Southampton Biere de Garde (French Country Christmas Ale)

Brewed by Southampton Publick House
Style: Bière de Garde
Southampton, New York USA

Super malty slightly funky aroma, molasses, caramelized figs, dates, hints of must in the nose. Pours a cloudy amber with dense white head. The flavor reminds me of a super malty Fantome, molasses, caramel, spicy hops, funky, dark fruits, figs, dark raisons, prunes with hints of chocolate. Really everything you’d expect from a classic bier de garde with some age on it. Excellent!

Bottle. Pours bright orange with an off white head. The aroma has honey like sweetness, spice and some floral hops. The flavor has sweet malt, floral and earthy notes, light spices and light citrus. Very tasty.

From bottle. The aroma on this one really takes me back to a Sunday afternoon sitting in my apartment in Reims, trying some French countryside beer. Can’t tell if it’s the hops, the grain, or the yeast strain, but the musky sweet mixture of this amber beer is very particular. Caramel and brown sugar, with just a bit of light fruity notes. Dark copper amber clear, with thin off-white lacing head. Medium heavy body, smooth with medium carbonation and just a bit of warming. Starts sweet with caramel and brown sugar, a bit of plum, and biscuit. Light fruity character with mild dull hop finish. Sweet finish, not cloying, with a bit of fusel alcohol and light sweet nutty after. Has a nice character.

22 ounce contract brewed bottle shared by aplusbreaks, thanks man. Poured a clear copper color with a thick, fluffy white head that slowly faded to a layer. Faint aroma of dry fruit, a light breadiness, a bit of yeast, and some oxidization. Smooth, lightly tart entry with some light citric fruitiness (orange peel and lemon) and a bit of honey sweetness that finishes lightly dry with a faint hoppiness. Low carbonation and a tad thin on the palate. The first bottle I got of this was horribly infected, and this seemed to be showing some signs of it. I wish I could try the Publick House version.

Arômes de sucre et de vinaigre. Goût très aigre et sucré (candie) avec un fini malté et alcoolisé. Elle a un petit quelque chose qui la distingue de la plupart des bières de garde classique.

Appearance: Pours an opaque, amber-orange body with a downright fizzy, tall, white head. Smell: Honeyish, fruity nose with notes of light caramel, earthy spices, and just a tiny whiff of alcohol. Taste: Honeyed maltiness with a candied sweetness and light taste of caramel. Fruity blend of ripe apricots, peaches, and pears. Herbal, spicy hops though with only a minor bitterness. A few peppery pops on the latter half. Very slight alcohol warmth on the spicy, positively spritzy finish. Mouthfeel: Medium-plus body. Well carbonated. Drinkability: Generally recommended, provided you’re a fan of the style. I would certainly appreciate a slackened carbonation, but, otherwise, it’s a tasty Bière de Garde.

Bottle. Hazy rich gold/orange, fluffy light tan head. Nose is brown sugar, lightly nutty malt, stone fruits & yeast, some earthiness. Flavor is malt, a binch of bitterness, yeast, some caramel which is overpowered by that bitterness. A bit thin, especially in the finish.

750ml series. On the nose, I get mangos and lots of them - maybe some strawberries too. The head is ridiculous: a full five fingers that dissipates slowly. The taste is a full frenzy of mangos and cream, followed by those strawberries at the end (this is going to sound pretentious as hell, but more so the green top/hat of the strawberry than the actual fruit). The big thing really is how well this beer is put together; the hops after swallowing are both subtle and well-placed. It’s almost like a little lime rind. So great effort, but $13? Definitely not disappointed, but I’ll be dipping my feet infrequently.