Stone/Nøgne Ø/Jolly Pumpkin Special Holiday Ale

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

courtesy of bigebeer. Pours ruby brown with frothy tan head. Aroma of light brett, Christmas herbs and spices. Light nose of berries with cinnamonand light malts. Taste is just as described. All is well balanced with nothing coming on top. Do get the mouthfeel of light Juniper berries, yeasty brett (must be Jolly) More nutty mouthfeel that wasn’t really present in aroma, cinnamon. Turned out to be a good collaboration.

Bottle courtesy of Tim. Pours a dark cloudy amber with a medium beige head. Aroma of winter spice with light juniper berry. Taste is spicy with winter characteristics such as juniper berries, tangy malt< caramel and cranberry.

Bottle, courtesy SeaBass. Brownish pour, filmy tan head, thick sheets of lacing. Nose is hoppy, with some juniper, bitter citrus, chalky. Flavors of caramel, tasty ginger and juniper, some bitter hops, distant clove. Medium-bodied, balanced and tasty.

Bottle at chris o’s teabag for 2009 tasting. Alround rating: Massivly spicey, fairly off putting, far too sweet and too spicey. I probably should have rated this lower.

12oz. bottle, with thanks to beastiefan2k. Pours a hazy burgundy with a thin creamy tan head, minimal retention, moderate lacing. Aroma is spruce/juniper and caramel. Flavor is a bit lesser, but more spruce, caramel and some general spice. Interesting, but can’t imagine enjoying this in too large a quantity. Thanks for sharing Eugene!

Bottle. Head is initially small, creamy/frothy, light brown, mostly lasting. Body is hazy medium to dark orange-brown, bottle conditioned. Aroma is lightly malty (caramel, cookie), lightly hoppy (resin), with light notes of eucalyptus/menthol/mint, alcohol. Flavor is moderately to heavily sweet, lightly acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly to moderately sweet, lightly acidic, moderately bitter. Full body, velvety/creamy texture, lively carbonation, moderately alcoholic. Not much aroma at all, and what’s there is relatively medicinal. Ok flavor balance. Good appearance and mouthfeel are about all this has to offer. Disappointing.

Packaged by Stone Brewing Co. - Jolly Pumpkin / Nøgne-Ø / Stone Special Holiday Ale - 12 oz. bottle poured into my New Belgium Glass. 9.0% abv. Appearance: Dark mahogany with a tan 1/4 tight knit head. Aroma: Fresh cut female holly bush, cinnamon, pine cones, sugar. Taste: Begins with a hop bitterness, followed by many of the properties mentioned in the aroma. A dark, bitter berry,a touch of raw cranberry, cninnamon, clove. After the ’holiday experience’ ends, you are left with an assertive bitterness on the middle of your tongue. Mouthfeel: A fizzy quality associated with Dark Strong Belgian ales. Not thick, not thin, not watery, not syrupy. Some how some of the darker flavors and bitterness lingers. Overall: A very creative hybrid of a Belgian and a holiday themed Spice/Herb beer. I surely wouldn’t drink more than two of these in a session, not because it is high in alcohol, but because it is something your tastebuds should be fully alrert for. It would be fun to do a tasting with this, an Anchor Christmas, and maybe a vintage of Anderson Valley Winter Solstice. All three really capture my holiday imagination.

Bottle into red wine glass. Pours a dark, hazy brown, with a very thin khaki head that disappears quickly. Nose is quite good - the juniper berries come through sweet and clean, alongside notes of brown sugar and dark fruit, and some other spices that I can’t quite pick out - presumably the sage and caraway. Bit of alcohol too. Taste is interesting as well, very complex - starts out with a nice molasses, slightly dry, but then comes in a big hit of savory spices before the finish, along with an emerging roastiness and a lingering bitterness alongside the spices, and a subtle nutty hint. Roastiness and the spices give this a very "meaty" quality, savoriness really comes out. Mouthfeel is moderately full bodied, just a bit syrupy, very little in the way of carbonation. Interesting beer, but one that likely would go much better alongside a nice spice-rubbed chicken, turkey, or pork loin. A bit much on its own.