Bad Santa - Pelican Pub & Brewery

flagmantho

Washington

3.8/5  rDev -4.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured from 22oz bomber into a pint glass.

Appearance: extremely dark brown with rosy tints throughout. Head is two thick fingers of creamy tan foam which demonstrate serious retention. Good stuff.

Smell: sweet, roasty malt aroma with a big helping of rather vegetal-smelling hops. There's also a fair dose of citrus in the mix. Altogether, not bad, but could be cleaner.

Taste: pretty bitter flavor right off the bat with big citrusy and earthy hop flavor. The vegetal quality is there, but is less pronounced than in the aroma. Malt is sweetish and a little bit caramelly; roasty character is limited in the flavor. Not bad; a good example of the style.

Mouthfeel: medium body with a good level of carbonation and a nice creaminess. I like it.

Overall: a decent American black ale, although I feel like the harsh bitterness of the flavor negatively impacts drinkability. A decent beer.

Serving type: bottle

11-09-2012 23:30:32 | More by flagmantho

nitro0292

New York

3.75/5  rDev -5.8%

05-25-2013 03:42:37 | More by nitro0292

GilGarp

Colorado

4.4/5  rDev +10.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bomber served cold into a pint glass.

Bad Santa is a dark brown colored ale with good clarity and huge long-lasting head. It leaves some really nice lacing behind as it settles.

Aroma is not as hoppy as expected but it was bottled in late October so that doesn't help in that respect. It has a nice roasted malt and earthy hop aroma.

Flavor is bold and bitter but not over the top. It's definately a dark IPA rather than an imperial anything. The fuggles are earthy and spicy which pairs well with the roasted malts and the coffee flavor.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied and nicely carbonated.

Overall and excellent version of the style. Pelican only makes high quality beers and this is no exception.

Serving type: bottle

05-08-2013 01:37:14 | More by GilGarp

danwho

California

4/5  rDev +0.5%

03-25-2013 17:17:24 | More by danwho

drpimento

Wisconsin

4.5/5  rDev +13.1%
look: 5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5

Very nicely done beer! Poured at a good temperature with a huge, foamy, frothy, billowy, tan head that lasts all the way down and some lace. Color is a clear, dark mahoganey with an enormous amount of bubble trails. Aroma is at first subdued and then it's hop, roast, malt, spice, fruit. Flavor's like nose, very slight sweet, plenty bitter and good tang that's not out of place. Body/carbonation are perfect. Finish is like flavor, very long, boozy, yet easy drinking. Bad Santa is very good beer.

Serving type: bottle

03-20-2013 01:28:59 | More by drpimento

imperialking

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -5.8%

02-13-2013 16:48:58 | More by imperialking

Hopmodium

Washington

3.5/5  rDev -12.1%

01-14-2013 00:17:15 | More by Hopmodium

hannaho

Washington

4/5  rDev +0.5%

01-06-2013 22:46:03 | More by hannaho

twelveinches

Washington

3.75/5  rDev -5.8%

01-04-2013 06:47:34 | More by twelveinches

thinwhiteduke

Illinois

4/5  rDev +0.5%

12-27-2012 00:52:20 | More by thinwhiteduke

bonkers

New Jersey

4/5  rDev +0.5%

12-26-2012 13:21:01 | More by bonkers

TequilaTom

Ohio

3.25/5  rDev -18.3%

12-25-2012 21:28:16 | More by TequilaTom

barleywinefiend

Washington

4.28/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A; Poured a dark brown with a big dirty white cap which leavessome nice bubbles, lacing clingign to the sides of the glass

S: Nice floral and piney note with a good dose of chocolate and coffee

T: Initial pine needles hits the taste buds followed by a quick dose of dark brown sugar and chocolate that isn't overly dominant on the palette. Bitterness shines back through in the finish with a little grapefruit and cocoa left in the back of the throat. As it warms, me coffee appears as does some spicinss, a touch of caramel.

M: Medium carbonation a medium body. Great hop bitterness, a bit chewy, a touch creamy.

O: Really enjoyed ths CDA.

Serving type: bottle

12-10-2012 21:15:59 | More by barleywinefiend

philbertk

Washington

4.23/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

22 oz. Bottle purchased for $5.50 + tax @ Fremont, Seattle PCC. Big dense lasting lacy tan 1 inch head. Opaque dark black color without obsidian red edges. No sediment. Aromatic floral slightly herbal minimally toasted hop front. Very smooth somewhat creamy toasted hint mildly sweet balanced lightly dark malt flavored IPA body. Lingering herbal mild bitter smooth balanced clean hop spice end. Very smooth and tasty. (4.25 / 5.0).

Serving type: bottle

12-08-2012 20:43:02 | More by philbertk

LiquidAmber

Washington

4/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a Dogfish Head pint glass. Pours a very dark mahogany brown with a big three finger light tan head with good retention and lacing. Aroma of sweet and toasted malt, piney hops; slightly earthy. Flavor of citrus hops, citrus rind, toasted malt, nicely balanced. Finishes with long lasting citrus hops. Medium bodied with some creaminess. The flavors are so well melded that no one flavor dominates the taste. One of the best integrated black ales I've had. Nicely done.

