Christmas Ale 2012 - Abita Brewing Co.

BeerFMAndy

Wisconsin

3.05/5  rDev -9%
look: 5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

12 oz bottle poured into a Sierra Nevada imperial pint.
5.5% ABV, Best Before 03/02/13 printed on neck, (2012 vintage).

A - A ruby hue washes over the rusty amber beer which pours with perfect clarity. Some vigor creates a tall light cream head which towers in height for quite some time before fading to a sturdy pile of foam leaving thick, chunky lace on the pint.

S - Earthiness abounds with dust and crumbly dirt from brown malts create an interesting profile for a Christmas ale but there's also quite a bit added from earthy, faintly herbal and somewhat pine-y hops. It seems somewhat closed off at first and a swirl only encourages off-putting aromas of burnt rubber and new shoe (which normally is pleasing). Toasted bread and finishes.

T - A seemingly mild addition of roasted malt comes forward in a big way, pushing forwards with bitter baker's chocolate, gritty burnt toast, and the same dirt and dust earth qualities the aroma possesses. Mild herbal spice opens up more followed by more pine attributes which completely differentiate themselves from the American hops one might think of when "pine" is mentioned.

M - Abita's Christmas Ale has a medium-light body leaning more towards the latter as it finishes extremely dry with an unchecked almost astringent bitterness and odd pine flavor.

O - I can't say I'm going to finish this beer. It's not quite for me but I also don't think it's worthy of calling it a drain-pour outright. This Christmas ale's heavy earthiness, gritty bitterness, and pine seem unbalanced; a bad combination for my palate.

Serving type: bottle

12-18-2012 00:39:00 | More by BeerFMAndy

SmellsofMahagony

Texas

3.75/5  rDev +11.9%

05-17-2013 01:27:10 | More by SmellsofMahagony

ajtorres311

Florida

3/5  rDev -10.4%

05-10-2013 16:41:37 | More by ajtorres311

HideYaBeer

Florida

3/5  rDev -10.4%

05-05-2013 22:12:50 | More by HideYaBeer

jazztoloc

Mexico

4/5  rDev +19.4%

05-04-2013 01:47:02 | More by jazztoloc

mcewesr

Pennsylvania

3.5/5  rDev +4.5%

04-22-2013 20:55:34 | More by mcewesr

AlkaholTester

Nevada

2.75/5  rDev -17.9%

04-12-2013 07:32:22 | More by AlkaholTester

Kunstman

Wisconsin

3.5/5  rDev +4.5%

04-12-2013 01:49:39 | More by Kunstman

DaPan

Ontario (Canada)

3/5  rDev -10.4%

03-30-2013 02:19:04 | More by DaPan

atomicbeer

New Mexico

2.98/5  rDev -11%
look: 3.25 | smell: 2 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Pours a clear brown-orangey-copper with a large tan head that has a orange tint. Aroma is pretty funky: figgy fruitcake leads the way but there's some also needles, wet sock, petroleum, tree bark, and leather. Wow, did I just write that? Initally the aroma is off-putting but I keep returning to sniff. Fortunately the taste does not follow. A bit fruity, a bit woody, some pine; don't really get anything Christmas-y. The mouth is fairly creamy, goes down smooth. Some burnt flavors like carmelized sugar linger. This might be good if not for the old rubber boot with pine mud in the fruitcake nose.

Serving type: bottle

03-24-2013 22:49:58 | More by atomicbeer

tom91281

Pennsylvania

2.5/5  rDev -25.4%

03-24-2013 18:55:40 | More by tom91281

grahamboudreaux

Tennessee

4.25/5  rDev +26.9%

03-24-2013 11:18:44 | More by grahamboudreaux

lupercmda

North Carolina

2.25/5  rDev -32.8%

03-23-2013 17:58:53 | More by lupercmda

garymuchow

Minnesota

2.01/5  rDev -40%
look: 4.25 | smell: 1 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Alright, it's already the first day of spring and I'm still holding onto a Christmas ale. Time to get this one into the books - and into my belly. Best by 3/2/13
Kind of a nasty hop aroma, like wet old hops. Very unpleasant.
Very attractive beer. Full rich dense head. Very clear brown body with deep red highlights.
I'm afraid the taste has some of the same nastiness as the aroma. It's not a complete disaster as I can grab some of the malts, but it's mostly the unpleasantness of the old mold hops.
Rather thin body with some fullness from the carbonation.
This is only a little past best by date, so I can't imagine it was much better two or three weeks ago.
Life's too short to finish this one.

Serving type: bottle

03-22-2013 01:18:14 | More by garymuchow

tastymug

Ohio

3/5  rDev -10.4%

03-22-2013 00:31:00 | More by tastymug

Hank_Scorpio

Louisiana

3.75/5  rDev +11.9%

03-07-2013 21:06:04 | More by Hank_Scorpio

deebo

Minnesota

2.53/5  rDev -24.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Poured from a bottle with a BB date of 3/2/13 into a chalice provides a finger of slightly off white head. Clear and light brown/ruby red in color. Aromas of lightly toasted barley malt, floral/citrus hops with a hint of cinnamon. The aroma is much more pleasing than the taste. This is a confused beer. I'm getting lots of different flavors here but not one is dominant and I can't put my finger on it. This beer finishes bitter. Weak in body and high in carbonation. Poor beer.

Serving type: bottle

03-06-2013 02:57:25 | More by deebo

Lambocalrisien

New York

3.25/5  rDev -3%

03-04-2013 01:14:15 | More by Lambocalrisien

JMS1512

New Jersey

3/5  rDev -10.4%

02-24-2013 18:26:15 | More by JMS1512

Poppellian

Florida

3.5/5  rDev +4.5%

02-22-2013 23:51:34 | More by Poppellian

capnamerica

Arkansas

3.25/5  rDev -3%

02-21-2013 23:06:07 | More by capnamerica

Flashyspoons

Louisiana

4/5  rDev +19.4%

02-18-2013 19:52:02 | More by Flashyspoons

brewskifan55

Mississippi

3.26/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

Poured into a tulip glass

A: Opaque, dark amber. A half finger head (eggshell white) that dums down to big bubbles. Light lacing.

S: Hops and cinnamon lead the way with faint renderings of vanilla.

T: Smokey; light hops dominate with cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. A subtle touch of caramel malts.

M: Light to medium with creamy carbonation. Kinda watery.

O: Less hoppy than the 2011. Not very impressive.

Serving type: bottle

02-17-2013 17:34:03 | More by brewskifan55

Thedrizzle

Florida

3.75/5  rDev +11.9%

02-16-2013 00:00:18 | More by Thedrizzle

dpage27

Ohio

3.5/5  rDev +4.5%

02-10-2013 23:09:55 | More by dpage27