Tag Archives: homebrew beer

Feb10

Home Brew Update: Holiday Cheer Ale Review

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Home Brew Update: Holiday Cheer Ale Review

Hubby happily hoists a pint.

It’s snowing again. Blizzard snow, and lots of it. I’m starting to feel like we live in Narnia under the White Witch, and I expect Mr. Tumnus to come calling for tea at any moment.

Last night we decided to have a bit of fun with dinner, what with the massive snow storm approaching and it being LOST night (I’m a huge Lost fan). Hubby and I cracked open the first two bottles of the Holiday Cheer ale to go with the pizza mac and cheese Thing 1 made (with a lot of help) for the family.

The brew had a pretty reddish color and a lovely head. I found the taste very bitter and hoppy, with a very heavy spice flavor. I didn’t exactly love it, but Hubby’s impression was different and far more favorable. Since I am still dealing with a lingering head cold that is impacting my ability to taste properly (I really should have waited a few more days before giving the brew a try), we’re going to go with his review until further notice. He enjoyed it tremendously, and said it went well with the dinner. I’ll give it another chance in a few days, after my head has returned to normal.

UPDATE: Just tried this beer with a coconut milk curry, and it was fabulous. The bitter spiciness was a perfect pair for the deep spices in the curry. Maybe it just didn’t play nice with the tomato sauce on last night’s meal!

Jan19

Homebrewing Update

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Homebrewing Update

Shiny clean bottles waiting to be filled with home brewed beer.

I am getting ready for an evening of bottling with Hubby tonight. The Holiday Seasonal Ale that a friend gave me for Chirstmas (Hi Jay!) is done fermenting and needs to be put in its bottles. I am eager to try this brew, which features honey, spices, and fresh orange zest, but it will be another three weeks before we crack one open.

I never gave the vanilla ale and chocolate stouts a proper review here, though they deserved it. The chocolate stout was pretty darn good, providing a very deep and rich brew, but the real star is the vanilla pale ale. This brew is by far my favorite so far. The taste is sophisticated,  light and cool, with a very mild vanilla aftertaste–it’s nothing like the cream soda beer that the name might imply. I have a handful of pints left, and I’ll be brewing more when they run out.

Well, I’ll be brewing more when they run out and I run out of kits to brew. The Holiday Seasonal Ale is one of three kits I had on hand, and I need to brew the Extra Special Bitter (a gift from Hubby’s brother and next in line) and Cream Ale that I have here waiting for their turn before spending money on any additional kits!