Happy Holidaze
O'Fallon Brewery

Happy HolidazeHappy Holidaze
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From:
O'Fallon Brewery
 
Missouri, United States
Style:
Herb and Spice Beer
ABV:
5.3%
Score:
89
Avg:
4 | pDev: 5.5%
Reviews:
11
Ratings:
12
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Nov 02, 2015
Added:
Dec 01, 2004
Wants:
  6
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
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Ratings by bros:

  None found.

 
Rated: 3.75 by frothy_80 from Missouri

Nov 02, 2015
More User Ratings:
Photo of GilGarp
Reviewed by GilGarp from Colorado

4.09/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured from a 12oz. brown bottle into a pint glass.

Served cold, it pours a very dark hazy redish brown color. There was a fair amount of sediment in the bottle that ended up in the glass. All the better for flavor, I say. Head is small and short-lived.

Aroma is heavy in tradional winter spices like cinnamon, clove, and ginger. Very exciting.

Flavor is intense and very unusual. It has fruity, roasty, spicy and tart all combined together. There seems to even be some mint! Coffee, chocolate, ginger, pie spice, oranges... the list goes on and on.

Mouthfeel is medium-light in body and lowish carbonation.

Overall a very impresive, if not unusual, offering. I'll look for it again.
Jan 04, 2010
Photo of maxpower
Reviewed by maxpower from Missouri

4/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Cloudy dark reddish brown with a decent light brown head that leaves some lacing in my glass. Chocolate and peppermint aromas, candy cane and mint chocolate flavors. Medium bodied with a soft and creamy mouthfeel, leaves a nice fresh minty aftertaste. A really tasty holiday ale.
Apr 21, 2005
Photo of blitheringidiot
Reviewed by blitheringidiot from Pennsylvania

4.3/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Quaint plain silver homebrew-ish cap with a cartoonish smiling reindeer. Props for the only info being their phone number 636 474 BEER. Lovin’ it!

Pours out a superlative dark mahogany brown nearly opaque with next to no light escaping, topped off with a thin khaki tan spotty head cap and benign grey scrod chunkers settling to the bottom.

Clearly some candy cane peppermint and cinnamon erupt to the nose leading to some modest cake malts. Quite clever, actually. The charm of this hometown hero is growing by the whiff. Mad props for their clever niche.

First swigs: Candy cane cleverness follows to the malty pancake flavor palate. Cocoa and Spearmint gum meet in the palate. This is like a dessert brew in a glass. A treasure for anyone lucky enough to cross paths with this stocking stuffer.

When a local brewery goes all out on flavor and quality, then the review is all out on appreciation. What a treasure. Only Goose Island’s Winter and Bethlehem’s Rudolph’s Revenge give this gem a run for the money. Easy to discount this brew due to the overbearing peppermint, but not by me. On this snowy Winter’s day, my snow shovel was ready to dig it.

Last swigs: Easily, this is wintergreen chocolate chip ice cream in a glass. One of many gifts from my BA Secret Santa a.k.a. Kathleen. If Santa himself homebrewed, this is what he would make and he wouldn’t have to sneak down the chimney to deliver. Candy canes, peppermint and all. Don't mind the sediment left in the glass.

Beer is good. Happy (left over Winter) beering.
Feb 25, 2005
Photo of orbitalr0x
Reviewed by orbitalr0x from Illinois

3.68/5  rDev -8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3
Probably one of the last holiday brews I'll be trying this season...pours a a deep dirty brown color with a decent bubbly khaki colored head. What a weird nose on this one...big roasted, toasty maltiness with hints of chocolate and a big candy cane peppermint aroma. Gotta give points of uniqueness here...but I just dunno about the mintiness.

First sip brings a cool pepperminty flavor along with a nice dark roasted maltiness and hints of chocolate. There's a bit of a burnt, smoky flavor hidden in there, but the mint plays the leading role. A good brew...but I'm just not that down for the mint myself.

Mouthfeel has a nice medium body and creamy character. Smooth, tight carbonation flows nicely over the palate. I can't really see myself having any more of these...it's a good beer, just not my cup of tea.
Feb 24, 2005
Photo of grapemaster
Reviewed by grapemaster from California

4.05/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
I sat down to my hearty meal on a cold night. I opened my Happy Holidaze, hoping for winter warmth. The beer poured out as a misty brown, and the smell was crisp and flavourful. I took a sip and thought, this is a fine beer. However the first try yieled a suprise. I was intrigued to discover what sly flavour was dancing on my tongue. Ah ha I said, after another sip, it is peppermint mixing with the hoppy goodness. The balance proved interesting, and was able to hold my attention throughout the entire glass. A slight lacing reminded me of where I had been and where I was going.
And it was good.
Feb 18, 2005
Photo of Jason
Reviewed by Jason from Massachusetts

3.92/5  rDev -2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5
Thanks to UncleJimbo for this sample.

