Archives : 2005
Advent Beer Calendar: Day 24 (Final!): Samichlaus
December 24th, 2005
Well, for the final day on the Advent Calendar, it’s Samichlaus, of course! "Samichlaus" means Santa Claus, so I can’t think of a better beer for our final day and for Christmas Eve. I’ve written about it before, so it’s no surprise I think highly of this beer. In general, though, you’ll either love it or hate it.
When I wrote about this last year, the BeerAdvocate score was 88; now it’s dropped a point to 87, though it has a 94% approval rating.
It’s been fun writing the Beer Advent Calendar this month, I hope everyone enjoyed it. If I don’t get back on tomorrow for a bit, have a Merry Christmas!
Advent Beer Calendar: Day 23: Gritty McDuff’s Christmas Ale
December 23rd, 2005
I picked today’s beer simply because I liked the name: Gritty McDuff’s Christmas Ale. I don’t really know much else about it, but the website says:
Our Christmas Ale is a robust E.S.B. (Extra Special Bitter) full of holiday cheer. Christmas Ale has a lovely, dark red/amber color and a rich, full-bodied, malty taste with a slightly roasted undertone…. Gritty’s Christmas Ale has no additives, fruits or spices. It’s just a good honest ale, perfect for the season.
On BeerAdvocate it’s racked up a decent 86, with 95% approval. (Only three of those reviews are from this year, however.)
Sounds like a decent beer. And the name "Gritty McDuff" just makes me smile. 
Advent Beer Calendar: Day 22: Holiday Spice Lager
December 22nd, 2005
Today’s beer is Holiday Spice Lager from Lakefront Brewery in Wisconsin. You don’t see too many lagers as holiday beers (or at least, I haven’t come across many while doing this), especially one as potent as this: brewed with honey, oranges and spices, it weighs in at an astounding 9.5% alcohol by volume! The website says:
This beer uses two pounds of honey per pound of malt in its brew, making it an exceptional fortified holiday specialty beer which will keep for years. The spices and hops balance the sweetness of the honey and malt to give this lightly hopped beer its perfect flavor.
Wow. That’s a serious beer. BeerAdvocate scores it 88, with 97% approval. Most of the reviews I looked at agree that this beer is heavy on the spices, though not in a detrimental way, and the high alcohol content is well-hidden. I guess that means you’d better watch out when drinking this if you don’t already know how strong it is.
Advent Beer Calendar: Day 21: Old Jubilation Ale
December 21st, 2005
Today’s nod goes to Old Jubilation Ale from Avery Brewing Company in Colorado. It’s a big beer; at 8% alcohol by volume, the site says it’s "cellarable" for two years. My kind of beer!
Sounds like a winner, too: the website describes "a hint of hazelnuts, and a finish reminiscent of mocha and toffee." And on BeerAdvocate, where it scores 87 with 99% approval, a number of reviews mention toffee, hazelnuts, coffee, sweet fruits, and chocolate.
That’s a nice thing about beers like this, and the holiday beers in general: complexity. These beers are meant to be savored and enjoyed, not guzzled down like their lighter brethren.
Only three more days left!
Advent Beer Calendar: Day 20: Boulevard Nutcracker Ale
December 20th, 2005
Sorry for the late post! Since it’s late, it’ll be a shorter one, too.
Today I picked Boulevard Nutcracker Ale from Boulevard Brewing Company in Kansas City, Missouri. It looks to be a medium-amber winter warmer, at 6.1% alcohol. Their website says it’s a "classic winter ale, deep amber in color, with hints of molasses."
BeerAdvocate rates it at a solid 85 (out of 100), with 100% approval. Sounds good to me! (Anyone want to send me some?)
Advent Beer Calendar: Day 19: La Choulette de Noël
December 19th, 2005
I picked today’s beer based on a glowing review by Alan of A Good Beer Blog: La Choulette De Noël. However, this won’t be a beer for the faint of heart, I think; Alan writes:
Dark copper ale under an off-white creamy rich head. The aroma is horse blanket which sat in rotting potato peels for a week. Sound disgusting? It is not but that is French country ale – beer for people who eat blue cheese and the flesh of horses. A touch of fig and date below and a bit of nut, too. Hazelnut cracked shell – dry and dusty within the richness.
