Upslope Christmas Ale - Upslope Brewing Company

rsdaugherty

Colorado

3.5/5  rDev -4.4%

12-31-2012 04:29:54 | More by rsdaugherty

JMBSH

Colorado

4/5  rDev +9.3%

05-19-2013 00:06:43 | More by JMBSH

RudnicsMEB

Colorado

4.25/5  rDev +16.1%

03-05-2013 01:45:31 | More by RudnicsMEB

ColoradoBobs

Colorado

3.75/5  rDev +2.5%

02-18-2013 05:09:47 | More by ColoradoBobs

Stoutamus-Maximus

Colorado

4/5  rDev +9.3%

01-24-2013 23:20:29 | More by Stoutamus-Maximus

StonedTrippin

Colorado

3.83/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

a different take on a christmas brew, which i found in a can at bike cafe. pours rich malty amber to light nutbrown in color, glowing, with a finger of tan head thats dead and gone in a minute or two. smells like belgian yeast and candy sugar, a lot like a dubbel really, although with a lighter american red malt profile and some spice including cinnamon and honey sweetness. the flavor is identical to the nose. in fact, everything i can smell, i can taste, and nothing i can taste i cant smell, although the taste is much more bold than the nose, a very lively brew. to me this is what i which more xmas beers were like, not too spiced, not too sweet, and creative and balanced. this one has it all really, although the feel let me down a little. more carbonation and more body would have made this a wonderful specimen. instead a slightly flat, quite thin feel made me yearn for more. still, this is a probe in the right direction, and the yeast makes it. there may still be some cans around if you missed it, so get in the mix before its too late if you want a holiday beer with a twist.

Serving type: can

01-24-2013 23:12:31 | More by StonedTrippin

Twal

Colorado

3.75/5  rDev +2.5%

01-02-2013 00:02:24 | More by Twal

appetiteforparis

3.75/5  rDev +2.5%

12-29-2012 05:35:52 | More by appetiteforparis

crobinso

Colorado

3/5  rDev -18%

12-22-2012 03:25:47 | More by crobinso

denver10

Colorado

3.74/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Pours a bright ambe with a reddish hue and an off white head. Aroma is sweet maltiness paired with a nice dose of spices. Flavor followed suit; a nice marriage between some sweet caramel and breadiness and a nice dose of spices. Surprised to read its a Belgian style as I didn't notice the yeast. A fuller, semi-active mouthfeel. Overall, an enjoyable beer. Maybe not one I need in heavy doses but a single pour of this certainly did the trick.

Serving type: on-tap

12-18-2012 02:15:37 | More by denver10

Beaver13

Colorado

3.2/5  rDev -12.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3

16 oz can. Pours clear rub red with a smallish fizzy off white head that quickly goes to a thin collar.

The aroma is toasty, bready malts with some muted gingerbread spices.

The flavor is toasty malts with light gingerbread spices and a dry spicy bitter finish. The mouthfeel is pretty full bodied with low carbonation.

Overall, a decent Christmas beer - a bit muted though.

Serving type: can

12-08-2012 03:38:42 | More by Beaver13

alexipa

Colorado

3.98/5  rDev +8.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: Great deep red color. As it should be right? It's a Christmas ale! Nice frothy head.

S: Lots of subtle spices, with a malty caramel undertone. Nutmeg, cinnamon, clove.

T: Really, really good stuff. Sweet and malty straight up front, then the spices come in and round it out- keeping it from becoming cloying. I feel like they may have used the same base beer as their Pumpkin which is definitely a good thing. Tons of clove, some cinnamon, nutmeg, and almost no hop taste.

M: Low carbonation, milky full body. The alcohol is pretty present as well.

O: Excellent, excellent beer. Upslope is on a roll with their seasonals, I don't think I'll be missing another release from these guys.

Serving type: can

12-05-2012 05:42:43 | More by alexipa

mactrail

California

2.45/5  rDev -33.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2

Pours a handsome coppery red amber in the tall glass. Lots of foam and a cascade of bubbles, it's quite a nice sight and plenty spritzy in the mouth.

First taste is a shock. It's really sugary, and just seems to get sweeter as you attempt to drink it. I hesitate to try to catalogue all the flavors of this stuff-- Hawaiian Punch, bubble gum, apricot nectar, dried mango, fig jam, and some kind of day-glo gummi candy. Aroma of raisin toast and cinnamon. Some dirty bitterness vainly attempts to balance the candy.

To me this just gets cloying real fast. I thought that after the first sip this would evolve into some beery interest, but it just makes me think of those cheap light fruitcakes from Big Lots. Down the drain with this one.

From the 16 oz can purchased in Denver at Mayfair Liquor.

Serving type: can

12-05-2012 05:35:54 | More by mactrail

bootsandbeer

Maryland

3.5/5  rDev -4.4%

12-02-2012 16:22:17 | More by bootsandbeer

MarkyMOD

Colorado

4/5  rDev +9.3%

12-01-2012 04:03:48 | More by MarkyMOD

DelMontiac

Oklahoma

3.98/5  rDev +8.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

1 pints can provided by my bro-in-law from Denver, CO.

