Shiner Holiday Cheer - Spoetzl Brewery

mralphabet

Virginia

3.78/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

12 oz bottle poured into pint...

A: Light mahogany color with about a fingers worth of head that settles to a nice foamy ring, little lacing to speak of.

S: I like the smell strong peaches with a nutty pecan aroma.

T: First thing to hit me is a pleasant hit of caramel malt, followed quickly by a blend of peaches and pecans with a hint of clove and yeast. Nice clean finish, leaving a slight peachy aftertaste.

M: Medium bodied, carbonation is crisp and slightly dry.

D: Low ABV and interesting mix of flavors and smells... very night little beer.

Another good beer from Shiner, different and good.

Serving type: bottle

01-24-2011 05:51:35 | More by mralphabet

jsisko01

Michigan

3.78/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Appearance - Pours a dark brown/amber color with a small head that dissipates instantly. Has thin lacing.

Smell - Strong aroma of peaches.

Taste - Very sweet with peaches, a strong clove flavor, toasty and nutty, cinnamon, and a slight bitter aftertaste.

Mouthfeel - Medium bodied with pretty high carbonation.

Overall - This is my first time trying this style of beer, I like it. It's a lot different from other styles. I wouldn't be able to drink a lot of this though because it's so sweet..

Serving type: bottle

01-22-2012 06:06:37 | More by jsisko01

russpowell

Oklahoma

3.75/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours chestnut with 3 fingers of sand colored head. Good lacing & average head retention

S: Pear, honey, apricot & peach juice

T: Apricot, dryness, nuttyness, oakyness & green apples up front. Peach juice, comes through as it warms, plus more nuttyness. Finishes dry, fruitty & with oaky notes. Almost pulled a 4.0

MF: Medium bodied with low carbonation

Drinks easy, this an Americanized dunkleweizen. I could drink a few before moving on. Probably on the better brews I've had from these guys

Serving type: bottle

11-24-2008 05:17:28 | More by russpowell

jasonjlewis

Texas

3.75/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

POurs a beautiful head with excellent lacing and an ruby color. It's a little light, but I don't care so much about color as I do head retention.

Smell is of peaches and mangos. It's a huge whiff of fruit and I like it.

Taste has a little bit of dry tannins and the fruit gives off a little bit of an off bitter flavor. This beer is a little astringent and has some tannin problems that interfere with the awesomeness that should be there from the fruit. There is also a hint of DMS in there as well.

AS THE BEER WARMS it becomes loads and loads better. The fruit blends nicely with the beer and everything comes together.

Let this beer warm up. After it does it becomes a refreshingly crisp beer with a huge peach flavor and aroma.

Serving type: bottle

11-25-2008 03:49:20 | More by jasonjlewis

heath1agnew

Texas

3.75/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.5

gives me about a one finger head that disappears pretty quickly. has an appealing amber color to it, and carbonation is visible.

smells of peach nectar really...i can't pick up much else. but yes it smells pretty good.

the taste is not nearly as sweet as i would expect. a bit bitter with a sweet finish, but for sure not too sweet.

the mouthfeel is a little to carbonated for me. but other than that i don't mind it.

i would say the drinkability is easily there on this brew.

Oh i just thought i would add that i found out the ABV is 5.4

Serving type: bottle

12-04-2008 18:27:54 | More by heath1agnew

colts9016

Idaho

3.75/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured this beer into a wiezen glass at 42 degrees. I got this beer while I was in OKC, over the holiday.

Appearance: A nice one finger tan head that some retention to it. The head is foamy and a tad creamy. The color of the beer is a medium amber color with reddish copper hues. There are nice highlights of garnet in the beer. There is a lot of effervescence in the beer. The clarity of the beer is clear to almost brilliant.

Nose: A strong fruity esters that are orange, there is a hint of banana, and clove, vanilla, and some cloves. The malt is slightly caramel aroma with bread, and toast. There are some floral and a touch of wood.

Taste: A good malt character, with bread crust, caramel, yeast, cloves, banana, fruity ester that are orange, a touch of wood, and vanilla. In the background of the beer has wheat and a light sweetness.

Overall: The mouth feel of the beer is carbonated, sticky, rich, and creamy finish. The body of the beer is medium and the finish is medium. I really like this beer it has a roundness to the flavor and a nice supple finish. This is a wonderful easy drinking beer.

Serving type: bottle

12-11-2009 00:42:57 | More by colts9016

Tripphop

Virginia

3.75/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Sounded interesting with the peaches and pecans, so I had to try one. Pours an amber gold color with minimal white foam that settles fast. Aromas of baked apples and cinnamon with a nutty undertone. Flavor is lightly sweet and refreshing. A nutty malt base with hints of honey and peach fruit. Nice carbonation, pretty much an adult holiday soda.

