Merry Christmas & Happy New Year (Our Special Ale) (2017)
(Batch of Our Special Ale)
Anchor Brewing Company in San Francisco, California, United States 🇺🇸
Spiced / Herbed / Vegetable / Honey Winter Out of Production|
Score
7.12
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This is the forty-third annual "Our Special Ale" from the brewers at Anchor. It is sold only from early November to mid-January. The Ale's recipe is different every year, as the tree on the label, but with the intent with which we offer it remains the same: joy and celebration of the newness of life. Since ancient times, trees have symbolized the winter solstice when the earth, with it's seasons, appears born anew. Our tree for 2017 is the Santa Lucia fir. Extremely rare, it is native and limited to California's Santa Lucia Range.
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7.9/10
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Appearance 7
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
Not making detailed notes. It's just a spicy Xmas wonderfulness. A little light on carbonation. Still has the evergreen and cinnamon aspects.
Tried
from Bottle
on 05 Jan 2025
at 01:42
8/10
Tried
from Bottle
on 13 Dec 2024
at 18:58
6/10
Tried
from Bottle
on 15 Sep 2021
at 19:25
7/10
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Appearance 7
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 7
Overall 7
Pours dark , light absorbing brown. Mediuml sized, relatively stable, tanned head. Scent is mild, showing a very mild herbal, spiced aroma, as well as some dark bread . Taste is sharp, high carbonation ( think Belgian Style ) , mild traces of oxidation, not ruining the beer just yet ( it's best by date is 09-2019 so a few months over time, yet its not bad at all ). Medium to medium thin body ( again, this really drinks like a belgian style ) . Mild amount of herbal spices. Relatively easy drinker, not to much taste. Not as heavy in alcohol as the BE winterbeers, which I do enjoy a bit more in this style. Mild bitterness, not as sweet as anticipated. Relatively clean fermentation profile as well.
Tried
on 21 Jan 2020
at 22:49
6/10
Tried
on 12 Sep 2018
at 09:52
8.1/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
As Anchor Brewing Merry Christmas Happy New Year 2017, 6.7% ABV. Bottle, 0.355l. Deep ruby, almost black pour. One finger creamy brown head, long lasting. Thick lacing as it goes down. Strong malty herbal nose, caramel, cake, notes of cocoa and herbal liquor. Medium body, soft carbonation. Regular texture, slightly prickly. Roasty bittersweet taste and aroma. Aroma of caramel, toffee, candy and cake. Roasty. Herbal liquor, slightly boozy. Bubblegum aftertaste, drying mouthfeel. Medium to long finish, mildly bitter and dry. Overall, quite tasty. Rich and fairly complex, this is one quality brew.
Tried
from Bottle
on 24 Aug 2018
at 14:39
6.8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 7
2017 version. Bottle from Pivoteka. Lost rating from April 13th. Very dark brown body, blackish, with a lasting tan head. Full malty aroma, sweetish and nutty. Malty taste, again dry and full, light bitterish touches, just vagueliy herbal/piney, ending a bit watery. Okay beer, expected more.
Tried
from Bottle
on 05 Jun 2018
at 21:38
7.6/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 7.5
Texture 7
Overall 7.5
2017 version at 6.7% abv. Pours opaque black with a huge light brown head that shows good retention and very nice lacing. Aroma shows a clean mix of roasted malts and coffee, slight toffee and spiciness. Overall not so complex, but very clean and quite strong. Taste follows the aroma with a good balance of sweet and bitter notes and a slightly bitter, dry finish. Roasted malts, coffee, and a plesant warming/spicy feel. Medium bodied with low to medium carbonation, overall quite soft in the mouth. In short, a well made robust porter with a delicate warming/spicy feel. Nice one.
Tried
on 27 Feb 2018
at 10:28
7.8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 8
Bottle of 2017 vintage, bought at Best One, Bedford, drunk at home. Rich dark brown with purplish hue. Opaque with a wisp of khaki head. Spruce, allspice, oak, a touch of molasses. Bittersweet taste with earthy hops asserting at the end. Woody and slightly astringent finish with liquorice and medicinal herbs in the aftertaste. Highly carbonated. A brilliant beer.
Tried
from Bottle
on 31 Dec 2017
at 11:07
7/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 8
Overall 8
2017er Flasche, tolles Design, ich liebe die Idee mit den jährlich wechselnden Bäumen. In der Nase Röstmalz. Im Trunk frisch, würzig, dann mittig Röstmalz. Supergut trinkbar, dürfte aber gern mehr Bumps haben.
Tried
on 19 Dec 2017
at 14:39