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Anchor Steam Our Christmas Ale-their 35th one! This really looks and tastes like a porter with a mahogany color and very slightly cloudy. The ingredients are "secret" each year but most of these taste like dark caramel and milk chocolate to me with some spruce. Mild hop presence and I'd guess the IBU to be 30-40 and the ABV to be about 6%, This makes a fine after dinner/evening brew and would be good with butterscotch/caramel or milk chocolate desserts.

German beer, toasted almond ice cream. Ymm!

OZZIE4DUKE wrote:German beer, toasted almond ice cream. Ymm!

Looks like you got a double dipping with that post/picture...

In more ways than one... :roll:

OZZIE4DUKE wrote:German beer, toasted almond ice cream. Ymm!

I'll bet that was tasty!

The only thing that might be bad about that would be if your nuts ended up in the bottom of the glass.

(yes, the door is WIDE open there, folks...)

devildeac wrote:

OZZIE4DUKE wrote:German beer, toasted almond ice cream. Ymm!

I'll bet that was tasty!

The only thing that might be bad about that would be if your nuts ended up in the bottom of the glass.

(yes, the door is WIDE open there, folks...)

No, no nuts!

OZZIE4DUKE wrote:

devildeac wrote:

OZZIE4DUKE wrote:German beer, toasted almond ice cream. Ymm!

I'll bet that was tasty!

The only thing that might be bad about that would be if your nuts ended up in the bottom of the glass.

(yes, the door is WIDE open there, folks...)

No, no nuts!

Oh, OK. I just ASSumed that toasted almond ice cream would have slivered almond bits in it.

devildeac wrote:

OZZIE4DUKE wrote:

devildeac wrote:"quote="OZZIE4DUKE""German beer, toasted almond ice cream. Ymm!"/quote"
I'll bet that was tasty!

The only thing that might be bad about that would be if your nuts ended up in the bottom of the glass.

(yes, the door is WIDE open there, folks...)

No, no nuts!

Oh, OK. I just ASSumed that toasted almond ice cream would have slivered almond bits in it.

You two are killing me!!!!

cl15876 wrote:

devildeac wrote:

OZZIE4DUKE wrote: No, no nuts!

Oh, OK. I just ASSumed that toasted almond ice cream would have slivered almond bits in it.

You two are killing me!!!!

At least I didn't ask Ozzie if he liked his nuts chopped, diced or crushed... :roll:

devildeac wrote:

cl15876 wrote:

devildeac wrote:"quote="OZZIE4DUKE""
No, no nuts!"/quote"
Oh, OK. I just ASSumed that toasted almond ice cream would have slivered almond bits in it.

You two are killing me!!!!

At least I didn't ask Ozzie if he liked his nuts chopped, diced or crushed... :roll:

Breckenridge Christmas Ale-Never had this before but will be enjoyed again. This will be in a trader or two soon. A mahogany colored American old ale as it is referred to on their site, this has a medium tan head, 4 malts and 2 hops so the balance is shifted to a chocolate caramel taste with little bitterness. This is supported with the IBU rating of 22. The ABV is 7.4% and not boozey. I think this would be great with a slice of fruitcake, bread pudding or pecan pie. Wouldn't be too shabby at a keyboard either writing a post for CTN either . No spices here so I thought about Ebenezer Ale and Jubelale when I shared this with my son over the weekend.

Left Hand Warrior IPA-enjoying the 2nd half of this bomber tonight. This is a fresh hop brew with freshly harvested hops, including Warrior and Cascade. I like the Sierra Nevada and Great Divide fresh/wet hop ales a bit better but this is well done also with spruce and floral notes smoothed nicely with pale, crystal and, a bit surprisingly, wheat malts. Golden-yellow color and clear with a moderate head and a healthy IBU of 60 with an ABV of 6.6%. Serve this with some mildly spicy fare.

The very large Christmas elf arrived from Lexington last PM bearing glad tidings and lots of fancy arse ales. Santa Chris arrives at Total Wine in less than an hour for more beer trading.

Hey rmd and bluebear, tonight is vertical session tonight at the devildeac household. On deck will be:

1. Bigfoot 2005 and 2006
2. Samichlaus 2004 and 2006 (I have no idea where 2005 went. I remember the brewery changing hands/ownership several years ago and a year when they did not brew it, even considering discontinuing it completely. There was quite an outcry and they started brewing it again so I think that is why I missed a year. )

Care to join us? If so, let me know and I'll pull out another bottle or two .

