Fireside Chat
21st Amendment Brewery

Pours a dark translucent mahogany with a small tan head and some lacing.

Smells of malt and caramel.

Tastes of sweet malt and caramel with cinnamon and nutmeg.

Medium body with slight carbonation. Lightly syrupy mouthfeel.

This brew is a decent representative of the type.

 

The can pours clear, but very dark with a 1 cm cap of tan foam. The aroma is faint. A bit of toasted malt is detected.
The flavor is pleasant. Dark malts, bitter chocolate and late sour cherry notes are noted. The spice addition is light.
The brew is light-bodied.
This is pretty good for the season.

pours copper to almost black, almost blocking out the light with small almond head and little lacing.

Smells like a hot chocolate perhaps one where a piece of licorice was dropped into it.

Hefty, messy sweet malt out of the gate, Roasted malt, chocolate and nutmeg, ginger, spiced nuts. Above the norm carbonation. Lingering burnt finish and some alcohol warmth. Reminds me some of a Mexican hot chocolate - which for me is a one and done drink,

Likewise, this is robust and a sipper, which I appreciate. It a bit of a stew of sweet & spice flavors that don't fully compliment each other. But it might compliment a fire and a chat in the depth of winter [at an affordable price], so for that, kudos.

 

 

 

Bought a 6-pack cans $10.79 Tamuras
210 days old. Strange that they brewed a winter ale in May.
Smell of chocolate
Medium-heavy mouthfeel
Medium carbonation
Taste of chocolate, cinnamon, spices, hides alcohol well
Overall a good winter ale at a fair price. Would buy again.

Appearance: Pours a very dark brown, nearly black, color with a massive and foamy tan head that lingers for minutes. Thick. (4.25)

Aroma: Moderate aromas of orange, ginger, bread and spices. Hints of coffee and cocoa.

Flavor: Moderate flavors of dark and roasted bread, orange, ginger, bread and spices. Some bitter pine and rustic cocoa off the finish. Relatively dry.

Feel: Medium bodied, Moderate carbonation. Drinks clean, leans dry.

Compared to Great Lakes Christmas Ale 11/2022: Pours darker, stronger head. Milder aromas. More dark bread, cocoa and bitterness. Less bread, ginger, and spices. Similar pine. Slightly more bitter and darker. Overall: decently similar.

Overall: A nice Winter Warmer here. Some dark and roasted bread notes with some hints of bitter pine and cocoa. Malty, yet not too sweet and incredibly dry for the ABV. Better than I expected based on the reviews on here. This one is at least average, probably above. (Rating: 4.02)

2022 release; 12 oz can poured into a 9 oz Libbey Embassy snifter. Deep, dark brown with a thick head of tan bubbles. Toasted malt, burnt caramel and subtle holiday spice on the nose. Flavors of dark fruit, cocoa, toasted bread, holiday spice and earthiness. Medium body and carbonation with a smooth feel. A satisfying seasonal warmer.

 

 

12 oz can
Glass: 0.4L Tulip
Serving Temp: unsure. Maybe 55-60 degrees F


Look: Dark brown bordering on black and opaque. Large khaki head dissipates to 1", leaving good lacing on the glass.

Smell: Toasted grains and toasted caramel. Nice and malty. Hints of cocoa. Cinnamon and some nutmeg.

Taste: Similar to the nose but more intense. Very malty. Toasted bread and caramel. Nutmeg. Some cinnamon. Earthy bitterness that builds towards the end.

Feel: Smooth with a medium body.

Overall: An easy to drink spiced ale/winter warmer. I like the maltiness (as opposed to the sweetness that some other winter warmers exhibit) and the fact that the spices don't hit you over the head. The body is a bit light for my preferences for a proper deep-cold winter warmer, but it's fine for temperatures in the 30s and 40s.

 

Poured from a can. Brown with a large tan head and lacing. Smells of vanilla, lactose, nuts, roasted grain and dark fruit. Flavors follow the smell and are really meshed well together. Really like the feel and the flavor. Very good

 

 

It was a wintry day as I sat by the wayside, an old radio popped on and drifting through the air I assumed I heard the voice of FDR giving a rather solemn announcement, only it wasn't that old sport but none other than Kris Kringle admonishing the world that Christmas would be cancelled if we didn't go out and wrangle a can of Fireside Chat from our nearest store.

Almost as if transported through a sleigh ride- there it was in all its glory; even still I wasn't totally taken by the illustration of FDR. I surmised it was all marketing and I rather begrudgingly grabbed the beers and went on my way, sure of the possibility that it would be just some potentially lame offering from 21st amendment.

It's easy to get suckered in by their illustrations and end up disliking the beer, but this was something different. As I would soon discover it would provide a state of perfection not easily tasted in these days...

