Page 24 Bière De Noël - Brasserie Saint-Germain

Patrick999

Florida

4.22/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a golden amber into a La Chouffe tulip. Some head but not all that high and fluffy for the style.

Aroma is of cinnamon apples, apple pie filling, generally...nice!

On the palate it comes off as malty, a little goosey funk and apple pie spicing as noted above, mostly cinnamon I think. Probably a little too sweet for the style, but can I really complain about that when it's this tasty?

Feel is velvety-soft.

Very drinkable, it's only the slightly too-high sweetness and lazy foam that keeps this from being a 4.5-5.0 biere de garde, IMO. Otherwise, it nails the style, and the modest spicing is a cool touch. Easy drinker with low-ish alcohol and enough complexity to keep it interesting.

Serving type: bottle

12-25-2009 19:45:32 | More by Patrick999

jgasparine

Maryland

4.22/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A- Poured from the bottle with a thin cream-colored head, which quickly receded to a collar. The body was a well-carbonated medium amber color.

S- Sweet bready malts dominate the nose, along with some significant aromas of Belgian yeast and estery notes as well... Just a hint of non-descript spice somewhere in there too. Smells just wonderful!

T- A super bready version of the nose. Sweet bready malts combine well with yeasty and estery flavors... finishes with that tinge of spice that I can't quite put my finger on (but certainly enjoy!)

M- I'd describe the body somewhere between medium and large... there's a decent amount of unattenuated sugar here and a nice soft carbonation. Definitely a great mouthfeel for a 6.9% ABV biere de garde!

D- Umm, this is SUPER drinkable... quaffable even. I could drink it year-round and on a regular basis (if it weren't for its scarcity and price!)

Serving type: bottle

12-16-2009 14:37:23 | More by jgasparine

mwilbur

Minnesota

4.43/5  rDev +13%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured from 75 cL bottle into snifter. Style I believe is technically a holiday Biere de Garde.
A: Pours a dark coppery amber color with moderate carbonation producing a 1/2 inch white frothy head.
S: Farmhouse musty, spice (?cinnamon?), belgian yeast, fruit, honey, and alcoholic esters. Fresh and intoxicating aroma.
T: Follows aroma well, but not as aggressive. Farmhouse musty, cinnamon, and berries up front. Hint of wood (oak), yeast, and honey in the background. With warming a cloying whiff of mini bananas (the ones that taste like a combo of apple and banana) and maraschino cherries. Pleasantly complex, but not overstimulating.
M: Soft and clean. Medium body. At first there is a mildly acidic fruit bite. Finish is quite pleasant with taste lingering on the palate and turns to more soft fruit notes.
D: A very drinkable winter seasonal. I find many winter seasonals too heavy on the spice or too overdone. This brew has wonderful subtleties of typical winter brew notes. The style matches the flavor profile extremely well. Good sessionability and would pair well with food too (lighter chicken and turkey dishes especially). Definitely recommended and I hope I can get my hands on another one of these again!

Serving type: bottle

11-26-2009 05:14:29 | More by mwilbur