Stone/Nøgne Ø/Jolly Pumpkin Special Holiday Ale

Brewed by Stone Brewing Co.
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Escondido, California USA

Interesting beer. Deep brown with ruby-red highlights. Fully body. Smooth, weighty and thick, and it thickens even more as you swish. Flavors of soft bread dough, wood, nuts, and chalky caramel. Spices are bright, peppery and sprightly, and they blend well with the grassy, plant-like hop bitterness. Spices are bold yet not overwhelming. Festive stuff.

Bottle 12fl.oz. @ [ Chris O’s pre NYE Tasting ].
Clear red brown color with a small to average, fizzy, good lacing, mostly diminishing, beige head. Aroma is moderate to light heavy spicy, strawberry, juniper, ginger, nutty notes. Flavor is moderate to light heavy sweet with a average to long duration. Body is medium, texture is oily, carbonation is soft. [20081230]

(bottle). Pours a very dark amber/brown color. Dark and cloudy. Medium tan head. Aromas of spices and herbs. Strong spice flavor. Long duration. Smooth finish. Medium body. Alcohol and oily texture. Minimal lacing. Moderate carbonation.

Found this on accident and was glad we did. Taste of some roasted nuts, with some juniper berries and starfruit, with some white pepper, fig, caramel, and some apricot. Very tastey.

The pour is clear deep garnet under a frothy, light tan head. Sweet caramel, pepper and spice aroma. Softly sweet flavor with lots of soft spices. Smooth full body, but not heavy. Interesting brew.

Thanks to Michael for this one! Been holding on to it since I went to Boston for the EBF. 12oz brown glass pry-top. No date. Appearance: A rough pour only turns up half a finger in tan, foamy head. A deep rich dark cherrywood color and hazy. Nose: Spicy and herbal. Caraway hits a high note and reminds me of some Akvavit I had once. Smells sweet like holiday sticky breads with dried fruits. Dates, raisins, prunes. Palate: Medium-bodied and flabby. Lots of dried fruit notes again, this time with some juniper zing to it. There’s a slight dusty feeling to the beer at midpalate, but no detectable hop character. Lots of malt, fruitiness and spices. Notes: A truly unique and interesting beer. Would I drink a lot of these? - no. But it makes for a cool break from the "norm." Going to put my last bottle away for a while and see what it does.

Pours cloudy, chocolate-brown, with a medium tan head, some fine lacing. Very spicy aroma. Without knowing what it was, I would have said rosemary and ginger, but after finding out it’s easier to pick out the sage, juniper, chestnut and caraway, there are also some coffee notes far in the background. Medium-thin, velvety body. Spicy flavor, mostly sage and chestnuts, coffee and caramel round out the malt. Some subtle grassy hop notes, but the hops are mostly background, to enhance the balance and bring out the spice. The flavors go well together.

The 9% is hidden better than Keaneu Reeves’ acting skills. Which is surprising when considering its medium light and highly drinkable body. The flavors are aggressive, but meld together very effectively. Carbonation is on point, and this could be dangerous.