Secret Santa Review Thread 2021!

[Alastair70]

Well here it is, the review thread for the 2021 Secret Santa swap, opening early in case anyone fancies a pre-lunch tipple.

Hopefully your beer came with a label of some sort indicating a name so that the sender can identify it. Include a photo with your review if possible and a couple of comments for your Santa.

If you recognise your beer from a review then feel free to reveal yourself, however if you've sent two of the same to two different people then wait for both reviews to be posted to reveal yourself.

There are still a few beers working their way through the postal system, one I sent second class on the 14th December just arrived today. With that in mind, the final list of senders will be posted a week or two later than usual this year. Any beers still outstanding on New Years Eve will be declared lost and a replacement sourced.

I think that's about it, we're officially open for business so enjoy the beer and post review below.
Merry Christmas :hat:

 

[moto748]

Thanks for all your work in organising this, Alastair. I was going to ask what the etiquette was for revealing yourself as the brewer or not, so that's one question answered.

I'm planning on delaying my SS tasting until Xmas Day or Boxing Day; looking forward to it!

 

[Dads_Ale]

I'll kick things of with a Festive Fireside Ale.

A lovely dark beer with a hint of Christmas spice. Crystal clear with a cracking head.
Really enjoyed this and :hat:to the brewer.

(only problem was it disappeared too quickly )

 

[Hoddy]

I actually tried this one a few days ago. Hey I got impatient

Sadly it was so badly infected it went straight down the drain. Feedback for whoever’s beer this is you need to look at your fermentation and bottling hygiene to stop this happening again. I would bet that your whole batch is like this if you haven’t already tried a bottle.

 

[Leon103]

Drank this last night.

Very strange beer, I haven't a clue what style it is. Poured hazy so was expecting some sort of ipa/pale ale.
No aroma- perhaps a lager of some sort. Only flavour I got was sulphur and and acidic after taste.

Thanks Santa but I wasn't able to finish it.

 

[Subtle Duck]

First of the day, a sloe stout. What a nice beer!
Mildly carbed, reminiscent of cask beer, and a beautiful dark colour. It had a smooth roast to it with the sloes just coming through at the end. Very well balanced, was expecting a lot more of a sharp taste from the berries.
I doff my cap to you secret santa, will definitely be trying this style in the future.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

will definitely be trying this style in the future.

@Alastair70
Just a thought to keep the thread tidy. (OCD again)
Would it be worth opening a secret Santa recipe thread as with the amount of bottles out there there are going to be plenty that members want to try making themselves.

 

[RichardM]

Drank this last night.

Very strange beer, I haven't a clue what style it is. Poured hazy so was expecting some sort of ipa/pale ale.
No aroma- perhaps a lager of some sort. Only flavour I got was sulphur and and acidic after taste.

Thanks Santa but I wasn't able to finish it.

Sounds like a sour lager

 

[Cptn_Needa]

First of Santa's beers consumed.
An American IPA coming in at 6.2%.

Came in a lovey flip top bottle which popped with a very satisfying POP. Enough for my wife in the next room to enquire what the noise was.
Good head retention helped by the high carbonation.
Not much of the expected aroma unfortunately (may not have survived the sleigh ride).
I'd suggest maybe upping the dry hopping or whirlpool hops and try to avoid getting the brown bits from the fermentor in to the bottles.

Enjoyed the drinking the beer. My first Christmas present!
Thanks Santa.

 

[Alastair70]

@Alastair70
Just a thought to keep the thread tidy. (OCD again)
Would it be worth opening a secret Santa recipe thread as with the amount of bottles out there there are going to be plenty that members want to try making themselves.

Good idea. Will start a separate thread for links to brew day write ups or for posting recipes towards the end of next week.

 

[phildo79]

First of my reviews is this golden ale. Not a style of beer that I ever buy because I am generally not that fond of them. But credit where it is due, this was a rather tasty beer. Certainly better than any commercial golden ale that I have tried. Well done, fella (or girl)!

 

[phildo79]

Second review is this stout. It poured with a very fizzy, tan coloured head that disappeared quickly. Was barely any aroma from it. Slightest hint of roast. Mouth feel was very thin. Reminded me of a Cooper's stout kit due to that twang that is in all of their beers. Thanks for sending.