Presentation: 12 oz brown bottle with no freshness date.

Appearance: Mildly hazed deep brown color, thin lacing.

Smell: Fresh peppermint … obvious stab at a candy cane character. Hint of chocolate and some maltiness as well.

Taste & Mouth Feel: Moderate body with a streamlined crispness, up front peppermint character flows well with the dry malt flavor. Vague hints of chocolate and plum in the middle. Hops are mild and balance the beer out.

Drinkability & Notes: An interesting twist for a holiday brew, some fine chocolates would prove for a perfect pairing.
Feb 06, 2005
Photo of UncleJimbo
Reviewed by UncleJimbo from Massachusetts

3.95/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
This winter ale poured a dark, coffee-brown color with creamy, light brown foam that persisted a while before settling. The smell was malty with some chocolate, spices, and peppermint. A pleasant aroma. The taste was malty with notes of cocoa and caramel. There was a hint of spices and a definite peppermint (candy canes?) flavor. There was a mild hoppiness in the finish. The mouthfeel was smooth, light and airy on the tongue, with medium body and good carbonation. The aftertaste was pepperminty. This was a good beer: the combination of peppermint and some cocoa flavor worked well, and the mint was not overdone.
Jan 15, 2005
Photo of ghurux86
Reviewed by ghurux86 from Missouri

4.32/5  rDev +8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
pours a nice brown color, cloudy, medium in darkness with a creamy off white head.
smell is magnificent, mint with chocolate, malt, and maybe others,
taste--up front is mostly mint but is followed by chocolate and a slight taste of alcohol, kinda like an andes mint. different but good.
mouth feel is good, not very thin at all and medium to little carbonation.
i could drink it all night but if the fridge was the liquor store, there are others i would rather have.
overall this beer is pretty good and a nice change from your average beer, it is also better since ofallon is about 5 min from my house, go try it. it's the best i've had from ofallon brewery.
Jan 04, 2005
Photo of Redrover
Reviewed by Redrover from Wisconsin

4.02/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
12 oz brown longneck picked up at Sam’s Liquors in Downers Grove. I liked their pumpkin, so I thought I’d try this one.

The beer pours a ruddy brown with an off-white head and nice lacing.

The smell is different in a good way. Lots of mint with some subtle roasted malt, spices and almost a chocolate thing going on in the background. It almost reminds me of a chocolate mint candy.

I’m usually not a huge fan of “cute” beers and I think this one may qualify as cute. But , I really liked the interplay between the mint and the roasted malt. This beer seems very well balanced and the brewer has succeeded in adding just enough mint to be interesting, but not enough to distracting. Nice subtle spicing. Beer as expected is somewhat sweet and the alcohol is very well hidden.

Nice carbonation levels and a slightly oily mouthfeel add to the enjoyment. Still drinkablity is tougher. While I really enjoyed this one, I think one a night would be plenty. Give this one a try, I think you will enjoy it. I also think it would be a good “conversion” beer to get someone to try something different.
Dec 11, 2004
Photo of GeoffRizzo
Reviewed by GeoffRizzo from Texas

4.29/5  rDev +7.3%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Dark brown in color, with a bubbling tan head; the nose is peppermint, spearmint or just plain minty, rather inviting indeed! Up front, roasted malts give way to some chocolate offerings; mint grazes the palate, and becomes more noticeable as this beverage warms up; matter of fact, rather fine at room temp. Minimal carbonation; overall taste is reminding of anything mint – peppermint hard candy or mint chocolate chip ice cream; the mention of mint is not overpowering, but welcoming; the body is dry-stout in nature, no bitterness or ugly off-flavorings, rather a nice addition of that four letter m word; these folks brew some darn fine flavored beers! Happy Holi-daze!
Dec 05, 2004
Photo of nogoodreason
Reviewed by nogoodreason from Missouri

3.67/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
It's a hazy deep brown, with a buttermilk head. Nose is of powdered chocolate, grain and spearmint gum. Initially, very strong spearmint notes ride with a thin body and a chocolate finish. As it warms, it's thicker with some nutty malt notes appearing and the chocolate coming more to the forefront. No bitterness, not from any hops or any roast. It's sweet and minty the whole damn ride. The finish is a like a thin mint cookie.

What an unusual beer... like a mint porter. Some roasted malt might've helped this out, give it some degree of bitterness to balance it. Still, I think it's was well done, if not to my taste.
Dec 01, 2004
Happy Holidaze from O'Fallon Brewery
Beer rating: 89 out of 100 with 12 ratings