And over on BeerAdvocate, this review note caught my eye:
The idea here seems to be "transparency" — what some may describe as "thinness." The point is to capture natural, ordained flavor in the most discreetly textured medium possible. On that measure, this is a stunning success.
It scores 85 over there, with 96% thumbs-up.
After reading the reviews, I’m coveting this beer. It would be, as Alan says, "the prize."
Advent Beer Calendar: Day 18: Winter Solstice Seasonal Ale
December 18th, 2005
Back to America again with today’s beer, Anderson Valley’s Winter Solstice Seasonal Ale. I’ve enjoyed Anderson Valley’s beer in the past (they brew a good amber), but haven’t had this one. They say:
Luscious, creamy, smooth, and warming, this medium bodied ale is brewed with Caramel and crystal malts to give it just a hint of sweetness, then paired with our private blend of holiday spice.
It racks up a score of 85 on BeerAdvocate, 95% approval. It sits at a hefty 6.9% alcohol.
Anderson Valley’s website indicates that Winter Solstice is "going fast," so you’d probably better grab a bottle if you see it. Unless you think that’s just marketing hype… but you could grab a bottle anyway.
Advent Beer Calendar: Day 17: Mahr’s Christmas Bock
December 17th, 2005
I didn’t realize until today that I hadn’t included any German beers on the Beer Advent Calendar… so I’ll rectify that now. Mahr’s Christmas Bock is today’s selection.
Based on the BeerAdvocate profile (the website is all German, with no English that I can find), this is a malty maibock style weighing in at 6.5% alcohol by volume. It’s not a typical holiday beer; one review notes:
You have to love the Germans. While everyone else is putting out holiday ales that are either spiced or hopped to the heavens, the Deutschland takes this time of year to put out a malt bomb.
And another says,
I don’t know what makes this a ‘Christmas’ bock, as nothing in this beer really stands out. But taken all together – it is mighty fine.
It scores a respectable 84 with 96% approval.
Advent Beer Calendar: Day 16: Santa’s Private Reserve
December 16th, 2005
Today we have Santa’s Private Reserve from the incomparable Rogue Brewery here in Oregon. This beer is essentially a double-hopped St. Rogue Red, including "a mystery hop called Rudolph". But don’t let that fool you; if you find this beer, you’ll be in for a treat.
It scores 87 on BeerAdvocate, with 99% approval. It also has more positive and 4+ (out of 5) scores on the first page of reviews than any other beer I’ve looked up so far, I think. The same holds true on the second and third pages, too… though frankly, that’s what I would expect from a Rogue Ale.
…Yes, in my opinion they’re that good. I do wish they would brew more seasonals, though. Perhaps next year…
This beer clocks in at 6% alcohol—not huge, but consider that you’ll likely find this in 22-ounce bottles… meaning, you’ll feel the kick when you’re done with one!
Best beers in the world?
December 15th, 2005Kind of a provocative title… but that’s what Men’s Journal has published: Best Beers in the World. It’s a bold list; I don’t know about their categorization (Lagers & Pilsners, Ales & Bitters, Belgian Beers, Dark Beers and Summer Beers)—I’d be more inclined to rate based on actual style (best porters, IPAs, lambics, etc.)—but they seem to have a decent spread of beers.
Including the obvious picks, like Guinness Stout and Celebrator Doppelbock.
Via Slashfood.
Advent Beer Calendar: Day 15: Old Fezziwig Ale
December 15th, 2005
We’re over halfway to Christmas and through the Beer Advent Calendar… today I picked Samuel Adams Old Fezziwig Ale. It’s not a beer you find on its own anymore, but in Sam Adams’ Winter Classics 12-packs. According to the web site, this is the "Christmas cookie of beer," brewed with cinnamon, ginger and orange peel and weighs in at 5.9% alcohol.
On BeerAdvocate it scores 85, with 97% approval. A lot of the reviews talk about how sweet the beer is, along with the strong spice characteristics imparted by the cinnamon and orange peel, in particular.
