Our Special Ale 2020 (Anchor Christmas Ale)
Anchor Brewing Company

 

 

 

Appearance: Black with frothy khaki colored head, great retention

Aroma: Quite hard to peg. Definitely roasted malt and toffee, but has a distinct herbal aroma that is hard to pin down.

Flavor: Semi-sweet, bakers chocolate. herbal.

Mouth feel: Full bodied, dry. moderate length finish.

Overall: This is a 12 plus month old bottle I saved to see how it aged. Bottled 11/20. Has noticeably mellowed, as expected. A little more rounded, but still has notable dark malt notes. Per above, has a distinct aroma and flavor that is hard to describe. Somewhere between herbal and sour. Most likely due to the age. Don't remember that in the fresher sample (which I unfortunately did not note). I have a bottle of the 2019 I am trying at the same time. I still like it better than this and the 2021 vintage. I like it has more of an Old Ale feel to it that the more stout like character. The 2019 version held up quite well btw.

Poured from a bottle into a pint glass. Pours deep red with a small light brown head. Smells of bright fruit and spices. Tastes of holiday spices, just a hint on cinnamon, and some fruit and darker roasted malt. Beer is medium bodied yet easy drinking, good carbonation. Overall, a good beer.

12oz bottle.

Pours opaque dark brown with a half-inch head of tan. Roasted chocolate with cardamon, clove, and spruce in the nose. Faint suggestion of ginger. Medium bodied with an almost slick mouthfeel. Dark chocolate, roasty malts, and earthy spice on the palate. Finishes dry with lingering bakers chocolate and faint nutmeg.

5/28/21...pours deep dark brown with brown foam. Cherries in the nose, stone fruits. Cranberries too. Earthy bitter. Latent fruit. Bitter cherry flavor. Some colas too. Almost stout like.

this one was okay, it seems like it gets darker and darker each year. big blast of holiday style spice (spruce, cinnamon, allspice, clove) that blends well with the overly malty body. plenty of chocolate here, too. tastes like a chocolate bar with some pine smashed into it

 

 

 

 

Pours near dark cola from the bottle, thin fizzy 0.5" tan head, light lacing but coats the glass nicely. Nose is lots of brown bread and spice, clove, allspice, cassia, mace, nutmeg, molasses, cola. Light diacetyl as it warms. Taste expresses all of these notes well, but drinks dry and even finishes with some moderate bitterness that helps cut through the spice; sweetness is on the low side. Mouthfeel is full but lots of sharp carbonation as well. Really enjoyed this year's iteration.

 

First beer of the new year!
This pours a dark cola-coffee color, with a thick and creamy cocoa colored head. The nose is slightly herbal, with the dark roast character dominating. Dry and roasty on the sip, with a tobacco-menthol-evergreen character emerging. Always a classic, and this is no different.

 

 

First an introduction: Poured from a 12 oz bottle into a glass on this night of Purim 2021. I try to always have an OSA ready to enjoy on special occasions, so I was glad for this one, because one year ago at the Jewish holiday of Purim was the last "normal" thing our family did before the pandemic.

This beer is a return to the glory of Anchor Our Special Ale's from the early 2000's, when they weren't afraid to be mega-bold with the spicing and were willing to go all the way in seasonal specialness.

This beer has a generous tan head. Toasted and spicy aroma. Flavor is complex --- raisins, port wine, a hint of ginger, maybe balsamic vinegar notes, dark carmelized brown bread. Velvety smooth. This beer is truly glorious, good enough that I'm hitting my local beer store tomorrow to see if they still have any in stock.

12 oz bottle poured into a red wine glass. The 2020 version is darker in color - very much like a porter - and flavor than the previous two years (the 2018 was my first). Cocoa, molasses, and dark roasted malts are more prominent than the pine and holiday spices, although those are still present. It's unlike any other beer I've had, and I'm liking it a lot. Creamy mouthfeel, the 7% abv is well-hidden, and there are a lot of layers to this beer. Great stuff!