Stone/Nøgne Ø/Jolly Pumpkin Special Holiday Ale

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

(Bottle) Brown and lightly hazy. Medium sized tan coloured head. Spices, juniper and hops in aroma. Medium bodied palate with medium carbonation. Liquorice, malts, lightly roastedness, juniper and bitterness in taste. Juniper, spices and bitterness in aftertaste. Quite complex beer with all the spices but it did work.

Bottle at Patricks Kristiansand. Red amber colour with a beige head. Aroma is juniper, malt, hop, caramel. Flavour is juniper, roasted, malt, hop, fruit, berries, alcohol. Full bodied nice beer.

Agreed for a few months. A really great spiced great. Full of punch and a really great holiday beer. Just in time for fall. Overall the complexity of the spices, including lots of nutmeg and juniper were very crisp. Nice brew.

Bottle. [thank you, joergen]
Looks exceptionally oily as its poured. A lovely chestnut brown with a fine, creamy, off-white head that stays for quite some time. Nice spicy aroma. Light peppermint, hazelnuts, chestnuts, holly, caramel, light roasted and a touch of vanilla. Lowish carbonation, impressive oily mouthfeel. Flavour is lovely. Ginger, hazel, chestnuts, roasted malts, chocolate, vinous, coriander, thyme, pine, juniper. Really wonderfully balanced spiced ale with just the right amount of sweetness at first and bitterness in the finish. Really lovely.

Bottled sample via and shared with oakbluff. Chestnut in colour with moderate carbonation. Aromas of nutmeg, ginger, juniper, menthol, cinnamon, and pale malts. Gummy-like thickness balances out the spice notes in the mouth with more ginger and juniper, sage honey, wintergreen, and spicy malted rye. Hides its abv very well. No one spice seems to dominate the brew, which gives it a great complexity. Great brew

Pours chestnut brown with minimal head but some tight lacing. Nose- nuts, strong spice. Taste- miriad of spice- all meld together for a tasty concoction. The rye plays well with the various spices- ginger etc. Sweet malt with a strong nut flavour. Finish is clean by and large, with only some spice aftertaste and slight hop presence.

12 oz bottle Stone batch. Murky mahogany body with a nice, dense beige head. Aroma of sweet malt, some roast, lots of spices and a bit herbal as well. Flavor is sweet malt, some caramel, tea, candy sugar, spices like sage, juniper and ginger with a hint of acid. Really nice body with a lot of distinct and balanced flavors. This beer has a rich flavor with a long and slightly warm alcoholic finish. Lots of things going on here.

Bottle at Cardinal 16.9.2009. This is the new edition brewed at Nøgne Ø earlier this summer (as announced at Cardinal’s Stone Brewing event). An off white creamy sparkling head in tops a cloudy (even muddy) dark brown pour. A truly exiting aroma consisting of brown sugar, juniper berries, anis seeds, licorice, roasted nuts and herbs (sage), solvent/band aid. Creamy sweetness gives way to an alcohiloc finish - many of the flavors present during the swallow. Recommended.