 

[jayk34]

The first one for me was Belgian Strong Dark Ale @ 9%.

Pours with a beautiful head that remained through the entire drink with lacing to the end. Nicely carbonated. Bready aroma. The taste of this ale is absolutely fantastic. Nice thick mouthfeel with really beautiful malty, caramel taste. There is a nice "bite" after each mouthful which could be either carbonation or maybe a spiciness from the yeast.

Absolutely fantastic beer and well done to the brewer. Can only hope to brew something as nice in the future

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

RIGHT - I can wait no longer... here goes

This is marked "Lager Bock (SS-2021)" Vienna/Munich/Caramalt/Aromatic + Celeia/NB/Saaz; yeast 34/70. My mouth is quite literally watering.

A discreet little 'pfft' when opening, which pleases me greatly because I don't like over carbonated beers.
Nice tan head that lasted reasonably well. Good clarity and the carbonation is spot on.
Mouthfeel is top notch: smooth as silk, and thick enough to coat the tongue. Ideal for me: lets you know it's a beer that should be savoured instead of gulped down. I'm guessing a step mash and/or a fair bit of chloride in the water?
Flavour: straight away I get the Vienna, then the Munich comes in. Mmmmm... I'm getting a little touch of the 'alcohol' taste at the end but at nearly 7% that's no surprise LoL!!
The label says IBU 25; I'd say maybe I'm getting a little bit more than that. Hop character is right where it should be in the mix for the style though.

Bangin! Great beer - whoever brewed this: you know what you're doing :hat:

 

[Tanglefoot]

Starting off my christmas eve with the first of Santa's offerings. Unfortunately this bottle was a gusher and half of it ended up down the sink - narrowly avoided spraying the kitchen

That said it's a tasty rich, dark stout. Nice level of bitterness and keeps it's head well, with a subtle hint of vanilla in the background.
Tastes stronger than 4% on label - cheers Santa !

 

[Cptn_Needa]

Second one for me and it's an oatmeal stout at 4.6%.
A faint little release of C02 when I opened this and the first sniff was a lovely roasty aroma. Ideal carbonation for a stout.
Easy drinking with a good mouthfeel to it.
I'm not very good at picking out flavours unfortunately and on top of that I'm coming out of a super stuffy cold so the notes are tiny bit lost on me.
Despite my nose letting me down I enjoyed this beer a lot and would happily sup through a good few of these of an evening. And at 4.6% you could get away with it too!
Thank you Santa.

I misjudged the size of the bottle so there is a bit left re-settling in the fridge for a small sip later.

 

[Cwrw666]

Sadly it was so badly infected it went straight down the drain. Feedback for whoever’s beer this is you need to look at your fermentation and bottling hygiene to stop this happening again. I would bet that your whole batch is like this if you haven’t already tried a bottle.

Crikey that's one of mine. Looks a bit murky. So far I've had 15 bottles of this brew and all have been fine. Appologies of course, but I've no idea why 1 bottle would be bad.

 

[Broken Toe]

A wonderfully kind gesture from @Alastair70 this Irish red is a delight. Rich malty profile with a sweet bitterness. Literally ideal for a night like this.

Thank you.

 

[RichardM]

My first Secret Santa,

a 4.7% dry stout.
No hiss opening the bottle. The head dissipated very soon after taking the photo.
Aroma. Light malty wth a hint of chocolate.
Appearance. Very dark, as it should be, could almost see through it with a torch held behnd it.
Flavour. No harsh flavours, no astringency, almost a sweet, chocolate after taste.
Mouthfeel. Lighter bodied than expected. My son and I thought low carbonation, my daughter said "too fizzy".
Overall Impression. Very drinkable, pleasant stout. The BJCP style guide says Guinness is a typical example. I'm not a big fan of stouts and don't really like Guinness. I'd much rather drink this than Guinness, thank you Santa.

 

[samale]

The first of my not so secret Santa beers. A Belgian single

Really nice beer, good flavour and aroma from the yeast. Just lacking some carbonation, clarity is also very good.
Thank you and Merry Christmas