Oh, and for the nightcap (or perhaps the "appetizer") ale, we will be sharing one of the 2 bottles of Founder's Backwoods Bastard that Lavabe found in Lexington.

devildeac wrote:Hey rmd and bluebear, tonight is vertical session tonight at the devildeac household. On deck will be:

1. Bigfoot 2005 and 2006
2. Samichlaus 2004 and 2006 (I have no idea where 2005 went. I remember the brewery changing hands/ownership several years ago and a year when they did not brew it, even considering discontinuing it completely. There was quite an outcry and they started brewing it again so I think that is why I missed a year. )

Care to join us? If so, let me know and I'll pull out another bottle or two .

Oh, and for the nightcap (or perhaps the "appetizer") ale, we will be sharing one of the 2 bottles of Founder's Backwoods Bastard that Lavabe found in Lexington.

WOW...I don't think jealous fully captures my thoughts on this line-up...I could join you with the backwoods bastard (still have a few of those) but I have nothing close to the rest of those..I can't wait to hear how the 04 Samichlaus is..I try to grab one of those each winter though haven't snagged one yet this year...Again, WOW..we need full details here after the holiday...

It's a very quiet christmas eve in the bluebear household..My wife, son, and dog are all asleep already and I'll soon be cracking open an 06 Old Crusty...

bluebear wrote:

devildeac wrote:Hey rmd and bluebear, tonight is vertical session tonight at the devildeac household. On deck will be:

1. Bigfoot 2005 and 2006
2. Samichlaus 2004 and 2006 (I have no idea where 2005 went. I remember the brewery changing hands/ownership several years ago and a year when they did not brew it, even considering discontinuing it completely. There was quite an outcry and they started brewing it again so I think that is why I missed a year. )

Care to join us? If so, let me know and I'll pull out another bottle or two .

Oh, and for the nightcap (or perhaps the "appetizer") ale, we will be sharing one of the 2 bottles of Founder's Backwoods Bastard that Lavabe found in Lexington.

WOW...I don't think jealous fully captures my thoughts on this line-up...I could join you with the backwoods bastard (still have a few of those) but I have nothing close to the rest of those..I can't wait to hear how the 04 Samichlaus is..I try to grab one of those each winter though haven't snagged one yet this year...Again, WOW..we need full details here after the holiday...

It's a very quiet christmas eve in the bluebear household..My wife, son, and dog are all asleep already and I'll soon be cracking open an 06 Old Crusty...

I will buy a 4 pack of the Samichlaus annually and, you guessed it, have one that winter and then cellar the rest. That way my $16 four pack (now $18 ) will last 3-4 years :roll: .

That '06 Old Crusty sounds mighty tasty also. Too late for a plane ride for me tonight... Review tomorrow?

When CB&B, Lavabe and I talked about our purchases this afternoon, your name came up more than once and I kept calling you "bluebeer." CB&B said he would change your screen name...

Have a very Merry Christmas.

We did indeed complete the flight/vertical tasting tonight with the following selections:

1. Bigfoot 2005
2. Bigfoot 2006
3. Backwoods Bastard
4. Samichlaus 2004
5. Samichlaus 2006

Reviews to follow. The keyboard looks verrrrryy fuzzy now and the letters keep moving about... :roll:

Anchor's "Our Special Ale".
Gotta give a bit of history from the label.

This is the thirty-fifth "Our Special Ale" from the brewers at Anchor. It is sold only from early November to mid-January. The Ale's recipe is different ever year, but the intent with which we offer remains the same: joy and celebration of the newness of life. Since ancient times, trees have symbolized the winter solstice when the earth, with its seasons, appears born anew.

