Scaldis Noël

Scaldis is a brand known as Bush over in it's home continent. Like Czechvar, Bush was forced to rename themselves in order to export to North America. This beer is brewed at Brasserie Dubuisson, a brewery which has been run independantly by the Brasserie family in Belgium for 8 generations. So far most holiday beers I've seen have been available in the usual 12 oz bottles, or in the larger magnum-sized 750ml bottles. The Scaldis Noël however, comes in a smaller 25 cl bottles, or about 8.5 oz. This is probably partially because of it's higher than average ABV, weighing in at 12% and tying it with the Insanely Bad Elf for the strongest Christmas beer I've had yet.

The beer poured a medium colored brown that is slightly hazy. A vigorous pour yeilded a half-finger of off-white head that dissipated quickly leaving only a ring of bubbles around the edge. I was wondering if I should have used a different glass for this beer as it appeared to have relatively low carbonation, so a glass with less surface area on the bottom than a Chimay chalice may have been more effective. Still, it's the glass recommended by Beer Advocate, and the Bush glass is roughly the same shape. Once I tasted it, I realized it had a higher carbonation than it appeared to have.

The aroma was that of a darker fruit, perhaps a plumb or a fig. It definitely has some sort of rounder and smoother scent to it than the more usual smells of cherry or citrus that are often associated with beers. There's also a slightly earthy quality to it. I definitely noticed a bit of alcohol in the smell as well, but it's not as obvious as it was with the Insanely Bad Elf. There's a hint of grain in there as well, a bit of wheat or barley smell.

The taste was hard to describe at first. There was a little bitterness in the center of the tongue, and some warmth going down. The initial aftertaste had a light spicy kick to it just a second after it was swallowed. On the second sip I noticed more of a sweetness around the edge of my tongue, and it's got a fruity quality to it. I also tasted a little breadyness to it as well. The beer actually reminds me a bit of the homemade bread my mom used to make, only colder. There's a touch of alcohol in the taste as well, but not nearly as much as would be expected for the strength of it. This beer hides it well, and has a nice balance to it.

The beer has a medium body, and is a little on the thick side at first, but as I noted before it actually had a decent amount of carbonation. There was enough for a pleasant tingle on the tongue and the roof of my mouth. The beer left a thin coating on my mouth that lasted a while. The warmth from the alcohol stayed down in my throat, right about where it meets the chest. It wasn't a very good feeling.

The drinkability of the beer was good overall. It was very different in taste from the other beers I've had, and it hides it's strength well. The only place it really lost any points was with it's mouthfeel, specifically the way the alcohol burned. It actually felt pretty similar to heartburn. If I was judging by taste alone, this would have been one of my top beers of Christmas, maybe even the best so far. As it is, the mouthfeel made it just good. I don't know if what I experienced was a common occurance, so I'll try it again next year. I gave Dan a bottle as well, so I'm hoping it was just me. We'll see when he cracks it.

- Adam

Samuel Smith's Winter Welcome Ale

For those of you that have read early posts of mine, you'd know that Samuel Smith's Taddy Porter was one of my favorite beers. As such I was excited to learn that they had a winter warmer line. In fact, Merchant Du Vin, the beer's US distributer, compares the brew to wassail, a type of mulled beer brewed the holiday season that was often spicy. It comes in a bottle that has the year on the label, and apparently the label changes every year. This bottle was brewed for the holidays of 2008-2009. I was definitely looking forward to trying this brew for Christmas this year. Sorry for the blurriness of the picture, I need a new camera badly.

The beer pours a caramel color with a slightly reddish tinge. It has an almost white head that was 1 finger thick and dissipated quickly. Still it leaves a bit of lacing on the glass, but not much.

The aroma is mainly of caramel and vanilla. However, a bready/biscuit malt scent is also apparent. I was reminded a little of nectar by the smell as well. Everything about it indicated that the beer would likely be sweet and spicy.

As indicated by the smell, the taste is indeed dominated by sweetness and a touch of spice. I'm not sure what the spice is, it's not nutmeg or cinnamon. Maybe ginger? Still, whatever it is the spice is definitely not dominant. There's also a little round bitterness to it, like you'd get from certain cheeses. The aftertaste has two parts, one is bitter and stays in the back of the mouth. The other is the spiciness that stays on the tip of the tongue and roof of the mouth. There was one thing that I didn't like about it, the bitterness seemed a bit out of place in this beer. I don't know if it was the type of bitterness or the fact that it seemed a bit disconnected from the main flavor. Still, it's quite good.

The mouthfeel is highly carbonated, a bit on the light side. There's not really any coating to speak of. It's a little warming going down, which is odd given the alcohol content, which ways in at 6%. My guess is this is from whatever the spice is. The beer is not terribly refreshing, but definitely crisp. It tingles a bit going down the back of the throat.

