I got a bottle of this from my Secret Santa at work before Christmas. Lucky me! I loves me a good Samuel Smith’s.

Appearance: Clear, deep amber tinged with gold—like a dark honey. Fluffy smooth head, white-beige.

Smell: Clean, with a rich malt and low hop profile that reminds me of an old ale. Some delicate floral notes.

Taste: There’s a sour note—kind of lactic but more an acidity from roasted or black malt. Some spiciness, a hint of heat from alcohol. Old leather. Hops are very dry. Nice pale/bitter base.

Mouthfeel: Clean and smooth with a sour astringency at the back. Not thick, but not watery.

Overall: It’s good, but maybe I’m just more used to the stronger, more "out there" American styles these days; for a winter warmer this strikes me as bland.

On BeerAdvocate it scores 83, with 93% approval. On RateBeer, it scores 3.24 out of 5, and is in the 64th percentile.