.

Tap at downtown brewpub. Spicy, malty nose. Nice spicy, malty taste with a noticeable alcohol presence. Good winter quaffer.