The drinkability of the beer is fairly high. It's got a nice flavor to it, even though it's a bit subdued. It's definitely unique, and nothing like the other Christmas beers I've had so far. I might not want to drink it all day, but I wouldn't mind a couple.

- Adam

Anchor Brewing's "Our Special Ale" 2008

Anchor Brewing, a San Francisco based brewery, has long been famous for both their Steam Beer and Liberty Ale. While i have not had a chance to try either of them, I recently picked up a "Magnum" (1Qt, 1Pt, 2.7oz) of their 2008 Christmas Ale. This is their 34th Christmas Ale since they began producing them in 1975. They say that the recipe changes each year, but "the intent with which we offer it remains the same: joy and the celebration of the newness of life." So, with that in mind, Adam and I pulled out our pint glasses, and went about tasting this and other Holiday beers.

This ale had a much darker appearance, I think, than Adam or I had anticipated. It was almost black in appearance, and only revealed its deep red tones when held to a light. Poured gently it still developed a solid two finger, tan head. The head held very well and left a nice, light lacing on the glass.

The aroma of this beer is outstanding. It smells heavily of sweet malts, and cherries. It initially reminded me of Chimay Premiere (Red Label). Going a bit deeper you begin to get a yeasty smell, and nutmeg appears, just to preview what you are about to taste.

The tongue is dominated by nutmeg and the malty flavors that came through so strongly on the nose. Given that i had to dig a bit to find the nutmeg in the aroma, I was pleasantly surprised at how present it was in the taste. As we drank more, Adam noticed a seedy flavor which I seemed to taste as a nutty component to the beer. It reminded me of walnuts. I could not find any information on the alcohol content. Traditionally a holidy beer has a relatively high ABV, such as the Mad Elf's 11%. Whatever the alcohol content, the taste of alcohol was not present at all.

This beer has a surprisingly light mouthfeel for being so dark, and a Holiday or Winter style Ale, which are both typically very heavy ales, brewed to be both filling and warming on a cold winter night. The carbonation was just right. It leaves just a little tingle on your tongue, but not enough to be overpowering.

Drinkability is high with this beer. I could easily have seen myself getting through the entire bottle on my own, a feat which i may be attempting this New Years Eve. However, for all of the ways I could describe to you how drinkable the beer is, I think that Adam put it best in his tasting notes, where he simply wrote: "Yes, Please."

Overall, this beer is Christmas. I'm certain this is largely due to the nutmeg flavor, which is associated with and present in so many Christmas desserts. I could not help but think of how well this beer would go with a big Christmas dinner. It is simply wonderful, and has put me in the Christmas Spirit.

- Dan

Tröeg's Mad Elf Ale

Tröegs is a local brewery, despite the umlaut. They're located in Harrisburg, PA, which is just west of Hershey, a mere 2 hours from where I live. Like Dogfishhead, the closest major craft brewery to me, they offer regular tours of their facility, which I'd love to visit at some point. I'm fortunate to live in one of the few states they distribute to, which are Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware and Virginia. They offer a number of year-round brews, as well as seasonal beers. The Mad Elf Ale is one of the latter, brewed for Christmas.

The beer pours a deep reddish-brown, that's clear with few bubbles in the glass. It has an off-white head that's 1 finger thick from a very vigorous pour, but it quickly dissipated to leave just a little head on the brew.

The aroma is pleasant and fills the area quickly. From a distance, the smell is sweet and dominated by cherry. Closer in there's a malty grain smell that's maybe a little on the grassy side. I also noted hints of alcohol that reveals some of the 11% ABV. The sweet smell of honey is also present.

The taste is sweet especially at first, I definitely noticed malt & honey. Not getting any bitterness really, just a light warm sensation on the tongue. The cherry is muted at first, but comes through a little more as it sits in the mouth. It's really more of a cherry liquor flavor, you can taste some of the alcohol in this one. I think I'm also getting just a touch of vanilla in the aftertaste, although I don't know why. This beer is actually reminiscent to me of the bottle of mead I purchased a while back. Probably mostly from the honey that is used in the brewing of Mad Elf. Unfortunately the honey lends a somewhat medicinal taste to the beer as well, but not so much that I would turn down a glass. I'm also a little reminded of Chimay Blue when I drink it, but I'm not sure why. The flavors also come out a bit as I go through the glass. The cherry got a little more tart and stronger.

The mouthfeel of this beer is just great. It's got a medium body with a nice balance of carbonation for just the right amount of tingle. It coats the mouth lightly, leaving just a trace of smoothness on the teeth. It's warming, not too wet or dry going down, but a little more on the dry side. A little more rounded feel than crisp.

I'd say the drinkability of this beer is not the highest. The taste is a little bit on the sweet side, so one at a time is enough. Still, it is good and even better as the glass progresses, and it's putting me in a festive mood. I'd definitely identify this with the season more than the Sierra Nevada.

- Adam