Pickled Santa
Hop Back Brewery in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England 🏴
Collab with: Ridgeway BrewingBitter - ESB / Strong Bitter Winter
|
Score
6.17
|
|
Sold in the UK as Hop Back Pickled Santa. Sold in the USA bottle only as Ridgeway Pickled Santa.
Apparently made with spices—cinnamon, nutmeg and coriander—so you expect it to smell like mulled wine but in fact it has a very yeasty aroma. There are perfumed spicy notes there but it’s not what hits you first. Its colour is dark and it has a robust flavour with a heavy, hoppy, toasty, almost sour weight on the tongue.
Apparently made with spices—cinnamon, nutmeg and coriander—so you expect it to smell like mulled wine but in fact it has a very yeasty aroma. There are perfumed spicy notes there but it’s not what hits you first. Its colour is dark and it has a robust flavour with a heavy, hoppy, toasty, almost sour weight on the tongue.
Sign up to add a tick or review
5.5/10
—
Appearance 4
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 4
Overall 6
pours amber, off-white head aroma, pale malts, hints of spices flavor, lightly malty, some hop bitterness, the spices are a little hidden compared to usual xmas beer, light mouthfeel, mostly pale malts and mild chocolate touch. Weak finish, hints of cinnamon and light lingering bitter palate.
Tried
on 11 Jan 2010
at 10:25
5.2/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 5
Flavor 5
Texture 6
Overall 5
Cask@The Rake, London. Amber colour, small beige bubbly head. Aroma is fruits, mild spices as well as some slight hoppyness. Flavour is fruits, wood, mild spices as well as some notes of herbs. Not very interesting.
Tried
from Cask
on 11 Jan 2010
at 01:04
6.2/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6
Sampled from a 16.9 oz brown bottle this beer poured a rich caramel amber color with a medium sized beige head that faded quickly. The aroma was lightly fruity and had a touch of faint dry spices. The flavor was tart and bitter with a strong notes of apple, pear and vinegar and a touch of vague dry spices and caramel. The finish was long, tart apple and caramel. Medium body. Decent.
Tried
from Bottle
on 20 Dec 2009
at 14:56
7.1/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
This 500ml bottle conditioned ale, bb.170610, was bought at the bar called Real Ale In A Bottle, GBBF 09 and cellared for a few months. Pours a clear, golden-brown body with a dense, one-finger, beige head. Loose lace on the glass. Spiced aroma of cinnamon on a malty backbone. Flavoured with spices that fits the festive season. Fine blend of cinnamon, pepper, resin and nutmeg, developing into a smooth and long-lived ending of bitter hops. Well made and not overspiced. Medium bodied and rather easy to drink. Warming enjoyment during the polar darkness (Tromsø, 19.12.2009).
Tried
from Bottle
on 20 Dec 2009
at 02:49
6.5/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 2
Overall 8
Taster at the SLC tasting 2009
Appearance: Poured a golden color with a off white head
Aroma: Different spices and malts
Taste: Sweet malts with different spices (nutmeg, cinnamon, fig, etc...)
It is a clean beer with not much aftertaste.
Appearance: Poured a golden color with a off white head
Aroma: Different spices and malts
Taste: Sweet malts with different spices (nutmeg, cinnamon, fig, etc...)
It is a clean beer with not much aftertaste.
Tried
on 13 Dec 2009
at 16:29
6.5/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 8
Overall 6
Pours deep gold into an English pint. Bright white micro head with medium retention recedes to skim surface. Butterscotch and toffee aromas. Sweet caramel and cinnamon upfront turning to a crisp slightly bitter nutmeg finish.
Tried
on 09 Dec 2009
at 16:12
6.6/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Cask (Waterloo Arms, Southampton) - Dark amber/copper in colour. Spicy and malty aroma with some roasted notes. Spicy and malty taste with cinnamon and some fruit cake notes.
Tried
from Cask
on 15 Jan 2009
at 12:07
7.6/10
—
Appearance 10
Aroma 6
Flavor 7
Texture 10
Overall 7.5
Bottle conditioned from a World Market (part of a Ridgeway Xmas box). Copper amber color with a frothy beige head. Spicey aromas - see the usual suspects in the CD, above. Medium bodied with sharpish, but creamy, carbonation. Flavor is light caramel with lots of coriander, plus cinnamon and nutmeg. It is actually rather astringent. Really tingly fun to drink. The rating is probably ridiculously high, but that’s the way it hits me.
Tried
from Bottle
on 17 Nov 2008
at 21:16
4.1/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 4
Flavor 4
Texture 4
Overall 3.5
Twickenham Brewery tasting 08. Very spicy. Overly spicy. Too much, bit of tea. Base beer is ok.
Tried
on 21 Jul 2008
at 08:43
4.8/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 4
Flavor 5
Texture 4
Overall 5
copper coloured ale, spiced hop, fuull mouth hit, rich but bitter little clawing corriander shows through./
Tried
on 01 Apr 2007
at 13:20