Today is Twelfth Night, the final day of the Twelve Days of Christmas, so I thought it would be fitting to post my review of From Nova Scotia With Love, the Christmas tree collaboration beer from Boston’s Harpoon Brewery and Cape Breton Island’s Big Spruce Brewing. It’s a smoked abbey-style ale inspired by—what else?—spruce trees, inspired by the tradition of Nova Scotia providing Boston with its official Christmas tree; Harpoon relates the backstory and beer details here:

Brewed in collaboration with Big Spruce Brewing, From Nova Scotia with Love is a beer brewed to celebrate the support, kindness, and quick response the City of Boston and its citizens provided after two military ships SS Imo and SS Mont-Blanc collided in the narrows of Halifax Harbor explosion in 1917. To show their gratitude, the people of Nova Scotia have since sent the people of Boston a tree which is lit in the Boston Common.

An abbey-style ale with Oak and Cherrywood smoked malts, a touch of spruce tips, and an extended conditioning in Glen Breton Single Malt Whiskey barrels from Cape Breton Island, From Nova Scotia with Love is both layered and complex with notes of dried fruit, vanilla, wood smoke, and caramel.

Harpoon sent me two cans to sample, and I’m hard-pressed to come up with many (any?) holiday-themed beers off the top of my head that are brewed with smoked malts, so I’d have to say From Nova Scotia With Love was fairly unique for me. It has 8% alcohol by volume, and 21 IBUs. My notes:

Appearance: Deep amber-brown color with a translucent glow, and off-white head.

Smell: Gentle smokiness that’s reminiscent of smoked salmon or Aecht Schlenkerla rauchbier, with a touch of cola (from the spruce?) as well as vanilla and a nuttiness. There’s a very light peaty Scotch note. Comes back to that “cold” smoked aroma which I’m enjoying.

Taste: Smoky and sprucy, really nice mellow rauch flavors with just the right amount of “tree” with a hint of watered Scotch whiskey. Some caramel notes, date sugar, biscuit malts, honey, smoked meat. Quite tasty and subtle, one of the better smoked beers I’ve had in recent memory (years? months?).

Mouthfeel: Medium-full body with good carbonation and a lingering sweet smokiness.

Overall: Tasty and well-balanced with smoked malts and just a nice call out to Scotch whiskey in a super subtle way.

It’s a good beer and one you don’t have to only drink for (whichever night of) Christmas; especially if you’re a smoked beer fan, From Nova Scotia With Love is worth seeking out.