Holiday Ale Review

Now that the holidays are over (what day is this?), the Holiday Ale is ready to drink if still a bit premature. This spiced beer has been a long time in the making. I recall making it with a friend one evening during a debate between Barak Obama and John McCain. Shit, that's like 3 dog years ago! I think that it will actually take another 3-4 months to be really ready and probably peak around christmas time.

Although it is quite good now, the flavors need time to mellow, blend, and overall smoothen out. The beer is almost black but retains a high degree of clarity. I would definately describe the flavor as sweet and heady. I taste smoked nuts, pumpkin, clover and a very low grade cinnamon banana (almost phenolic) flavor. The alchohol content is rather high for what I usually brew at around 9 or 10 percent. This is definately not a session beer and I'm glad that we bottled everything in pint-32oz bottles. While I would not keg this beer, I think it will make great gifts for friends and fellow drinkers. As an incredibly "spicy" beer, I think it would do better on its own, or with an appetizer or dessert, rather than with a main course.