These malty sweet offerings tend to be a favorite winter seasonal. Big malt presence, both in flavor and body. The color ranges from brownish reds to nearly pitch black. Hop bitterness is generally low, leveled and balanced, but hop character can be pronounced. Alcohol warmth is not uncommon.

Many English versions contain no spices, though some brewers of spiced winter seasonal ales will slap “Winter Warmer” on the label. Those that are spiced, tend to follow the “wassail” tradition of blending robust ales with mixed spices, before hops became the chief “spice” in beer. American varieties many have a larger presences of hops both in bitterness and flavor.

Average alcohol by volume (abv) range: 5.5-8.0%

When I started exploring and enjoying beer, one of the first big “hits” with me was a winter warmer style ale. The Moonraker Ale, by J.W. Lees & Co., introduced me to malts like I had never tasted before, and a smooth mouthfeel like I hadn’t ever experienced before. Though I’d have to go back and give it another go almost two years later, I’ve always been a huge fan of Porters, Stouts, and Winter Warmers.

So, lets see how Rob did this time!

Drinking Notes

Appearance: Mocha brown body topped by a caramel head that dissipates fairly quickly.

Smell: Very malty chocolates, toasted notes, and alcohol are detected.

Taste: I initially pulled out some peppery spices, with some lightly chocolated biscuity malts, and very mild hop character, with that alcohol warming. I felt like the chocolates and sweet cream was skimped on the taste because it was all in the scent. Room for improvement, but definitely on the right track.

Mouthfeel: Light body. clean finish. Slight coffee noted on a burp. Unfortunately I was hoping for a silky creamy thickness on the palate of this brew. This ends up being the only real disappointing character of the beer.

Drinkability: It seems to carry the warming effect of the style very well, and though it comes slightly shy on some of the flavor and palate, it is a very drinkable brew. Cheers!

The Marks

Appearance: 4.0 (20%)

Smell: 4.0 (20%)

Taste: 3.5 (40%)

Mouthfeel: 2.5 (10%)

Drinkability: 4.5 (10%)

OVERALL = 3.7 (Solid B)

From BeerAdvocate: “The Bitter style came from brewers who wanted to differentiate these ales from other mild brews, enter pale malts and more hops. Most are gold to copper in colour and are light bodied. Low carbonation. Alcohol should be low and not perceived. Hop bitterness is moderate to assertive. Most have a fruitiness in the aroma and flavor, diacetyl can also be present. These are traditionally served cask conditioned, but many breweries have bottled versions.”

I don’t think he has a name for it yet, but that doesn’t matter… Lets just cut to the chase, shall we?

The Review (Drinking Notes)

Appearance (20%) – A steady rush of carb bubbles allowing a consistent 1-finger off-white head to top a cloudy copper body. If this were filtered it would probably receive the best marks for appearance I’ve given in awhile.

Smell (20%) – Noticable sweet fruity hops on the pour smells like a pear or a mild apple, the pale malts and some roasted notes are picked up on a closer sniff.

Taste (40%) – A quick striking citrusy character hides quickly behind the toasty buttery mid. A delicious wooded fruity flavor finishes it out.

Mouthfeel (10%) – The buttery toasted flavors tend to stick to the palate, rather than the pale malts or bitter hops. It burps as a light wood. Reminds me of Autumn when the leaves are changing and you can taste the sweet dryness in the air, before it gets too cold.

Drinkability (10%) – Very enjoyable, and probably the best brew yet to come out of StubbornMan’s home brewery. It had a lot of character, nice flavor variation over the range of 40-50 degrees in temperature. If he had to repeat it, I’d probably recommend adding a bit more of the citrusy hops to it so that taste lingers a bit longer than the first swish around the mouth.

The Scores

All categories are given a rating on a scale of 0 to 5; where 5 is Excellent, 4 is Good, 3 is Average, 2 is Poor, and 1 is Terrible. Beer is rated based on the style and particular tastes of the reviewer.

Appearance – 4.5/5.0

Smell – 3.5/5.0

Taste – 3.75/5.0

Mouthfeel – 3.5/5.0

Drinkability – 4.5/5

TOTAL = 3.90 (B+)

Appearance (20%) – Poured a molasses color with a frothy milky-cocoa head that diminished slowly, undetectable carbonation through the dark body.

Scent (20%) – Nose gathers chocolate maltiness, woodiness, and slight florals.

Taste (40%) – Dry stout, much like a Guinness with a bit more floral hop character, and less of the cream. Dry-roasted nuts seem to be detectable on a healthy burp.

Mouthfeel (10%) – Medium-light body goes down smooth.

Drinkability (10%) – Very drinkable, it nails the Irish Dry Style with slight variation. An enjoyable session brew.

The Marks

Appearance (20%) = 4.0
Scent (20%) = 3.0
Taste (40%) = 3.5
Mouthfeel (10%) = 4.0
Drinkability (10%) = 4.0
Total = 3.6, B