Sprecher Winter Brew

16 oz. bottle. Pours a clear dark brown with a moderate tan head that disappears after the first quarter of the glass and leaves no lace. Pleasant aroma of malt, molasses, chocolate, and toffee with just a bit of earthiness. The flavor is unsweetened iced tea, malt, molasses and light roast. A bit thin and watery at the finish. Really not a bad beer, but given the flavors, I was expecting something more hearty.

Clear mahogany with a thin quickly eroding tan topper. Aroma of toffee, dough, caramel malt and spice. Very muted on the taste department... spice, mild nuttiness and caramel malt. Goes down pretty easy, perhaps because there’s just not much there.

On tap at the Wisconsin Micro-Brewer’s Beer Fest. Poured a deep iced tea color with a short cap of beige head. The aroma picked up sweet, candied caramel and fruity malts with mild earthy accents.. on the simple side, but pleasant enough. The flavor found sweet caramel, berries, and molasses at the core with accents of fruity bitterness and dusty yeast.. spicy, tasty finish with warm caramel and berry notes. Medium-bodied with lots of carbonation on the palate.. dry and scratchy feel.. OK overall.
Earlier Rating: 12/6/2005 Total Score: 3.3
Bottle. Clear deep ruby/amber with a short-lived tan head. Aroma was rather weak, and consisted of nuttiness, caramel, light smoke, and toffee. Nutty and smooth on the palate with low carbonation (almost cola-like). Flavors of sweet caramel, toffee, and nuttiness with a hint of coffee, smoke, and a little floral hop bitterness at the finish. Felt good in the mouth with tasty, well-blended flavors.

16 oz bottle from the brewery tour in February (Glendale, WI). Pours an overbrewed ice tea hue, veru dark brown with red notes peeking through, clear aside from its dark pour. Small tannish head that dissipates to a film. Aromas are muted, light notes of darker caramel malts a touch of spice discernible, but fairly mild overall. Initial is light bodied, highly quaffable, with caramel malts, roast, and toast coming through. Very lively roasty flavors, light bitterness in the finish, and a good sweetness with bittering roast and toast. Light florals leave a good bitterness for this brew’s body in the finish. A great dark lager with full flavors, sessionability, and overall a good vibe. Cheers!

500ml bottle. Deep stained glass red-brown color with a nice thin head. Sweet aroma, maybe some spice. Big malty taste, with the brown sugar taste overwhelming most of the subtle yeast flavors. Easy drinking, not such a bad mouthfeel, yet this one just screams imitation. At times Shwarzy. At times just insipid and sugary. Improves a little as it warms. OK at best.

Bottle. Pours a dark brown almost black body with a creamy tan head. Dark malt, caramel, hint of chocolate malt. Hints of spice with some roasted malt. A hint of cereal and bread.

Bottle, Stubbies & Steins. Deep dark brown, opaque with small tan head. Pumpernickel bread aroma, malty and good. Excellent mouthfeel. Palate full of liquid bread and malty goodness. Hits the spots.

I was pretty disappointed by this beer’s mediocrity, as Sprecher makes some good stuff. Interesting caramel, slightly vegetal doppelbock - like aroma. Then a thin, bland, barely sweet maltiness in the flavor that underwhelms.