Sam Adams offers several holiday beers, not to mention their "extreme" beers… selecting just one was tricky—mostly since I haven’t tried their holiday offerings! But the Holiday Porter looked good, too… who knows, maybe that’ll show up on this list before it’s over.
Advent Beer Calendar: Day 14: Full Sail Wassail
December 14th, 2005
Ahh, Full Sail Brewing—one of the flagship breweries of Oregon. And their Wassail is a nice festive selection for today. Wassail is brewed "with four different malts and a blend of imported hops," and has 6.5% alcohol by volume.
BeerAdvocate: 86 (out of 100) with 96% thumbs-up. In the interest of fairness, though, I’ll point out that on the first page of reviews, there is the widest disparity between two reviewers that I’ve seen: one gives a score of 1.65 (out of 5), the other 4.5. The low review says:
I can’t believe I’m drinking the same beer as other people, or the same beer as I’ve had in years past, for that matter. This beer is, in a word, lame. And sad. And pretty close to tasteless.
Whereas the high-end review says, "The taste is pure heaven…malt, cinnamon, more malt, chocolate. Lots of volume, and nothing left behind. The flavor just goes on and on…. I absolutely love this beer. Superb!"
Go figure. I’ll say this though: I’ve never been disappointed with this beer. It’s definitely worth it if you can find it.
The Pivo Site (beer in 78 languages)
December 13th, 2005Via Hail the Ale! comes this fun link: Beer in 78 languages. Some artificial languages, too.
Arabic — beereh (biræ)
Chinese (Mandarin) — pi jiu
Esperanto — biero
Hawaiian — pia
Japanese — biiru
Russian — pivo
"Pivo" appears not only in Russian, but in Azerbaijani, Croatian, Czech, Macedonian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovene, and Ukrainian as well. I kind of like it.
Bonus: "awje" in Klingon (literally "root beer"… I couldn’t find just "beer").
Advent Beer Calendar: Day 13: Alaskan Winter Ale
December 13th, 2005
Today I selected the Winter Ale from the always-reliable Alaskan Brewing Company. This beer has the distinguishing quality of being brewed with spruce tips—yes, spruce tips from trees. Why?
From the seafaring adventurers of the 1700’s to the homebrewers of today, adding spruce tips to beer has a rich history in Southeast Alaska. The tender new growth of Sitka spruce tips lends a delicious, yet subtly sweet floral aroma to tea, jelly and now Alaskan Winter Ale.
Spruce beers are one of those rare styles that originated in Colonial North America (U.S. and Canada); spruce was often used in place of hops (when hops were lacking) and as a flavoring agent. I’ve heard that a flavor characteristic of a spruce beer is Pepsi-like, though I can’t vouch for that.
There’s a good overall score of 85 on BeerAdvocate, with 95% thumbs-up, though there are several unfavorable reviews.
The Alaskan web site also offers food recommendations (and you know I like those):
Serve with roast goose, turkey, ham or lamb. A nice complement to holiday breads pound cake, or apple pie.
Advent Beer Calendar: Day 12: Fantôme Spéciale De Noël
December 12th, 2005
Today’s pick is from Belgium: Fantôme Spéciale De Noël. This monster has 10% alcohol by volume, and this strength is not for the faint of heart—if you don’t like barleywines, it’s probable that you won’t like this, either.
Part of the reason I picked it is because I rather liked the name; literally translated (ignoring the obvious "special" part), it becomes "Ghost of Christmas" or "Christmas Ghost." I like the Dickensian Christmas Carol sound of that, although the label is a little more cartoony than the "ghost of Christmas future" image floating around in my head.
BeerAdvocate gives it a score of 88, with a solid 99% approval rating. From reading the reviews I think you can expect an atypically-strong Belgian beer through-and-through. Here’s a sample:
The flavor was smooth as silk with a nice caramel maltiness coupled with dark fruit flavors of raisins, figs, prunes and plums. The bittering from the hops balanced the flavors and kept the malt charge in check. The flavor was earthy and spicy and well achieved. The complexity was very, very nice and those same bready aromas came forth in the flavor.
Sounds excellent.
