Christmas week is upon us and that means this is the final Christmas Beer Special review for 2024! With the frost settling in and winter in full swing, there’s no better time to cosy up with a seasonal brew. The finale of The Cask Connoisseur 2024 Christmas beers is brought to us from St Peter’s Brewery and to end on a high note, both Luke and Chris are going in strong with this beer called Winter Ale 6.5% ABV.
As a small recap on what Christmas Beers that have been reviewed through The Cask Connoisseurs Youtube Channel, both connoisseurs have delved into the following:
- White Christmas 4.8% ABV from Saltaire Brewery.
- Twelve Days 5.5% ABV from Hook Norton Brewery.
As you read on it’s time to immerse yourselves into the world of beer and capture the findings on this seasonal winter warmer.
Brief History on St Peter’s Brewery
Located in the beautiful surroundings of Suffolk, St Peter’s Brewery was founded in 1996 by John Murphy. The brewery is famous for using filtered water through chalk which is situated deep beneath the brewery. As well as the brewery, there is a visitors centre to provide more historical information about the site and a bar and restaurant which can be hired out for celebrations.
The brewery has a fantastic core range of beers which range from a light citrus beer to sweet flavoured honey porter. It’s not just the area which makes this brewery stand out from others, all of the bottles are oval shaped and this is based on an 18th century gin bottle from Gibbstown in Philadelphia.
St Peter’s Brewery has had success from start-up by not just releasing beers to the UK but also distributing to more than 20 countries across the world. The icing on the cake for this brewery is that the Christmas release is looking like a strong contender to being one of the greatest beers on sale at this time of the year.
The Tasting of Winter Ale By Luke and Chris
To round off The Cask Connoisseur’s journey into their Christmas beer specials, they are pleased to share their findings on this Christmas beer. As mentioned earlier in this post you’ll be able to find the full review through the Youtube Channel, The Cask Connoisseur.
- Colour – It’s amazing to see, just like the Twelve Days, both connoisseurs are greeted by a dark beer. Although this isn’t indicated as a stout both shared their thoughts dictating it more as a mild coloured beer. A mild is classed as a dark beer but hasn’t been fermented warm to bring those chocolatey, coffee flavours.
- Aroma – The aroma is so intense! The major problem that both Luke and Chris are agreeing on is that there are too many scents to pick up. Smells that are scented are liquorice, Chocolate, Treacle and fruit.
- Taste – If you think the aroma was good, well the taste is just as good! Firstly there is an uplift of treacle but that is sweetly balanced with Chocolate, making this a perfect beer to enjoy at Christmas.
- Aftertaste – Both Chris and Luke are wanting to consume this beer on Cask, and let’s face it why wouldn’t you? What’s been served through this glass is a taste full of Christmas. There is only one word that both Connoisseurs can say about Winter Ale, it’s “perfect.
The Official Tasting Notes
- Colour – A deep red mahogany coloured beer
- Aroma – A glorious amounts of Christmas cake which is balanced perfectly with hints of black treacle and vine fruits
- Taste – A complex rich taste with a balance of malty sweetness finishing with a hoppy bitterness
- Aftertaste – Christmas in a bottle!
This rounds up The Cask Connoisseurs Christmas Beer specials throughout this period of festivities. Certainly, there have been some amazing beers that both Luke and Chris have sampled throughout December, ranging from light to dark. There is certainly a choice for everyone!
To round up though, after reviewing each beer, (White Christmas, Twelve Days, Winter Ale) both Connoisseurs have agreed the beer to drink this Christmas is Winter Ale by St Peter’s Brewery
On behalf of Luke and Chris from The Cask Connoisseur, we would like to say thank you to St Peter’s Brewery for sending us Winter Ale, this certainly turned out to be a wonderful winter warmer drink to review and one that we both feel is well suited for Christmas.
A very Merry Christmas to you all!
