In this episode, I sit in front of the fabulous Christmas that my son picked to enjoy two fine winter offerings. The first is from a brewery that represents one of the two exciting things about Cleveland, Ohio (the other is leaving). Great Lakes Brewing Company Christmas Ale is a gem of an ale. The second comes from western New York’s Southern Tier Brewing Company and is delicious in its own right.

Great Lakes Christmas Ale is an A-
Southern Tier Old Man Winter is a B

It’s getting to be the time of year when “Winter Ales” and “Seasonal Brews” become popular.  I’m not a big fan of the typical Microbrew Christmas Ale which has a tendency to reek of gingerbread cookies and cloves.  This beer, which I enjoyed on a recent brisk night in Shanghai, at the awesome Kaiba on Kanding Lu,  was an interesting beer which I quite enjoyed.  Very Belgian, Not Particularly Christmassy, Quite Tasty and Quite Potent.

Brouwerij Huyghe is reportedly one of the oldest continuing operating breweries in Belgium, and you will quickly pick out their Delerium line of Bieres from the distinctive Faux Ceramic white bottles and the trippy pink elephant which graces each bottle.

Upon pouring this beer, you will see a unique cloudy reddish brown ale.  The head rose up a solid 2 cm, brown & tannish, but quickly relaxed back into the brew, leaving nice lacing on the glass, and opening the bouquet up to the nose.  The initial nose is pretty sweet but hard to pin down —  is it raisins? Honey? Maple?  You will also see a fair amount of yeast, typical for a Belgian ale.

Taste is complex as one might expect, with interwoven fruit right up front.  I picked up cherry and maybe esters of an orange peel, but neither were overpowering.  Thankfully for me, Grandma’s cookie mix was way back in the mix and any spice or coriander was very very subdued.  You also get a softer caramel flavor, and all of this is held down and held together by a pretty nice and comfy warm roasted malt blanket.

It’s got reasonably stiff carbonation and I found it surprisingly easy to drink, given the 10% ABV.  I actually enjoyed it quite a bit more as it warmed up closer to room temperature and the flavors opened up.  My main disappointment with this beer was that the feel was slightly thin and it wasn’t as thick or creamy in the mouth as I would have expected.  The flavor is quite balanced and you would never suspect that it was a 10% ABV if you didn’t know.

This isn’t a beer that I would session on a regular basis, but I found it to be a high quality , complex and enjoyable beer that I would love to try again on a nice cool evening.

@JeffreyJDavis