2009 vintage. Intense plums and dry cake. Bready grainy body with dry dried fruits - cherries and plums, Round with no bitterness and a moderate sweetish malty aroma in the and. Very round, but probably too long matured.

2006. Bottle at craig's. Pours deep brown, nose is chocolate, spiced, liquorice, taste is similar, little oxidised.

355ml bottle 2009 aged @ monthly tasting, Chez Sophie Nov 17. Pours dark hazy brown, small off-white head. Does seem like it's on the turn.. spice still present, soft malt.. hm.. Won't change the original rating 355ml bottle from Beeritz, Leeds. Quite a powerful aroma of nutmeg, cinnamon, clove and assorted ’Christmas pot pourri’ type spices that my Mum used to fill the house with at Christmas. Body was thinner than I expected, a little nutty with a mild malt character. Ok.

2009 Version: My first review of 2011. The house is calm again, so I can relax and have a quiet beer, slowly. My football team won 6-1 today and 7-2 on New Years Day, so this is my celebratory drink for both games. Poured into my Westmalle chalice, the brown 355ml bottle had a best before date of 20 Oct 2011. Imported into the UK by James Clay and Sons. The beer was a lovely ruby red when held up to the light, darker in the dull lighting of my living room. The full cream coloured head soon left, leaving behind a small wisp and nothing else. The beer seemed to be in good condition, so I was suprised the head ’did a runner’ so swiftly. No great smells, some hints of coffee and malty molasses, expected more. The taste was all malt, well carbonated (again, why the disappearing head), with a hop roughness more than bitterness in the aftertaste. The 5.5% ABV sat nicely within the brew and could be found easily as the beer warmed in the glass, not so obvious when the beer was colder. I was expecting more to be honest, not a bad beer by any standards, but not the rich, creamy special I hoped for!

Bottle. 2009 version. Creamy off-white excellent mostly lasting head. DArk red-amber colour. Powerfull malty and espcially spicey aroma. Strong resin/woody notes. Light bitter slightly spicey flavor. Average medicin finish. Oily palate.

Bottle (2009) - Dark brown in colour. Pine needles, spice, raisins and christmas cake feature in the aroma. Fruity and spicy taste with christmas cake, caramel and dried fruit.