It poured a brown-sugar-brown, and I threw it down the ol' hatch, expecting some form of mediocrity. That was until I realized it was the best blasted beer I'd ever tasted this side of the Rio Grande.

The smell was raisins drenched in honey, and a hearty dollop of pumpkin pie sweetness lingering like an oatmeal-raisin cookie crumble.

Mouthfeel was less than medium, highly crisp, yet smooth.

The taste as was faithfully described didn't disappoint, before I knew it I was toasting to both FDR and Kris Kringle, I could have swung on a chandelier if there was one. Raisins stuffed into chewy oatmeal cookies, waterfalls of caramel winding their way to my stomach, and all the spices of India summarized in a single, subtle, sublime note. Not too much spice, not too faint, the balance itself deserved an award.

And most surprisingly, the alcohol heat was nowhere to be found, a disappearing act that the best magician would be proud of.

Overall: I would not hesitate to give this the equivalent of 3 Michelin stars and 5 forks and knives, or just a solid 5/5. This will undoubtedly aid in the enjoyment of any holiday feast. A brilliant and blessed beer, one to truly savor.

Brown with ruby highlights, dense khaki head, excellent retention, rings of lace
Deep malty aroma- toffee, bread, and toast, along with some cinnamon and nutmeg
Big British malt flavor, biscuits and toffee, way too much nutmeg, cinnamon is good, though
A bit too thin for what I want in a winter warmer, but carbonation is spot on
A bit more body and a bit less spice and this would be great

Poured a clear dark brown color with a frothy two finger tan head. Medium lacing was present. Nose is almost non-existent . . . just a hint of malt and spice. Taste follows the nose but more pronounced. The finish has a lingering sweetness and hop bitterness. Mouthful was good with a moderate body and light-moderate carbonation.

 

 

 

Poured a nice medium brown. Looked like it could be a good Winter Warmer. But the spices weren't all that pronounced. Had a decent English ale taste and quite bitter. I wouldn't get this again as it wasn't all that interesting.

 

Poured moderately hard from a can into a snifter glass, forming two fingers of foamy white head that soon faded to heavy lacing with major legs. Brown and slightly orangey body. Smell is a bit of barley and spices, pretty subtle. Taste follows the smell, with barley forward and some spices in the mid, but after taste is still barely. Moderate carbonation and just shy of medium bodied.

Nice creamy brown-bodied appearance/ creamy head and lacing.
Nose is malt and hops with caramel and some spice like clove, basically nice.
Taste is toasted caramel and spiced bread, with an odd cider-like/ astringency that lingers. But there’s a nice bitterness and even a bit of char n the roasted and even woody notes. Any overall sweetness is of light brown sugar, but is subtle.
Feels medium-smooth with medium carbonation. Dry finish.
It’s actually kind of complex.

 

Notes from 4/20/2020.
Poured from a 12oz can into a Rastal nucleated Teku glass.
The body is a very dark brown with 2 fingers of tan head. Retention is a little above average leaving a not quite thin cap. 4.00
The aroma is very low in strength and all I can get is a hint of sweetness and spice. 2.75
The taste is a little below medium-high in strength and I'm trying to get past the unfortunate medicinal flavor. There's some spices, and then the awful medicinal flavor attacks. It's like someone took an ancient leather shaving kit that has old dried smeared toothpaste and shaving cream, and stinks of stale aftershave. Then they poured water into the shaving kit, thoroughly shook it up, and poured it into a glass. There's a moderate bitter finish which perfectly excentuates the medicinal ancient shaving kit flavor. 1.00
The mouth feel is medium in thickness, a little creamy, and has a low astringent finish. 4.00
Overall, it's irredeemable. 1.00

 

 

 

 

Very dark appearance. Cola brown. Black in the middle and dark brown on the edges. The head is creamy and tan with great retention and lacing.

The aroma smells like brown bread, burnt sugar, and roasted nuts.

The taste is rich brown bread and toffee with lots of dark chocolate. Hints of ginger and generic spice, but the malt dominates over the spices. Finishes with a touch of earthy hops and lingering roasted, black coffee bitterness.

Smooth and creamy mouthfeel, moderate carbonation, slightly sticky.

A fine beer. I wish the spices were a bit more prominent, but it's a delectable Winter Warmer.

 

 

Poured from a 12 oz can into a Dogfish Head tulip

L: Beautiful clear mahogany pour with 2+ fingers of foamy white head. Great retention and lacing. Very attractive beer.

S: Malts and spice. Christmas in a beer can, with nugmeg, clove, and cinnamon.

T.F: Semi-sweet and malty... overspiced with all of the above... cloying and earthy. Some hop bitterness for balance. Medium bodied.. a bit boozy... and a shit-ton of spice at the finish.

O: Not really my thing. It's a spice-rack extravaganza with a big boozy malty beer. Not one I'd grab again.