St Petersburg Christmas
Thornbridge Brewery

Tasted by a pint at the Swim Inn, a JDW pub in Sheffield, on Boxing Day 2007. Served by a sparkler-fitted hand pump. The pump clip looks almost the same as the regular St Petersburg Russian Imperial Stout, only added with Italic font "Christmas", so I guess it's a seasonally modified, spiced version? The strength is 0.5%abv. lower than the original, too.

A: a black body supports a well-lasting khaki foamy head. Looking decent and traditional.
S: wow... the spicy twist makes its appearance felt in a bold, straight-forward manner, with plentiful orange peels and (maybe) cinnamon added to the usual recipe, showing treacle, sweet coffee and dark chocolates at the back. Overall, the bag of spices comes a bit too strong and spoils the balance a bit. But it's for Christmas!
T: even more pronounced than the nose, the foretaste gives away lots and lots of spices/herbs - peppermint, licorice, cinnamon, orange peels (and maybe cloves as well?)... on top of rich roasted malts and jammy fruits... then gradually showing a burned-roast-beefy and soy-saucy, sticky savoury-bitter-sweet undertone, where root-herbs' bitterness and the burned malt flavour linger beautifully, slightly chewy even, in the roasty and hop-bitter finish. Only in the remote end does a wee bit of alcoholic warmth reveal itself.
M&D: only faintly alcoholic & syrupy, the texture remains smooth and lighter than the original, un-spiced version, yet finishing off ever so rounded in the end... I think the complex spiciness manages to intertwine with the malt and roasty base almost seamlessly, and somehow lifts the original version to a next level. That said, the aroma can be better improved to give a "glance" of the complexity attested on the palate. Merry X'mas!!