Serving type: bottle

01-09-2011 18:48:26 | More by Tripphop

crashdavisinoh

Ohio

3.75/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

A-dark amber w/ small/medium head

S-peaches, cinnamon and malt

T-The taste is the key to any beer...this is where this beer excels. Peaches is the clear dominant flavor...which is appreciated...nuttiness (assuming pecas)...thought I got some cinnamon flavor as well. but IMO takes a backseat to the more dominant flavors.

M-Easy easy easy to drink

O-I was throughly impressed by this beer. I really enjoyed the peach flavor along w/ the other flavor combinations. When I had this on tap...they rimmed the glass w/ brown sugar and cinnamon...fantastic...I copied this at home as well on a couple bottles. One of my favorite, shockingly, holiday releases.

Serving type: bottle

01-12-2012 18:43:02 | More by crashdavisinoh

FickleBeast

New Jersey

3.75/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle poured into a nonic.

Pours a clear ruby brown color with a finger of off white foam. Aroma is strong with a sour peach flavor. Interesting... but not really appetizing.

Strong sweet peach flavor. Almost like a peach Jolly Rancher, but the sweetness isn't cloying. I'm not really detecting any other strong flavors. This does have a decent body, and doesn't finish too dry or too sweet. This tastes a lot better than I thought it would. Actually fairly drinkable.

A must try if you like peach flavored beers. An interesting diversion, and one of the better Shiner beers that I've had.

Serving type: bottle

12-09-2012 03:20:31 | More by FickleBeast

wcudwight

North Carolina

3.73/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to mugglesandhops for this tasty treat.

Clear caramel brown in color with a finger sized head that falls pretty quickly but leaves a lot of sticky suds behind.
Smells like I just sliced into a fresh peach. Yummy. I can't even get a hint of the pecan though.
Wonderful peach flavor that gives this beer a pleasent sweetness. I'm a bit suprised b/c I usually don't like the fruity sweet type beers. But this is yummy. There's a nuttiness middle to end that I asume is from the pecans. The nutty flavors get stronger as the beer warms. Nice dry finish.
Medium bodied and crisp.
Easy to finish but I wouldn't go as far to call it a session beer. It's a nice beer to have when you want something tasty that's different.
Good beer unlike anything that I've had.

Serving type: bottle

02-20-2009 01:22:24 | More by wcudwight

BeerAdvocate

Massachusetts

3.73/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Review from BeerAdvocate magazine Vol. II Issue XI:

Dunkelweizen meets fruitcake. Here is Spoetzl Brewery's take on making a holiday beer out of a Bavarian-Style Dark Wheat Beer. Brewed with peaches, pecans, natural flavor and caramel color. Hey, at least they admit they use flavoring and color. Worried? Perhaps, but we'll let our taste buds be the judge.

Yup, it's a wheat beer with its towering head, good retention and all. Peach aroma dominates the nose, yet there are hints of pecans and some toasted maltiness. Ample smoothness with a slick, medium body. Fresh wheat malt and toasted grain are a good base that hold this beer together. Peach flavor has a mild twang within the subtle sweetness. Nutty, with a light pecan note in the middle. Mild hop presence does not get in the way, though it does help to balance. Finishes dry with a toasted bread crust and lingering pecan flavor.

Interesting, a flavored holiday ale where we would possibly want more than one. Nice to see something different rather than the usual pie spicing that ends up tasting like organic toothpaste. A good pick for the holiday party, as it will definitely spark some interest if not conversation. This is without a doubt a beer that non-beer drinkers could approach and hopefully get pulled into.

Serving type: bottle

09-20-2010 19:04:36 | More by BeerAdvocate

jeffjeff1

California

3.73/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

I picked this up at the Class Six at Travis AFB.

Appearance- golden brown color, good size head

Smell- malt, peaches, pecan, interesting

Taste- mostly peaches, very nice

Mouthfeel- medium bodied

Drinkability- pretty good, I love the flavor. The flavor of peaches in this beer are awesome.

Serving type: bottle

11-13-2010 22:00:10 | More by jeffjeff1

LacquerHead

Illinois

3.73/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

It poured a deep clear amber with a white foamy head.

The aroma was pleasant, with peaches at the forefront. I also had a nutty caramel aroma.

The taste didn't really live up to the aroma. It tasted like a regular Shiner but with added flavors built on top. I didn't think the peach aspect was as strong in the taste as it was in the aroma. There was also a nutty flavor lingering about, but unless I was told otherwise, I would not have guessed pecans. It also had a generic holiday spice taste, but for the most part it got lost in the shuffle of the peach and malt flavors

Like almost all Shiner products the mouth feel was very carbonated.