Serving type: bottle

12-04-2012 03:13:40 | More by LiquidAmber

Braz

Washington

4.25/5  rDev +6.8%

11-23-2012 16:01:29 | More by Braz

Murrhey

Montana

2.73/5  rDev -31.4%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured from a bomber into a pint glass. Reviewed live.

A- Three finger cream colored head, long retention. Clingy lacing. Mahogany color with high clarity. Nice looking beer.

S- Roast malts, chocolate and toffee. Piney and earthy hops.

T- Bitter hops, creamy flavors and roast malts. Not well developed.

M- Smooth feel. Dry linger.

O- Not great. I was hoping for more, but then again I am not a fan of the style.

Serving type: bottle

11-22-2012 06:48:35 | More by Murrhey

Vancoubeer

Washington

4.25/5  rDev +6.8%

11-11-2012 05:49:15 | More by Vancoubeer

mrunseen

Washington

3/5  rDev -24.6%

11-03-2012 04:19:10 | More by mrunseen

libbey

British Indian Ocean Territory

3.48/5  rDev -12.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

22 oz bottle poured into a snifter.

A: The beer pours a dark cola brown with a nice cap of off white head that held great retention throughout the session leaving a nice trail of spotty lacing.

S: The initial nose is charred malt with the slightest hint of hop but the hop profile is very muted. Really not a lot going on.

T: Again fairly malt forward not getting a lot from the bite from the hop profile which is surprising because of the style a touch of astringency as it warms.

M: The carbonation is spot and carries this medium bodied CDA well. The finish is dry which I like.

O: Overall this is a pretty average CDA from Pelican. Glad to have tried it but will probably not be seeking it out again.

Serving type: bottle

10-20-2012 23:30:45 | More by libbey

shelby415

Oregon

4/5  rDev +0.5%

02-28-2012 07:58:20 | More by shelby415

JohnGalt1

Idaho

3.83/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Buckeyeboy provided this at a recent tasting... Thanks Jeremy... this one was waaay off my radar. Pours a pretty standard dark brown... decent looking tan head drops pretty quickly leaving some spotty lace.

Nose shows more piney hops than anything else.. good hops with some background roast and slight coffee notes.

Flavor mirrors the nose but a little bit more roasty elements emerge... some slight sweetness brings the hops and the malts forward... the finish drops pretty quickly... not quite hoppy enough to meet my expectations...

Good.. but not really multidimensional as I would hope for. A bit of a one trick pony.

3.5/4/4/3.5/3.5

Thanks Jeremy... appreciated.

Serving type: bottle

02-12-2012 07:20:45 | More by JohnGalt1

RickS95

Indiana

3.55/5  rDev -10.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This is a sexy looking beer. It's not completely pitch black, but it's very close. Even up to a light you can barely see anything other than night. The head is a finger thick of offbrown foamy bubbles, both large and small. As the middle falls out of the head, there is a gentle lacing left behind.

Early on, it's all roasty malt scents. As the beer warms, the strange smells of the Fuggles hops shine through. Very Earthy, vegetal. Not exactly my liking, but a strong scent.

Has a roasty, charcoal like taste with an Earthy flowery finish.

You don't notice it's a pale ale of any type til the bitter finish. It's actually pretty bitter from start to finish, but it's definitely kicked up a notch in the swallow. There is bitterness from the roasted items followed by a wave of even more bitterness from the hops.

I try to be open about every beer I try, but I just haven't developed a tongue for black IPAs. There's something about each of them that just doesn't work for me and this is no exception. It's not that it's a bad beer, just not what I'm looking for.

Serving type: bottle

01-30-2012 03:07:54 | More by RickS95

velosuds

Oregon

3.6/5  rDev -9.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

From a 22 oz. bomber into a clear pint glass. No freshness dating apparent. Winter seasonal per Pelican's website, so should be fresh.

A-pours a dark brown, almost black hue. Massive three finger head with strong retention and decent lacing.

S-Aroma is malt dominant; roasty and grainy. Hops, Fuggles in particular, are a peculiar choice for what is an American Northwest ale style - Cascadian Dark Ale per the brewer. Fuggles tend to lend a woodsy aroma, which in this case is lost against the roasted and toasted malts.

T-Roasted, almost smoky character more reminiscent of the porter and stout styles is the prominent flavor profile. There is sufficient bitterness for the style, but like the aroma, the hops don't add much flavor.

M-Medium dry body is very smooth and well balanced. Carbonation level is very good.

O-Overall this is lackluster beer and not one of their finer offerings.

Serving type: bottle

01-17-2012 04:39:56 | More by velosuds

jh1982

Nevada

4/5  rDev +0.5%

12-22-2011 02:53:33 | More by jh1982