12 Beers of Christmas - 2023 Edition

[tdf]

Ooh that's a great beer. I had my pocket knife ready for the foil, thanks for the heads up .

Nice and tart, with a strong cherry flavor up front. It seems pretty highly carbonated which fits this beer perfectly. I'm waiting for it to warm up some now but it's hard not to finish!

 

[mjdonnelly68]

3rd Beer of Christmas - @shetc 's Spiced Juniper Rye Bock:
Beer pours a beautiful reddish brown with a slight head that dissipates quickly. Very clear and inviting - a good looking pint. Clean aroma straight out of the fridge - no hop or spice aroma off the bat. Medium to low carbonation. Subdued spiciness of the Rye comes through with the first sip - a really nice flavor (I'm a huge fan of rye in all its forms - beer, bread and whiskey). Color and appearance are really nice - enjoyed staring at it. Flavors open up as the beer warms bringing what I assume are the juniper berries forward. Not super familiar with Juniper but it seems to impart a very nice flavor completely appropriate for the season. Nicely brewed @shetc - Cheers!

 

[SteveH aka shetc]

@kwilson16 I only got a small sample of the dubble as we were tasting all sorts of beer with my neighbors. We all enjoyed it. I'll do a proper glass when I'm on vaca next week.

 

[Rish]

@shetc , this is a tasty beer! Like the color and mouth feel. Just a touch of juniper and spice. Nice brew.

 

[Beekeeper]

@shetc , this is a tasty beer! Like the color and mouth feel. Just a touch of juniper and spice. Nice brew.

+ Malty flavor, full bodied, warming. Very drinkable. Wife likes this one as well!

Like trying to identify just the guava in a hawaian punch, without having tasted guava alone, I don't 'know' juniper, so I am unable to identify its presence among the flavors. Heck, I didn't know what chamomile blossoms smelled like either.

Recipe please. Is this one straight out of Randy’s book?

 

[4_Sons_Brewing]

Had the Junioer Rye Bock tonight. The rye really shines (like others that have posted I really like rye, in all forms). I get a dark berry or fruit flavor almost like raisins, I’m suspecting that’s the juniper berry. Really nice beer. Enjoying this a lot tonight.

 

[thetick]

Behind on my posting… @passedpawn, I got your beer yesterday. Thanks!

@kwilson16: I had the Dubbel last night. It was awesome! Really liked the tartness and the cherry flavor. Thanks and well done!

 

[4_Sons_Brewing]

Received the gruit today - I think that makes a complete set for me. Looking forward to enjoying the rest.

 

[SteveH aka shetc]

Geez, how did I get behind?!

@mjdonnelly68 Santa Sips is delish. The spices are prominent but very nicely in balance with the malt and body. The most seasonal one I've had so far.

 

[mjdonnelly68]

Hey @JAReeves - received your beers today intact. Really love the label and the big bottle (it's like catching a full size candy bar trick-or-treating). Thanks for the nice note and the chaser too. Looking forward to trying both.

 

[Rish]

^^What shetc said. Well done, @mjdonnelly68 !

 

[mjdonnelly68]

4th Beer of Christmas - @mjdonnelly68 's Spiced Dunkle Weizenbock
Beer pours a very pretty brown with red hues. A thick head that dissipates somewhat quickly (though the carbonation seems correct). No hop aroma and some spiciness on the nose but otherwise clean. Spices come through on first sip but in a muddy fashion (I couldn't pick out any particular spice). Also get the raisin character I associate with winter warmers. Well balanced and drinkable for a 7+% beer. As it warms up the spices become more prominent as does the raisin character. A solid effort and I enjoy drinking it but needs some work for me to want to make a session of it. 2024 12 BOC here I come... Cheers!

 

[mjdonnelly68]

^^What shetc said. Well done, @mjdonnelly68 !
View attachment 836865

Geez, how did I get behind?!

@mjdonnelly68 Santa Sips is delish. The spices are prominent but very nicely in balance with the malt and body. The most seasonal one I've had so far.
View attachment 836854

Glad you enjoyed it - Cheers!

 

[mjdonnelly68]

^^What shetc said. Well done, @mjdonnelly68 !
View attachment 836865

Glad you liked it - Cheers!

 

[passedpawn]

I just checked tracking.

@tdf @JAReeves my pkg is expected on both of your doorsteps Wednesday this week. Everyone else should have gotten theirs.

 

[4_Sons_Brewing]

Enjoying @mjdonnelly68 ’s single tonight. Agree with the previous post, get the spices upfront along with a dark fruit (raisin) - love the color and carbonation is spot on.

I gotta say - with 4 of the 12 revealed at this point - I’m a bit nervous when mine comes up.

Cheers all!

