Winters Bourbon Cask Ale

Brewed by Anheuser-Busch InBev
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
St. Louis, Missouri USA

Golden-amber colour. Vanilla nose. Flavor is mostly vanilla as well. Sweet and light with hints of caramel. Actually, it’s got enough balance to be fairly drinkable, much better than other vanilla-oriented macro fare like GI Lion’s Winter Ale.

Burnt amber in color, a bit thin in body compared to the flavor. Big time vanilla aroma and flavor. I think this would have been much better if they upped the alcohol and made it a bit chunkier in body.

Bottle. Pours a medium brown with thin head. Aroma is full of caramel malt, some vanilla. Flavor is on the sweeter side, malty, mostly caramel, and strongly vanilla. Slightly buttery as well, with only just the faintest hint of oak, if any. This one should be called vanilla ale. Not really all that bad considering the brewer.

Sampled from a 12 oz brown bottle this beer poured a fizzy chestnut color with a large caramel colored head. The aroma was tangy vanilla and root beer. The flavor was strong artificial vanilla followed by an overwhelming bitterness and a toasted marshmallow undertone. The finish is sour, tangy and bitter. There is some effort here but the beer falls short.

Draft. Poured a clear dark amber with a small creamy white head that diminished quickly but did leave fair lacing. Light roasted malt aroma. Medium body. Light bitter sweet flavor with a short small cask finish.

Bottle poured dark amber with a nice head. Aroma is sweet and nutty with a hint of vamilla. Flavor is sweet malts, caramel, vanilla and fruits. Not bad.

12 oz bottle from a distributor friend. Not for resale black and white label. Pours ruby-amber with minimal head. Light fig and malt aroma. The flavor is nothing to write home about, and I attribute the drinkablity to the fact that I was already intoxicated. The first and second time I had this I poured it out. This time I seem to have been more forgiving. Malty with hints of fig and dried fruit. I also note fake caramel flavoring, butterscotch, vanilla, and just maybe a hint of that bourbon they allude to (but cheep). Body is medium and slick. Oh well, I’m glad I only have a bottle or two of this left. I’ll send it out for trades as a labeling novelty.

Sampled at Broudy’s Holiday Beerfest 12/2/2006, Jacksonville FL. AB almost got it right with this one. Decent flavors but a bit artificial tasting, and a little cheap tasting. Still, its drinkable and OK, and a damn sight better than I expected from AB.