Trappist Festive Lager
The Spencer Brewery

Trappist Festive LagerTrappist Festive Lager
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From:
The Spencer Brewery
 
Massachusetts, United States
Style:
Märzen
ABV:
7.5%
Score:
87
Avg:
3.89 | pDev: 10.8%
Reviews:
8
Ratings:
28
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jan 02, 2021
Added:
Jul 24, 2016
Wants:
  2
Gots:
  3
A Trappist lager inspired by German tradition! Smooth, russet colored, hearty and malt-forward, hints of smoke and spice. Balanced by noble hops and a bitter finish.
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Ratings by Celtics76:
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Rated by Celtics76 from Rhode Island

3.71/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Oct 20, 2017
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4 by Dizzy242 from Massachusetts

Jan 02, 2021
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Reviewed by Mitchster from Michigan

4.24/5  rDev +9%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
Got this for $3.99 a 4/pk, along with the stout on a blowout sale. No info per the website. "A trappist lager inspired by German tradition." 7.5% ABV per the bottle. No ingredients listed.

Pours out to a cloudy amber, forming a small head with poor retention, no lacing. Carbonation is mild, ~2.0 carbs or so. Apparently bottled conditioned, thin layer of yeast in the bottom of the bottle. The nose is of a dopplebock. Raisins, dates, malt. No hop nose. Clean ferment. Mouthfeel is smooth, medium dense bodied, slightly syrupy. The taste is quite nice. There is a nice smoke note here on top of a hearty malt base, reminding me of a more syrupier, chewier less smoky version of Aecht Schlenkerla Urbock or Marzen. Quite nice. Cleanly fermented, no off flavors or aromas. Very mild bitterness towards the end. Lingering raisins, dates and figs in the aftertaste.

There is nothing trappist about this. It if were labelled as a smoked dopplebock, people would know better about what to expect. That being said, it's pretty good because I love smoked beers. I wold buy it again if the price were this low.
Jul 07, 2019
 
Rated: 4.25 by bigred89 from Maryland

Feb 24, 2019
 
Rated: 4.21 by Abstractspirit from Rhode Island

Dec 27, 2017
 
Rated: 4.58 by Jeff486 from Connecticut

Dec 16, 2017
 
Rated: 3.5 by OriolesFan1008 from Maryland

Nov 28, 2017
 
Rated: 4.22 by harsley from Massachusetts

Nov 27, 2017
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Reviewed by billybob from Massachusetts

4.13/5  rDev +6.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
I am doing this review with only one bottle for me it should at least three beers. a burnt orange amber color small head and not a lot of lace. aromas are faint but sweet and fruity. smooth and very tasty malt body and at 7.5 abv you would not know it. want to try more and see what other beers spencer offers. we do have some very good brewers in ma..
Oct 08, 2017
 
Rated: 3.85 by PJCarnell from Massachusetts

Sep 26, 2017
 
Rated: 3.81 by TheManiacalOne from Rhode Island

Sep 24, 2017
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Reviewed by BeerAndGasMasks from Virginia

3.94/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
From the bottle, it pours a solid darker amber with a modest, though long lasting, head. Some lacing as you enjoy the beer. Malt in both the nose and mouth. As a "Festive Lager", some think of this as a fest bier type, but I disagree. I see it (and rate it) more as a bock (or a double bock due to alcohol level) instead, due to the high alcohol and malt forward flavor.
Sep 01, 2017
 
Rated: 3.94 by Klister from Maine

Aug 29, 2017
 
Rated: 4.16 by PatGreer from Massachusetts

Mar 14, 2017
 
Rated: 3.75 by AtlanticT from Massachusetts

Dec 29, 2016
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Reviewed by edward_boumil from New York

3.44/5  rDev -11.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
L: Pretty standard, burnt orange in color, with bright orange highlights around the glass. Off-white head, decent retention.
S: Very sweet, standard aromas in there, light caramel, biscuits, honey, and toast. Also a pretty strong dark fruit aroma, fig or apricot. Almost raisin like.
T: Feel like dark fruit sort of dominates the palate here. Has a sort of syrup like sweetness. Not really getting much in terms of the standard flavors of a marzen. Also finishes quite bitter. Not crazy like a WCIPA but noticeably more than what I am used to for the style.
F: Heavy for a lager, cloying, and dry. Sort of lacks balance and drinkability.
O: Not bad, just sort of misses the mark. The dark fruit wasn't necessarily a negative just very uncharacteristic for the style. If you approached this beer as you would a quad or something like that, it might seem better, but it is labeled as a marzen and doesn't drink like one.
Dec 28, 2016
 
Rated: 3.63 by Sellen from Connecticut

Nov 27, 2016
 
Rated: 3.5 by Euroglot from Belgium

Nov 05, 2016
 
Rated: 4.1 by HopBelT from Belgium

Oct 30, 2016
Photo of Jugs_McGhee
Reviewed by Jugs_McGhee from Colorado

2.59/5  rDev -33.4%
look: 3 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
Spencer Trappist "Festive Lager"
10/18/16 initial brief impression:

Drinks boozy for an Oktoberfest, with an amplified fruitiness and some light caramelization. Helles malts, Munich malts, amber malts, maybe even crystal malts. The high ABV (relative to style) is noticeable, to its detriment. Too sweet, but nevertheless enjoyable in limited quantities.

***
10/19/16 2nd impression:

Has that sweet treacly bend to it, but it's tolerable drinking one bottle in a sitting. Heavy on the Munich/caraMunich, with a floral hop presence that's mild at best. Amber malts, Belgian candied malt, vague fruitiness, syrupy sweetness.

I don't know what's meant to be Trappist about this (it's clearly a German style Oktoberfest) but then Spencer does seem to be a gimmick of a brewery trading on the Trappist designation without actually delivering in terms of tradition and/or style. It's competent drinkable fare at best, and I wouldn't want another 6 pack (or another bottle in the same night).

Lacks the balance and depth of flavour of the best expressions of the style. And why the ABV is so high is beyond me; it's really unnecessary and doesn't help the beer at all.

I think my favourite aspect of the beer is the sleek label design.

C- (2.59) / BELOW AVERAGE
Oct 20, 2016
Trappist Festive Lager from The Spencer Brewery
Beer rating: 87 out of 100 with 28 ratings