An aggressive pour yields a two finger off white head and fizzles down to a halo in just under two minutes. Color is red copper. Lace it very scant.

Nice aromas of peppermint, plum, raisons, and caramel malt.

Flavors of doughy cinnamon biscuits, caramel, nutmeg, clove and peppermint dance on the tongue leaving some wisps of licorice and vanilla.

Medium-full feel and not a lot of carbonation. Would benefit from more bubbles.

Luckily, my bro-in-law didn't really dig this and left the remaining cans for me. I'm fond of winter warmers anyway and this one is a keeper. At 8.2%, this one will warm you up. BONUS - It's in a 1 pint tall can!

Serving type: can

11-30-2012 20:57:50 | More by DelMontiac

Domingo

Colorado

3.73/5  rDev +1.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Glad to see Upslope canning more beers. They brew a lot more beers than most people realize.
Pours a chestnut brown color. Not much foam going on. A little, but not a ton.
The nose is spicy - a bit reminiscent of the Harpoon or Anchor Christmas ales...but slightly more mellow. Big cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and maybe a little bit of peppermint.
The flavor profile matches the nose, but it's (luckily) not as bold. Plus, as this warms, the more traditional Belgian flavors like burnt sugar and a little cocoa come out. In fact, as this one heads closer to room temperature, the spices become a little more muted and the beer is pretty tasty.
Not too fiery, but still packing some punch. I wish it had a little more carbonation, but I still liked it.
Not bad. With some tweaks this could probably be downright amazing. As it stands, it's still good.

Serving type: can

11-21-2012 15:09:32 | More by Domingo

Mebuzzard

Colorado

3.23/5  rDev -11.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A new brew from Upslope for the Santa season...albeit a month too early. Seems like this is a trend nowadays.

Anywho, pours a reddish brown/chestnut. Small head up front, fades to nothing. No lacing.

Aroma of booze, gum, some spices and faint caramel.

Taste: it's not bad, but seems messy. The spices are weak, the caramel burnt, and the booze off and on. The thinness doesn't help. Not that this is a bad beer. It is good. Perhaps more of a good step in the right direction for next year's batch effort. It just seems the spices are vague enough to think that they don't belong here.

Serving type: can

11-19-2012 21:24:47 | More by Mebuzzard

beergoot

Colorado

3.4/5  rDev -7.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Deep copper-colored body with nearly no head other than some lively, carbonated, thin foam across top half of the beer. Light scent of spice and sweet malt grain; spruce; nice combination of hop bitterness and alcohol warmth. Rich malt flavors infused with spruce and pine resins; other spice notes such as ginger and cinnamon. Solid medium-body; clean and sweet; slightly syrupy.

Better than the sum of its parts. Initial impressions aren't too promising, yet the taste comes through to make this an interesting (although not "must-have") holiday brew.

Serving type: can

11-18-2012 21:49:00 | More by beergoot

StoneTSR

Colorado

4.43/5  rDev +21%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

APPEARANCE: For starters, credit is due for a great looking can – red and Christmas-like with the standard, simple and classy Upslope logo. As for the beer itself, it pours a dark reddish-brown, but is obviously filtered and fairly transparent. A full finger-and-a-half head slowly settles into a nice, thick cap.

SMELL: The smell is almost dry, like a cinnamon and nutmeg mixture with a little too much nutmeg in it. A little caramel hits the nose as well along with a touch of brown sugar.

TASTE: This tastes like Christmas. Cinnamon, sugar, spice – clove and nutmeg are all out in front of this beer. Seriously spicy, the Upslope Christmas tastes like a holiday beer candy. As a previous reviewer mentioned, there is a little gummy flavor to it, but that isn’t a bad thing at all here. The Christmas stays on the sweet side, but it does not go too far at all. Mmm…that cinnamon is really coming through as the beer warms. Delicious.

MOUTHFEEL: Medium bodied, the Christmas is a very easy-going beer. Slightly on the sweet side, it stays dry enough to retain excellent balance throughout every sip. The carbonation is light, but the finish is clean and just sweet enough to keep your palate begging for the next one.

OVERALL: Supremely drinkable. This is just a real easy beer to put down. It looks good, smells good, tastes good and feels good. I’m sure if it could it would sound good too. I did not pay $3.75 for this can, but if I did, it would have been worth it. If you see it, pick it up.

Serving type: can

11-18-2012 09:29:51 | More by StoneTSR

ArrogantB

Colorado

3.35/5  rDev -8.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

I know this has abbey yeast so maybe I should have entered the beer as something belgian, oh well. I picked up a single can of this because of some chatter here on BA about it being good, thank goodness I didn't spend the $15 for a four pack. Red color, foamy head that collapses quick. Aroma is kind of gummy with a hint of spice. Flavor is more gum, not bad but nothign that made me say wow. The belgian yeast was apparent. Overall, totally not worth the $3.75 I paid for the can.

Serving type: can

11-17-2012 03:55:30 | More by ArrogantB