Better late than never, Part 1: Bell’s Octoberfest and Stone/Jolly Pumpkin/Nøgne Ø Special Holiday Ale
What we have here folks are beer I probably should of drank a while ago. Seasonal beers from around Halloween and Christmas. But you know the old saying “Better Late Than Never!” This is the bad thing about having a beer fridge full of beer. Some stuff just gets forgotten and hidden in the back. So here are some quick and dirty reviews.
Up first is the seasonal offering from Bell’s. Their Marzen/Oktoberfest. I’m not going to lie here, usually I can’t get into Octoberfest beers. They just don’t do anything for me. But I actually really enjoyed this one. It pours a very clear light amber color with a small amount of head. The head that pours quickly disappears into carbonation.
The aroma on this one has sweet and toasted malt, caramel, a tad bit of spice, and a little bit of a hop smell. Everything is small and muted. What you usually get from a beer of this style. The taste is more of the same. Toasted malt and caramel. Bread like taste. Slight hop and spice tones.
This beer does what it’s supposed to do. It’s not supposed to be big, it’s supposed to allow you to drink a ton of it. It’s very easy to drink, Crisp and lighter bodied. Great to pound down a six pack of. One of the more enjoyable Marzens I’ve ever had.
Found: Grape and Gourmet, Virginia Beach, VA
Price: 2 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.bellsbeer.com/
What the company says: A coppery amber lager that showcases a full bodied, malty flavor that is balanced by a refreshing bitterness derived from fine noble hops.
ABV%: 5.00%
Other beers to try from this brewery:Bell’s Hopslam, Bell’s Oberon Ale, Bell’s Two Hearted Ale
Other beers to try within the same style: Brooklyn Oktoberfest
Rating: C+
Now this is a beer I was looking forward to trying but for some reason I totally forgot I had. Sad I know. This is a collaboration beer from three great breweries. Stone, Jolly Pumpkin, and Nøgne Ø. The beer they brewed? A Winter Warmer. And I’m happy to say that folks this is my favorite Winter Warmer of all time. Heck this might be my favorite holiday type beer I’ve ever tried.
What I love about this beer is that they really didn’t try to do much with it. They didn’t overload it with ingredients, they didn’t try to out spice every single other Winter Warmer out there. What we have here might be the most perfectly spiced Winter Warmer I’ve ever had.
This awesome beer pours a dark brown color with ruby red highlights that really shine through if you hold the glass up to the light. It poured a medium sized head. Nice amount of carbonation up front that dies down a bit after you let the brew sit for a bit.
The smell on this beer is just fantastic. What you’ll notice first is the wonderful scent of sage and juniper. It’s the highlight of this beer but like I said above it’s just right. In the background you have a nice bready malt smell, like rye. In the end there’s a slight bit of hops but it’s not really that noticeable. The spices is what is key here.
The taste of this brew is something I can only describe as inviting It just sucks you in and by the time your done you will want more and more of it. This is something I would love to just sit down and have a six pack of. The spice like I’ve said a million times, is perfect. It doesn’t overwhelm. It’s just right from start to finish. The rye taste complements the spice and the beer ends with a little bit of citrus hops but it’s very small. This beer is definitely full bodied but smooth as silk. Goes down very very easy.
Stone seems to be getting more and more into collaborating with different breweries and heck that’s totally fine with me. You’ll soon see a review for their other collaboration beer. Once I pull it from the back of the fridge that is =)
Found: South Bay Drugs, Imperial Beach, CA (Mail Order)
Price: Around 3 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.stonebrew.com/, http://www.jollypumpkin.com/, http://www.nogne-o.com/
What the company says: You can read all about the process for this beer from start to finish here http://blog.stonebrew.com/?p=249
ABV%: 9.0%
Other beers to try from these breweries:Stone IPA, Nøgne Ø Dark Horizon 2.0, Jolly Pumpkin La Roja
Other beers to try within the same style: Anchor Brewing Christmas Ale, Casco Bay Winter Ale
Rating: A
Yeah, the Stone collaboration is damn fine!
Yes sir damn fine is a great way to describe it.
Hey, do you know anything about the Stone Sublimely Self Righteous Ale?
Yeah. It’s their 11th Anniversary Ale. The Black IPA. Basically it seems that it was so loved that people wanted it to be a regular release.
Will the whole country get it? Mainstream release?
That I don’t know. There’s an issue with Southern VA though. The distributor here said no one in Southern VA will get it, only Northern. My local place is fighting that. I hope he wins. Otherwise I’ll be ordering from Cali. It’s a damn fine beer.
Nogne was a very good Ale. We review this a while back and I enjoyed it very much.