The Woodshed
Trail's End Brewing

the final beer we had in here, a fitting way to close an awesome session in this delightful brewery, a belgian christmas beer, flavorful and festive but for me not restricted to holiday time, i believe this is unspiced, all of that character coming from the yeast, such an expressive strain and so well used here, i liked this a lot, even if its a touch too sweet to drink all that much of, its the sugar not the alcohol that slows me down with this one. the color is middle of the road, not pale but not that dark either, slightly cloudy, kind of raisin colored, a little lighter, with a high and airy white head thats fitting for a belgian type. the nose and taste are all about the yeast for me, mulling spices with anise noticeable, dried fruits from apricots to apples, faint rum and sweet woodiness and brown sugar together, seemingly a sugar spike in here from something more than grain, maybe a dark candy thing, caramel and toffee richness, some nutty undertones in the malt, baked and hearty and warming, licorice and white pepper as it warms, but it stays fruity too, honey on the finish, and rushing carbonation that really keeps it moving pleasantly. lighter body than expected, pretty well hidden alcohol strength too, and a smoothness that also kind of has me thinking oak aged. if not, i can only imagine how complex this might be with a barrel treatment, port wine and sherry come to mind as neat options for that. i love the yeast in this, its where all the personality comes from, and i think this is real well done in a tricky style. definitely check this place out when you are in the area, we had an awesome time and the beers were a ton of fun!