Hoppy Lovin' Christmas - Sauternes Barrel Aged
Mikkeller ApS

Hoppy Lovin' Christmas - Sauternes Barrel AgedHoppy Lovin' Christmas - Sauternes Barrel Aged
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From:
Mikkeller ApS
 
Denmark
Style:
American IPA
ABV:
7.8%
Score:
86
Avg:
3.78 | pDev: 9.52%
Reviews:
7
Ratings:
14
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Apr 11, 2016
Added:
Dec 20, 2013
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  1
No description / notes.
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Photo of Lingenbrau
Reviewed by Lingenbrau from Oregon

3.45/5  rDev -8.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
Deep golden with a white rocky head. Smells of pine and slightly funky. Lots of white wine like sweetness (hence the Sauternes), along with butter and pine to follow as it warmed. Never really got the ginger except for a slight spiciness. Interesting, but not my cup of tea. Cheers!
Apr 11, 2016
Photo of M_C_Hampton
Reviewed by M_C_Hampton from Georgia

3.88/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
A: poured from a 375 mL bottle into a pint glass, red orange amber with a foamy off white head that lingers leaving some lacing, cloudy

S: pine needles, funky, oak, grape musk, raisin, sweet

T: very heavy on the grape wine flavor, sweeter, red wine, tannins, oak, raisins, ginger, finish dries out with flavors of oak and pine, Belgian yeast flavors come through, champagne

M: buttery, mouth-coating, lower carbonation

O: very uniquely flavored beer that tastes more like wine than anything else
Dec 30, 2015
 
Rated: 3.75 by ConradKenney from Maryland

Dec 22, 2015
 
Rated: 3 by BcOneSeven from Michigan

Dec 16, 2015
 
Rated: 4.1 by swanfungus from California

Jan 23, 2015
 
Rated: 4.24 by LinusBohman from Sweden

Jan 03, 2015
Photo of BlazerT
Reviewed by BlazerT from Poland

3.55/5  rDev -6.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
Teku glass. Bottle. From the orginal verison in this BA you can feel in the aroma the hints of dry wood, which becomes quite intense. The taste is more vinous, I've never tried sauternes, but many times sweet Tokaj wines and you can really experience this heavy taste and aroma. Comparing to non-BA verision, this one is more complex (better) in aroma, and it calms down the hoppy bitterness.
Dec 31, 2014
Photo of StonedTrippin
Reviewed by StonedTrippin from Colorado

4.18/5  rDev +10.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
i loved the original, ginger and pine needles in a sturdy danish or belgian ipa, just a neat holiday project. the barrel aged editions that have recently come around add something special. i have had the red wine and this one so far, and may like the red wine better, but this is really cool. the alcohol comes through a little more than in other editions, allowing me to drink it slower and let it warm up, which it does really well. the pine is a little less obvious that i remember it in the base beer, but the ginger and the sweet wine really work well together, bringing out the best in eachother. the ginger is almost hot in the throat with the booze, but the sweetness of the sauternes comes up at the end and sort of puts out the fire, if you can call it that. the malts have some caramel and some structure, so the dessert wine compliments that well. hops are grassy and bitter enough to be balancing, but not as forward as they are in other india pale ales. the finish is long and complex, with a tickle of a fruity belgian yeast and effervescent carbonation through the last sip. whether or not you like the flavor of this beer, you have to admire its quality and inventiveness. awesome stuff to share around the holidays.
Dec 09, 2014
 
Rated: 3.25 by olradetbalder from Sweden

Nov 25, 2014
Photo of AgentMunky
Reviewed by AgentMunky from New York

4.29/5  rDev +13.5%
Poured from a 375mL bottle into a DFH signature glass. Stamped 6901303.

4A: Massive head. Clear orange amber. Some effervescence. Very nice.

4.5S: Slightly sour initially, because a whiff of booze, and then orange marmalade. Sweet and malty, with a touch of pine. I really like it.

4.25T/3.5M: Big and lightly astringent. It's bitter, but with pleasant citrus endnotes. A caramelly maltiness lingers, but only briefly. A touch thin.

4.25O: Another success. I've liked all of Mikkeller's Sauternes barrels. Recommended; would have again.
Aug 25, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by cornchz from Korea (South)

Aug 20, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by JellyJacket from Illinois

Feb 11, 2014
Photo of UCLABrewN84
Reviewed by UCLABrewN84 from California

3.91/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Pours a hazy orange with a foamy off-white head that settles to a partial film on top of the beer. Small streaks of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of malt, ginger, pine, earth, and wood aromas. Taste is much the same with malt, ginger, pine, and slight wine flavors on the finish. There is a medium amount of hop bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a good level of carbonation with a crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer that is tasty but I am getting more wood than wine from the barrel aging.
Feb 07, 2014
Photo of popery
Reviewed by popery from California

3.79/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
Pours medium to deep amber. Cloudy. Medium off-white head puffs up upon the initial pour and mostly dies off after a few minutes. The aroma is a mix of pine, hops, sweet white wine, oak and a tinge of ginger spice. The sauternes barrel contributes a blend of that rich green grape sweetness with vanilla-scented oak. The hops and, presumably, pine needles show up as a mix of pine and light grapefruit. The sauternes barrel largely overshadows the hops/pine needles. The ginger is even further in the background, and I'm not sure that I would have noticed it without coming to the beer knowing it's there. The taste shows off the hops/pine needles a bit more. It's medium dry with some mild but firm bitterness in the finish. Again, I don't love how the hops/pine needles blend with the barrel. The Sauternes flavor is sweet and delicate, and while both elements are nice, they somewhat clash when put together. The beer is light on the palate. Moderate carbonation. Some booze warmth in the finish. It's an interesting beer with some very good flavors bouncing around, but for me, the sum of the parts is greater than the whole. The Spontan series did a much better job with its use of Sauternes barrels, and I found myself wishing that I could replace this beer's bitter notes with sour. On a sidenote, it doesn't particularly resonate with the holiday season for me, completely unlike Santa's Little Helper '12 Cognac, which tastes like a deliciously boozy Christmas dessert.
Dec 20, 2013
Hoppy Lovin' Christmas - Sauternes Barrel Aged from Mikkeller ApS
Beer rating: 86 out of 100 with 14 ratings