 

[SteveH aka shetc]

@tdf Tasting bourbon, vanilla, and star anise on a silky finish. Not much of the other spices, though it has a low bitter finish that they may be responsible for. A very quaffable spiced stout!

 

[tdf]

View attachment 836877
@BAF Tasting bourbon, vanilla, and star anise on a silky finish. Not much of the other spices, though it has a low bitter finish that they may be responsible for. A very quaffable spiced stout!

I do think that the star anise is overshadowing a lot in this brew. I would cut down on it next time. I always feel like 1 pod is too much when I cook with it, and apparently it is for 20L of beer, too.

 

[mjdonnelly68]

I do think that the star anise is overshadowing a lot in this brew. I would cut down on it next time. I always feel like 1 pod is too much when I cook with it, and apparently it is for 20L of beer, too.

Had the same issue with the star anise called for in my recipe. I think the perfect amount is a white whale - it goes from way too little to way too much in a heartbeat.

 

[tdf]

@mjdonnelly68 's Spiced Dunkle Weizenbock

The picture doesn't do it justice, but it's got a greet deep ruby color and is quite clear. 2cm head that dissipated almost immediately. There's some serious allspice and ginger in the aroma.
The first sip hit me hard with a gingerbread flavor. It faded into a nice raisiny finish. As the beer warms that raisiny malt flavor comes to the front. Super festive and I'm glad I have 2 more

 

[jturman35]

Awesome thread! Hate i missed this I need to get on board on the 2024!

 

[passedpawn]

I do think that the star anise is overshadowing a lot in this brew. I would cut down on it next time. I always feel like 1 pod is too much when I cook with it, and apparently it is for 20L of beer, too.

Had the same issue with the star anise called for in my recipe. I think the perfect amount is a white whale - it goes from way too little to way too much in a heartbeat.

Wait until you get to mine LOL. Just to remind you... Star anise (5 pods), orange peel, chamomile, bay leaf, rosemary, juniper berries, and something else I can't remember. Might be a dumper!

 

[passedpawn]

But srsly, bay leaf. cmon. I was going with the gruit theme, which means you're trying to bitter with something other than hops. It's an experiment.

 

[mjdonnelly68]

But srsly, bay leaf. cmon. I was going with the gruit theme, which means you're trying to bitter with something other than hops. It's an experiment.

I thought the same thing about the caraway seeds in my recipe. Sometimes you just need to go with it and see what happens. I can't wait to try your beer and see how all of those ingredients come through. Very exciting.

 

[mjdonnelly68]

@mjdonnelly68 's Spiced Dunkle Weizenbock

The picture doesn't do it justice, but it's got a greet deep ruby color and is quite clear. 2cm head that dissipated almost immediately. There's some serious allspice and ginger in the aroma.
The first sip hit me hard with a gingerbread flavor. It faded into a nice raisiny finish. As the beer warms that raisiny malt flavor comes to the front. Super festive and I'm glad I have 2 more

View attachment 836904

Glad you liked it - cheers!
Since we're all homebrewers let me ask a home brewing question: About the head quickly disapaiting what do you guys do to improve head stability? I know that head retention suffers in higher gravity beers, but at 7.3% I wouldn't consider this one a banger. I would also have thought that all the wheat in the malt bill would help with head retention. What would you all try to get the head to stick around?

 

[huckdavidson]

Glad you liked it - cheers!
Since we're all homebrewers let me ask a home brewing question: About the head quickly disapaiting what do you guys do to improve head stability? I know that head retention suffers in higher gravity beers, but at 7.3% I wouldn't consider this one a banger. I would also have thought that all the wheat in the malt bill would help with head retention. What would you all try to get the head to stick around?

A decoction with a glycoprotein rest may help.

 

[Beekeeper]

^^-- This. Hold the mash at 162 for 10 minutes.

 

[SteveH aka shetc]

I do think that the star anise is overshadowing a lot in this brew. I would cut down on it next time. I always feel like 1 pod is too much when I cook with it, and apparently it is for 20L of beer, too.

Tom - I just realized I looked at the wrong list, which had @BAF for the stout. Sorry about that.

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

But srsly, bay leaf. cmon. I was going with the gruit theme, which means you're trying to bitter with something other than hops. It's an experiment.

Mugwort is good for that.

 

[mjdonnelly68]

5th Beer of Christmas - @tdf 's Spiced Bourbon Stout
Beer pours a gorgeous, velvety black with a thick brown head that persists. The star anise is front and center in the aroma which is otherwise clean (no hop aroma but none expected). Great mouthfeel and much less minty flavor than the aroma would imply, the roastiness nicely tempers the star anise. As the beer warms up the spices become more prominent but the beer remains very drinkable. Nicely brewed @tdf - Cheers!