Vintersemester
Gamla Slottskällans Bryggeri AB

The colour is pale gold; the finger thick white foam forms a firm head with some lacing.

The smell is bittersweet with notes of chocolate, fresh fruits, aroma hops, some malt and cream.

The taste is fruity with notes of cocoa, dark bread, condensed milk with lots of lightly roasted malts (probably Münchener), café latte and even some rum. The creamy aftertaste is medium long with a soft, slowly growing bitterness.

The carbonation is softer than the average lager, giving much room to al the flavours.

I spoke to the brew master of Slottskällans earlier this autumn, and he told me something like “The alcohol monopoly wanted a pale lager with bold malts this winter. So we took the 'Semester' and added even more malt.”.

The Swedish word “Semester” means “holiday” or “vacation” in English. Thus, “Vintersemester” translates to “Winter Holiday”.