It had a fairly decent drinkability.

Overall, I'm glad I tried it but I don't feel the need to revisit it again until next December. It was good and worth the try, however, there was something too artificial about it. The peach flavor tasted like the peach flavoring in an Arizona Ice Tea, only not as pronounced.

Serving type: bottle

12-02-2010 16:58:52 | More by LacquerHead

Fnord

Texas

3.73/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance - Clear dark red with a wispy head.

Smell - Peaches, brown sugar, wheat, and alcohol. I think I can smell a bit of pecan as well, though I doubt I would have noticed if it hadn't been mentioned on the bottle.

Taste - A bit sweet, some definite wheat and peach. There is some nuttiness in the aftertaste. No noticeable yeast, unfortunately. The finish is a little bit crisp.

Mouthfeel - Medium-thick body and medium carbonation.

Notes - An interesting take on a dunkelweizen. I'm surprised at some of the low marks it gets in the reviews; I guess innovation is only appreciated in the trendy brewers. Sure there's better dunkelweizens out there, but it's both tasty and unique, and that's good enough for me.

Serving type: bottle

12-13-2010 18:41:32 | More by Fnord

droomyster

Virginia

3.73/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a clear brown with a long lasting tan head. The nose delightfully packed with fruit and spices. I get a lot of raspberry aroma with a bit of molasses, cinnamon, and something like all spice. The flavors are considerably more simple than the nose, with most of the spice coming together to taste something like gingerbread. Raspberry/cranberry flavors are also quite prominent. A cranberry essence and tea-like bitterness linger long. Not a bad beer by any means, but doesn't live up the promise of its nose.

Serving type: bottle

12-21-2010 01:44:27 | More by droomyster

SWMeyer4141

Texas

3.73/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a frosted margarita mug, thats what you get when you get this at a Taco Joint.

Appearance-Body is a deep amber with a tan head. With the cold glass no lacing remained.

Smell-Cranberrries, Peach, and some spices. Wasn't sure what style this was while drinking it.

Taste-Still pick up some cranberries and spice. Lots of breadiness and some sweetness on the backend.

Mouthfeel-Pretty thin body, lots of carbonation, a little too much.

Overall-Interesting take on a Dunkleweizen and one of the better beers by Spoetzl brewery if I had to pick one. Not going out of my way to get this but I'll be drinking more tonight, considering they serve it across the street from me for 1.50 pints during the Alabama/LSU game tonight.

Serving type: on-tap

11-05-2011 20:51:54 | More by SWMeyer4141

match1112

Illinois

3.73/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

a: reddish brown body with a two finger tan head that leaves spotty lacing.

s: very peach forward, some nuts in there as well, along with some holiday spice and roasted malts.

t: like peach schnapps little brother. toasted nuts, spice and roasted malts.

m: medium to thin body, good carbonation.

o: this is one of the better holiday beers i've had. good flavors and aromas blend well together.

Serving type: bottle

12-20-2011 14:31:29 | More by match1112

theboozecruise

Louisiana

3.7/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Had this one at The Chimes... 12 oz. bottle served with a pilsner glass.

This one surprised me... not a typical take on a Holiday beer. This was almost more of a peach-infused beer than anything else. A very dominant peach taste, but also pecans and other spices.

It wasn't bad, really. I could have gone for multiple in a session no problem, but there is always other beer to check out.

Serving type: bottle

12-22-2008 03:20:48 | More by theboozecruise

emmasdad

Colorado

3.7/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

My first thought here is WOW! Six and a half bucks from a brewery that is meh at best, and I am very impressed. Pours a medium amber color, with a bit of a white head on top. Light to medium bodied, with a good amount of carbonation. Huge peach aroma and flavor carry the day here, along with a hint of nuts, some light brown sugar and earth. A very surprising, inviting and delicious "holiday" beer.

Serving type: bottle

10-22-2010 06:33:05 | More by emmasdad

Tilley4

Tennessee

3.7/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Cool looking festive Christmas bottle poured into a Founders pint glass and rolls out an amber reddish with a pretty decent head atop that has a slight pinkish hue to it...

I'm getting the peaches here as well along with a nutty maltiness that seems spiked with Christmas spices... Almost fruitcake like really... Not overly sweet but the fruit is definitely a player here... Not much of the usual dark wheat found with the style...

Slightly sweet maltiness with a backbone of the fruits present in the aromas... Nuttiness from the pecans... Lots of spiciness as well... Not bad at all...

I liked this one... Not sure I could drink more than a couple but the uniqueness of the flavors would keep me interested for a bit...

