0.6l bottle brought home from Cask Pub & Kitchen. It's super super oily and what can only be described as tar black on the pour. It also has a nice medium sized dark brown head on top of this ridiculously black body. It's really spicy on the nose, something that works really well now on this day before Christmas. I get lots of cloves and lavender, ginger and a tamarind fruit acidity. There is also a ongoing cinnamon aroma in the house today as I'm making skillingsboller, but i also find strong traces of it in the beer. A powerful spicy nose, but that's nothing, absolutely nothing compared to the heavy flavors in the taste! Damn! Spices on steroids. It's as thick and oily in the mouth as the pour suggested and it's softly carbonated with small prickling bubbles on the tongue. Dark roasted ginger bread, almost burned with a ton of cloves, vanilla, pepper, fruit bread and allspice. So much things going on here that I know that this bottle will last for quite some time. Glad I finally got a chance to try the epic series. Wouldn't mind doing that again, but this is already somewhat over the top IMO. 23.12.2013

Bottle shared with Vincent . Pours black, good grey head Smells like ’speculaas ’ , bit coffee , cloves, ... Taste is pretty sweet , bit bitter, very spiced . some earth . Very full taste, yet not over the top Taste is definetly better than the smell .

65 cl bottle @ home. Thanks roopy brothersfather!
Aroma has lots of spices and rosehip. Also some roasted tones in the background. Flavour is sweetish with fruity tones, spices, rosehip and some pepper. Also some licorice root and hints of dark chocolate. Intresting stuff, I cannot really tell if this is too spicy or not. Reminds me of Stone’s version of Special Holiday Ale.

650ml bottle from Systembolaget, thanks mto

Pours pitch black with a smooth light brown head. Aroma of spices, cinnamon, ginger, roasted malts and chocolate. Taste is spicy and roasty with notes of cinnamon, ginger, orange peel and earthy yeasty notes. Finish is smooth, slightly roasty and spicy with some dark chocolate and earthy notes. Quite well balanced and spicy ale.

Bottle bought @ systembolaget. Pours hazy blackish brown with a frothy blackish beige head that doesn’t leave much trace on the glass while dissiapting. Smell is heavy spicy with roasted malts, raisin brans, cloves, allspice, cinnamon, lemon peal, burnt wood, alcohol, overripe apples and dark bread. Taste is bitter and heavy spicy with roasted malts, pumpernickel bread, caramelized apples, allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon, orange peal, lemon peal, shichuan pepper, black pepper corns, burnt wood and hints of cardamon spiced dark roast coffee. Mouthfeel is round, soft, heavy spicy astringent and medium bodied. finish is bitter and heavy spicy with roasted malts, coffee, mixed christmas spices, burnt wood, hay, orange peal and soot. Way way way too spicy for me...

Reviewed from notes.
The appearance has a dark black body yielding a one finger tan foamy head, light slightly foamy lacing.
The smell is an extremely powerful spicy/sweet aromas Ive ever smelled in any beers - clove, ginger, allspice to the chocolate, malt, and sugar, if this isnt complex, then nothing is.
The taste is mainly sweet becomes spicy through all previously mentioned flavors.
The palate is about a medium to almost heavy, eh - sessionable - maybe - perhaps, chocolatey aftertaste, smooth finish.
Overall, wow, I wasn’t expecting this beer to be this good, very complex in all aspects - perhaps had it at the right time, I would have this one again in a heartbeat.

Better than 11 VE Ale, but come on, enough with the spice for Pete’s sake. Interesting, complex, yes, but the Christmas pudding like flavor is just too much for me.

Sampled from a 22 oz brown bottle this beer poured a black color with a trace dark tan head that faded quickly and left minimal lacing. The aroma was birch beer, anise, cinnamon, brown sugar and gingerbread. The flavor was overwhelmingly spicy with very strong cinnamon, gingerbread, anise, a touch of wood and then more cinnamon. Very long finish completely overwhelmed with cinnamon. Moderately full bodied. Very one dimensional - to the point of distraction.