Holiday Ale
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant

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From:
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant
 
United States
Style:
American Amber / Red Lager
ABV:
7.5%
Score:
86
Avg:
3.73 | pDev: 13.14%
Reviews:
9
Ratings:
11
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Feb 08, 2015
Added:
Dec 21, 2007
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
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Ratings by bros:

  None found.

 
Rated: 3 by bvlaminck from Pennsylvania

Feb 08, 2015
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.5 by salinasa from Michigan

Dec 29, 2012
Photo of tobelerone
Reviewed by tobelerone from New Jersey

4/5  rDev +7.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Returned to the rotation; on tap at Iron Hill Media in early September 2012 and reviewed from notes.

Reddish-amber color, good-sized cream colored head. Solid retention and lacing; the body has good clarity as well. Big time sweet and bready malt nose, lots of caramel, followed by a combination of pine and citrus hop notes, with prominent pineapple. The flavor is also fairly malt-forward; I get a big dose of chewy bread, brown sugar, and caramel. The hops follow, again, pine, citrus, pineapples, floral aspects; booze peeks out just a little; finishes semi-dry, with late emerging, lasting bitterness.

Medium-full body, smooth, creamy, somewhat low-ish carbonation. Drinks kind of big in that it feels and tastes boozier than it really is, although at 7.5 ABV it’s not a lightweight. Close in spirit if not exactly execution to Nugget Nectar, with a more-pronounced maltiness but still lots of bright hops. Worthy of the revival Iron Hill gave it.
Sep 27, 2012
Photo of 05Harley
Reviewed by 05Harley from New Hampshire

3.5/5  rDev -6.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Holiday vintage 2009

As stated on the bottle "Best if allowed to age gracefully"

Traded with Gran8man to get this one.

This one pours a rusty redish color with little clarity. Even through the haze one can still see traces of bubbles. A nice fizzy head forms but quickly fades off leaving behind very little lacing.

Aroma is soft and sweet with malts dominating over the hops. Caramel, banana, apricots and some light spices target the nose.

Has a nice sweet creamy flavor with a mixture of caramel and citrus flavors. Cinnamon and a slight taste of alcohol become noticeable as it warms and the bottle comes to an end.

The mouthfeel is clean with a medium body and low carbonation. I can't help but think a little hop bitterness would be nice. The beer does finish dry indicating some hop presence.

Overall this was dead on with the style in terms of drinkability. I"m not surprised by the lack of hops due to the age but the bottle does say "best if allowed to age gracefully". I'm not too sure about that..
Dec 30, 2011
Photo of SolipsismalCat
Reviewed by SolipsismalCat from Pennsylvania

3.53/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Served in a Snifter.

A: Slightly hazy red-amber with nice white speckled film and lacing.

S: I get a slight whiff of floral hops, but not much else. I think it was served too cold.

T: Light sweetness and solid hop bitterness. This is a very hoppy red ale. The floral hops are what I taste first. Then the bitterness lingers for a while.

M: Medium bodied with soft carbonation. Crisp and dry like I would expect. Slightly warm, but I would have liked it to be warmer for a seasonal.

O: This is a pretty average red ale with enough alcohol to be labeled a winter seasonal. I would have liked more malt backbone and floral character.
Dec 14, 2011
Photo of Rifugium
Reviewed by Rifugium from North Dakota

3.13/5  rDev -16.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
First had: on tap at Iron Hill, Media, PA

Pretty good, but I was expecting, well, a holiday ale or winter warmer. Served in a tulip glass, it was reddish brown, with a generous white head. Just mild malts on the nose, and not much else. Nutty malts in the taste, hoppy bitterness following; earthy, a little bit stale, but still ok. And just ok. Light-medium body, and fairly drinkable, but not very flavorful.
May 12, 2011
Photo of HopDerek
Reviewed by HopDerek from Pennsylvania

3.63/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Served in a Mug Club Mug at the Media location.

Pours a clear amber color with some darker reddish hues. 1 finger of foamy eggshell head has good retention and leaves some spotty lacing. Smells of floral and spicy hops along with citrus notes, pine, and just a touch of caramel but not much. Tastes of floral hops, grapefruit, caramel, grainy malts, and a solid pine finish that lingers. Medium in body with good carbonation. A good bitterness throughout with a medley of hop characters, but needs a little more maltiness in the backbone and balance. Not quite sure what makes this a "Holiday" ale, but it'll make the hophead happy this holiday season.
Dec 18, 2008
Photo of Kegatron
Reviewed by Kegatron from Pennsylvania

3.68/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
On tap at the brewpub on 12/16/08. Served in an oversized Mug Club mug.

Pours a clear dark amber with a finger of creamy eggshell white colored head. A sturdy, thin layer of retention sticks around with some decent flare-up and lacing. The aroma is extremely fresh smelling and floral with some backing notes of spice and citrus. I'm trying but I'm just not picking up much malt sweetness at all. This is all about the hops.

The taste feels extremely floral in the mouth, along with some piney bitterness that lingers and a tangy mix of citrus and caramel that sweeten up the back but much like the aroma, this profile is very hop forward. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with a firm carbonation that then spreads out into a creamier feel.

Not a bad IPA at all, but this could have definitely used a bit more balance at times (especially in the aroma). This was still quite quaffable for a 7% IPA though and it's nice to see a hoppier offering on tap here for the holidays.
Dec 16, 2008
Photo of leftmindedrighty
Reviewed by leftmindedrighty from New Jersey

4/5  rDev +7.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
On tap in my 24oz mug

Smell, Grapefruit hops, small malt twang

Taste, Big grapefruit hop tastes, some malt balance, but a real hoppy chord is struck. Extremely well balanced, no one flavor takes control, the hops and malts play a great symphony.

Overall, Fantastic brew and very well balanced. This one is for the discriminating hop head. One who can appreciate a huge hop hit with balance.
Dec 21, 2007
Photo of kernalklink
Reviewed by kernalklink from Arizona

4.77/5  rDev +27.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Great example of a lighter double IPA. Golden pour with a good amount of head, thick syrupy malt aromas followed by a blast of floral citrus hops. Great flavor- sweet malt base with some spicy notes- the tongue tingles with the huge hop presence- not too heavy or alcoholic like some D-IPAs, while still being the tastiest hop combo available. A +
Jan 01, 2007
Photo of NeroFiddled
Reviewed by NeroFiddled from Pennsylvania

4.3/5  rDev +15.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Amber body with crimson, orange, and gold highlights. The creamy off-white head slowly dwindles to a thin collar, but leaves a very nice initial ring of lace and a solid curtain of tiny spots beyond that. The nose is malty, hoppy, and fruity with notes of caramel, melon, citrus, pine, apricot, apple, soft berries, and a touch of spice (most likely from alcohol - it's a big 'un). The flavor follows suit with a bit more malt and the addition of some pineapple-like fruitiness, and perhaps even more piney hops. In the finish, pine and spice coat the mouth, leaving it to linger for quite some time. Very nice! A great winter warmer!
Dec 03, 2006
Holiday Ale from Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant
Beer rating: 86 out of 100 with 11 ratings