As the festive season rolls in, The Cask Connoisseur are diving into a beer that perfectly captures the spirit of winter. The latest review features a rich and warming ale from the renowned Hook Norton Brewery. Known for their dedication to traditional brewing methods and full-bodied flavors, Hook Norton has crafted a beer that promises to be the perfect companion for those wintery cold evenings.
The Cask Connoisseur has recently reviewed a selection of Christmas beers through their new Youtube channel. The first beer to form part of the Christmas Specials was White Christmas from Saltaire Brewery. Now, as the next special is ready to watch on the channel, why not enjoy reading the detailed review below and see if Twelve Days is one to add to your holiday beer list.
Brief History On Hook Norton Brewery
It all started back in 1849 when founder John Harris located a farm which was built up on 52 acres and situated on the land was a malthouse. Commercial brewing didn’t commence until 1856 and the first brew to take place was originally described as Mild XXX.
As the years went on the growth for brewing increased dramatically, especially within the area of the Cotswolds which involved an extension of the railway line from Chipping Norton through to Hook Norton. This was a huge helping hand for the brewery because it meant that casks and brewery equipment could be shipped from the main site to other locations.
In 2014, Hook Norton installed a small microbrewery which allowed them to experiment with new beers that could be potentially added to their current range. The microbrewery also allows members of the public to conduct a bespoke brew for specific celebrations e.g. weddings or birthday parties.
The Tasting Of Twelve Days By Luke and Chris
The Cask Connoisseur are delighted to be able to share their personal findings on the next Christmas beer – Twelve Days. If you’re wanting to find out more about the review then please head over to their Youtube channel and go behind the scenes into this warming winter beer.
- Colour – The first visual aspect of Twelve Days shows in the glass as being a dark beer, but it’s not a stout. This beer has a small hint of redness which concludes after the pour to becoming a deep red mahogany beer which both Luke and Chris agreed on.
- Aroma – The first initial scent picked up by both Connoisseurs was Christmas! All those surrounding smells that make you think of Christmas and winter include: Liquorice, Honey, Cinnamon and a small dash of chocolate that finishes on the nose.
- Taste – The small initial aroma of chocolate becomes more dense on the pallet but its balanced perfectly well with liquorice making it a bitter sweet beer. An interesting factor that Luke mentioned when tasting this beer was how it actually makes you think you’re drinking a stout even though it’s not. The flavours are almost parallel to each other.
- Aftertaste – The final touch that is delivered in this beer is it’s completely moreish, you won’t be surprised if you’ve finished one bottle, you’ll want another and that is where the ABV comes in because it’s a stronger beer. Twelve Days is certainly a Christmas Classic ale that you can enjoy with your chosen dessert on Christmas Day or maybe with a deep filled mince pie, in all honesty it would pair well with anything sweet, just not savoury.
The Official Tasting Notes
- Colour – A dark, red and brown beer that’s just below the category of being classed as a stout.
- Aroma – High in rich fruits and impeccable amounts of sultanas, similar to the same scents of Christmas pudding.
- Taste – Full bodied in flavour with a slight nuttiness flavour. Heavily malty which brings out more winter savouring from inside the glass.
- Aftertaste – A creamy beer which leads to a moreish encounter making you want more to get you into the festive spirit.
It’s understandable to say that Hook Norton have produced a sensational Christmas beer which is perfect to enjoy sensibly over the Christmas period. From rich fruit aromas to a christmas pudding texture it’s no wonder why Chris and Luke were certainly not disappointed after sampling this beer.
And it’s a beer that both Chris and Luke are really looking forward to sampling again in the future and it would be an interesting thought to see if Hook Norton could potentially produce Twelve Days in cask form. Let’s see what happens for Christmas 2025!
On behalf of Luke and Chris from The Cask Connoisseur, we would like to say thank you to Hook Norton Brewery for sending us Twelve Days, this certainly turned out to be a tremendous drink to review and one that we both feel is a classic Christmas beer.
Merry Christmas: Our final Christmas beer review post will be going live shortly.