So unfortunately, that means that next year you can't buy what the have this year. Fortunately for me, through some enjoyable trading yesterday with Lavabe and DD, I have two from 2009. Whenever I have two of anything I think "cool, drink one now, review the other later". Well, the other will be reviewed next year..maybe..in comparison, now knowing that I won't see this again. Deep reddish brown in color, if it were offered to me blind I'd assume a porter, until I tasted it. Very sweet, with spices that I'm struggling to define. But that's ok, I don't have to know what's in a beer to enjoy it. Very fruity, reminiscent of a barley wine...except very low on the ABV. At 5.5% this is an incredible session beer, and you wouldn't expect it from the flavors and aroma. Low bitterness...I'd be surprised at more than 30 IBUs, this is the result of a brewmaster having lots of fun with malts and spice. The bottle says "brewed with natural flavors and natural flavors added". That explains a lot, because I don't think a brewer could get this taste unless something was added after the boil. No idea what they used to bring this ale to completion, but it works very well, and sings of the holiday season. Looking forward to seeing if DD can pin down what might be in this bottle.

CameronBornAndBred wrote:Anchor's "Our Special Ale".
Gotta give a bit of history from the label.

This is the thirty-fifth "Our Special Ale" from the brewers at Anchor. It is sold only from early November to mid-January. The Ale's recipe is different ever year, but the intent with which we offer remains the same: joy and celebration of the newness of life. Since ancient times, trees have symbolized the winter solstice when the earth, with its seasons, appears born anew.

So unfortunately, that means that next year you can't buy what the have this year. Fortunately for me, through some enjoyable trading yesterday with Lavabe and DD, I have two from 2009. Whenever I have two of anything I think "cool, drink one now, review the other later". Well, the other will be reviewed next year..maybe..in comparison, now knowing that I won't see this again. Deep reddish brown in color, if it were offered to me blind I'd assume a porter, until I tasted it. Very sweet, with spices that I'm struggling to define. But that's ok, I don't have to know what's in a beer to enjoy it. Very fruity, reminiscent of a barley wine...except very low on the ABV. At 5.5% this is an incredible session beer, and you wouldn't expect it from the flavors and aroma. Low bitterness...I'd be surprised at more than 30 IBUs, this is the result of a brewmaster having lots of fun with malts and spice. The bottle says "brewed with natural flavors and natural flavors added". That explains a lot, because I don't think a brewer could get this taste unless something was added after the boil. No idea what they used to bring this ale to completion, but it works very well, and sings of the holiday season. Looking forward to seeing if DD can pin down what might be in this bottle.

I don't have any damn clue whatsoever about the ingredients that the folks at Anchor put in their Our Christmas Ale this year. Nor have I had any clues over about the last 10+ years since I've been buying it. Well, maybe one year I thought that they brewed it with some evergreen/spruce actually added. It will age well for at least a year as I have done that in the past several times. The color does not vary much from year to year and the flavors don't vary much either but it is undoubtedly a different brew/flavor every year. I haven't missed many of these over the last decade or more. Glad you enjoyed it.

Great Lakes Glockenspiel...a neat trader from the visit I had with Lavabe and DD this weekend. A weizenbock, it's a light brown, high octane ale, very fruity with a bite. The bottle says "plum-colored and full-bodied"; I disagree with both of those statements. I don't think it has enough body to call it "full-bodied" as it pours and stirs very freely. As I said, the color is a light brown, and while the label makes no mention of it, I enjoy the nuttiness that I detect. It comes across as a high ABV New Castle with spice. The head makes a quick tan presence, and poof! it's gone. Low carbonation, but pretty bitter, with that bite that I first detected hanging around for a bit. A good ale, worth visiting on a cold holiday evening, especially if you are looking for something slightly different.

CameronBornAndBred wrote:Great Lakes Glockenspiel...a neat trader from the visit I had with Lavabe and DD this weekend. A weizenbock, it's a light brown, high octane ale, very fruity with a bite. The bottle says "plum-colored and full-bodied"; I disagree with both of those statements. I don't think it has enough body to call it "full-bodied" as it pours and stirs very freely. As I said, the color is a light brown, and while the label makes no mention of it, I enjoy the nuttiness that I detect. It comes across as a high ABV New Castle with spice. The head makes a quick tan presence, and poof! it's gone. Low carbonation, but pretty bitter, with that bite that I first detected hanging around for a bit. A good ale, worth visiting on a cold holiday evening, especially if you are looking for something slightly different.

Just took a bath while enjoying an Avery "Old Jubilation" (another trader, had it before plenty and always enjoyed) and it struck me how similar the two ales are. The Avery is a little better in every category...body, flavor, head retention, aroma...but they really are very close, and make a good comparison.