The Tale of Two Christmas Ales

Tis the season to be on the hunt for the best of the best Winter Warmers.  I have tried several (shocking, I know) and to my delight I have not tossed any in the sink in disgust. 

Just to list a few...

Iron Hill Brewery - Winter Warmer

Flying Dog - K-9 Cruiser Winter Ale

Harpoon - Winter Warmer (My ultimate favorite)

Lancaster Brewing Company - Winter Warmer

All of the brews were pretty tasty and the Harpoon Winter Warmer is FANTASTIC! I serve it in a glass rimmed with a little simple syrup dipped in cinnamon and sugar.  Pure Christmas Bliss.

I would have liked to review each Winter Warmer but I decided  to pick just two and I thought the two with the same name was the ticket.  Christmas Ale by Great Lakes Brewery and St.Louis Brewery/Schlafly Bottleworks.

St.Louis Brewey/Schafly Bottleworks

Christmas Ale - 8% ABV

I happen to see it in the make your own six pack and thought, what the hell.  In the cart it went with a few other treasures. 

Hello, Christmas in a bottle!!!  Really!  I opened the bottle and instantly smelled orange and cloves.  The color of this bottle of Noel was a rich amber with a small creamy head.  It did not hold the head for long but it had a decent amount of carbonation.

I was not too sure with the orange action oozing from the bottle but the fist sip proved my intuition to be wrong!  What a well balanced, sweet, yet not too sweet, spiced, fruity, and just a drinkable beer. Oh, and with a respectable ABV of 8% I was feeling mighty festive after three bottles.

Great Lakes Brewing Company

Christmas Ale - 7.5% ABV

Even though they share the same name the two beers are completely different.  The Schafly Christmas Ale had an orange flavor that lingered with some clove but this number used honey, ginger, and cinnamon.  Great Lakes once again did not let me down.

After I emptied the bottle out into a glass. the head rose to at least 3 fingers high.  When the head slowly shrank a beautiful copper colored ale was left in the glass. 

The taste was constantly evolving.  I instantly tasted ginger, then honey, and last cinnamon.  The three flavors melted together to produce a well brewed ale.  Again, with a nice 7.5% ABV it left you no choice to feel all warm and fuzzy for Christmas.

So, if some of you faithful readers want to try a good Winter Warmer instead of trying to hide that obnoxious Elf on the Shelf try some of my picks!

Cherrs!

~K~





Hey, Guess What?

Hey guys, we are trying something new here. Well, not really, we've kind of been doing this for years already. You know, drinking and bitching and being us. A few months ago we figured you may as well benefit from our ridiculousness, so that brings us to our new endeavor: A blog about beer, booze, bitchiness and life as we all know it. You can visit us for beer reviews, Wino Wednesdays, and a few surprises in between. We guarantee it won't be boring. And we promise you'll never know what we'll try next. You will be hearing from both of us, Gab and Kath, as we give you our balls-to-the wall true opinion on what we sample and experience.

Without further ado, we'd like to tell you about Flying Dog Gonzo Imperial Porter. Described as  "Dark, Malty and Mysterious", we do not exactly like-y this the same. With an alcohol content of 9.2% and an IBU of 85, it is not for everyone.

Gab: The first sip offered a good deal of bitterness and malt that mellowed after the third sip. I REALLY like this beer. Full-flavored and not too heavy, but I would not drink this with food. Maybe a nice, sharp cheddar. I would rate this a GBF (Gab Buzz Factor) of 7. It hit my head after the 2nd sip, happiness all around.

Kath: Yeah, I was not so tickled pink as Gab was over this beer. At first I was like uhhh...WTF. But after the second swig I was ok with the malt action.  I do not think it would be a beer I could drink all day but maybe a pint or 3 would be sufficient. My KBF (Kath Buzz Factor - in case you did not get Gab's explanation) it was like a 4.  Apparently my sister had a grape today and she got jacked up fast. NO COMMENT!

Gab rebuttal: Okay. This is like the 3rd beer we've sampled and I am ready to raid my fridge and make all kinds of mistakes! I'm a wino at heart, so if a beer hits me like a Sauv Blanc that walks in boots and is yummy, then I am happy. 'Nuff said.

That's all for today. What have you guys tried today? Let us know in the comments. And if you agree/disagree with our opinions of the Flying Dog Gonzo Imperial Porter, let us know, too! If you'd like us to try/review one of your faves, give us a hollah!