Bottle from Appellation Wines. Appearance - deep amber red. Really autumnal. Lovely lace head. Nose - Jamaica cake. Orange peel and spice. Candied sugar. Taste - more candied sugar and spice. Palate - medium bodied with a creamy yet tangy texture and a long dry finish. Overall - Belgian Strong Ale style with a bit of spice.

330ml bottle from Appellation Wines, Comely Bank. Shared with Ashton McCobb. Pours hazy red-brown with a thin off-white head. Aromas of light spice, brown bread, dark malts. Taste is light boozy, mixed spice, dark ginger cake. Light dried orange. Creamy texture, long finish.

Tap@Taphouse, Copenhagen (ØJ-dag share 03/11/2016) - dark amber to brown coloured pour with beige head. Medium sweet malty aroma and taste, toasty, caramel, yeast, spices, dried fruity nuance, sweet malty and hoppy close.

Bottle, 8.5%. Hazy dark brown with small beige head. Aroma is malt, caramel, yeast, dark fruit, hop and plume. Flavour is malt, dark fruit, hop, plume, sweet, yeast and little bitter.
Earlier Rating: 12/8/2011 Total Score: 3.6
Bottle, 7.8%. Unclear very dark amber with medium tan head. Aroma is malt, fruit, yeast and a little caramel. Flavour is malt, caramel, fruit, yeast, dried fruit, medium sweet, hops and a little bitter.

Bottle @Ulfborg Scooper. Hazy brown, offwhite head. Aroma has malt, spice and yeast. Sweetish, spicy flavour. Not that christmasy though. Has caramel and dry bitterness. Alcohol gets clear later on.
Earlier Rating: 1/12/2016 Total Score: 3
Hazy, dark chestnut brown. Airy light beige head. Caramely, hoppy aroma with yeasty spice and notes of licorice. Flavour has malt and bittersweet fruityness. Orange peel and light spice. Alcohol seems unbalanced.

Bottle @ fonefan tasting. Hazy dark orange brown with a beige head. Aroma is sweet, malty, caramel, dark fruit and spicy. Flavor is quite sweet and moderate bitter. Sweet and moderate bitter finish. 121116
Earlier Rating: 12/8/2011 Total Score: 3.6
ABV 7.8 %. Hazy dark amber with an off-white head. Aroma is sweet, malty, caramel, dried fruit, yeasty and alcohol. Flavor is medium sweet and moderate bitter. Dry and moderate bitter finish. 081211

Kroegentocht @BierKultuur --- Beer merged from original tick of Winter Mess (2018) on 06 Dec 2018 at 20:10 - Score: 7 --- Beer merged from original tick of Winter Mess (2019) on 08 Nov 2019 at 21:16 - Score: 7 --- Beer aliased from original tick of Zinnebir X-Mas on 12 Dec 2011 at 00:20 - Score: 7. Original review text: Vintage 2011, 7,8% --- Beer merged from original tick of Zinnebir X-Mas (2013) on 29 Nov 2013 at 15:55 - Score: 7 --- Beer merged from original tick of Zinnebir X-Mas (2015) on 13 Nov 2015 at 22:22 - Score: 7

Draught Very good & dense off-white head over fully hazy redbrown to amber ale. Textbook lace. Sweet, almondy, rosewater nose, tad woody. Rosewater with a bitterish woody vector, unbalanced. Sweet finish, but always with this bitterish unintegrated streak. Very slick to viscous, rather well-bodied, good carbonation. Guys, sorry, but this IS a mess.Earlier Rating: 12/18/2011 Total Score: 3.4 Draught Very dense & fine creamcoloured head; receding with textbook lace over fully hazy dark-brown beer. Creamy nose, mild & dark malts; pinch of (red) pepper in the nose. Sourish, roasted, very mildly sweet and with mild bitterness. Finish are malts: dark, but also slightly oxydized, and sporting a point of coffee. Very creamy MF, at least medium bodied. Good palate & MF, but the flavours don’t balance out at 100%, there’s some clashing. Might need some settling.

Tap at Poechenellekelder. Rich and intense, but the overall balance is a little bit too heavy and overwhelming for me. Spicy, dried fruits, but also notes of light roast and grainy astringency.