Serving type: bottle

11-09-2010 13:59:34 | More by Tilley4

Khazadum

Illinois

3.7/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Huge thanks to my buddy Trevor for this beer. Nice little seasonal trade in person at the COP. I wish I had a weizen glass to serve this in, alas I'll use my favorite pint glass.

A- Creamy wheat head that is very typical of this style. Carbonation generates little pillars of giant bubbles that spark up here and there disrupting the cloudscape. Has pretty good retention with hints of future lacing that I may enjoy.

A solid rusty brown body... umbar if you will, that is easy enough to see through with a back light. This little trick revealed the massive amounts of carbonation pumped into this beer.

S- No wonder this is called cheer! This son of a bitch is Christmas in a bottle! I definitely get the peaches here. Unbelievably strong aroma with a nutty and cherry background. I wish pecan was a bit more portrayed, but this is delicious! There is a hint of fresh air to it... the peaches explode, fade as a breeze of clean air wafts through, and than come back for round two.

T- The flavors can't compare to the nose. I wish they were as amazing, but alas they are muted. It opens malty with some biscuit flavors that linger around until a peach flavor evolves from the back of my palate. Its presence is made known as the malts finish saturating their particular receptor. This fruity sweetness doesn't die off like the malts and actually becomes the finish. The only addition that I can detect is finally the nutty presence that could be pecans, but isn't strong enough to call it so.

M- Medium body which I almost want to call full. It has creamy tendencies, and a bubbly finish. The lingering flavors are perfect. This is probably one of the bigger surprises of my tasting career as of yet.

D- I like this beer a lot. I've had beers from this particular brewery before, and wasn't impressed. This is a whole new level from them. It is easy to drink, tasty, and unique to a point.

Serving type: bottle

11-30-2010 00:25:37 | More by Khazadum

TownDunkel

Texas

3.7/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Time for the holiday cheer! Instead of some spiked eggnog, I figured a holiday beer would be a nice try.

Appearance - Nice, solid mahogany appearance. Not everyday you get such a nice color in a beer.

Smell - Not the best smell ever, doesn't really seem to match the taste in my opion. More of a washy regular Shiner.

Taste - Peachy! If you like Lambrics but hate the price, this one will be a great sub. Aftertaste after a bit seems to be a bit much and overbearing, but sipped over time its a good one.

Mouthfell - Very similar to its parent beer - Shiner bock

Overall - a great specialty beer. I wouldn't have this every night, but definately in the winter.

Serving type: bottle

12-14-2011 00:23:39 | More by TownDunkel

HardTarget

Texas

3.68/5  rDev +4.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A) Dark brown with thick clear edges. A creamy tan head gives up some wispy lacing.

S) Great peach nectar aroma tops a toasted bread base with a hint of hops. Nice level on the fruit.

T) The peach is a bit heavy in the taste, giving a bit of a syrup element that's a bit overdone. The fruit overpowers any subtle underlying elements for me.

M) A bit fizzy, medium light body, lingering finish.

D) Flavorful, festive, not a bad beer and I'm glad I got the 6'er. High marks for creativity, but I would like to see the peach dialed down a mark or three.

Serving type: bottle

11-13-2008 00:10:25 | More by HardTarget

Richardberg

New Jersey

3.68/5  rDev +4.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

A - blood orange, little foam, mostly translucent

s - peach, raisin, yeast, esters

t - all of the above, but pecan emerges to be strongest of all. Crisp malts remind you you're still in the weizen world, but the other flavors don't really work together. Too bad, as it definitely reminds me of home (tx hill country).

M - thin, not enough carbonation

D - easily sessionable if you dig the flavor combo. Don't think I could do >2 myself.

Serving type: bottle

12-25-2009 06:15:20 | More by Richardberg

bort11

Missouri

3.68/5  rDev +4.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle poured into a Sam Adams pint glass. Creamy tan head holds up at about an inch. Depending on the pour, the head has pretty good legs or just drops down right away. After four of these over the last few days it's about 50/50. Body color is a clear dark amber. The nucleation ring on the bottom of the glass kicks up a steady stream of carbonation.

Peaches dominate the smell, with a dark malt rounding out the edges. This is a fairly tart peach, verging on a nectarine. I'm glad it's not a sweetened peach like cobbler filling. Taste actually slides back and is like pie filling. It is a juicy peach filling and comes off fairly natural. At this point the pecans sneak in and give a crunchy pie crust finish.

Mouthfeel is a little syrupy and sweet. The peach aftertaste has a fizzy character that has nothing to do with the carbonation. This is a great dessert beer and would be great for a holiday party. I don't see this as a dunkelweizen as more of a straight up fruit beer.

Serving type: bottle

11-07-2010 02:03:17 | More by bort11