Xmas Eve

I can tell you the exact moment that Xmas 2010 started. It was early in the evening of December 24th, when I suddenly realised that I was sitting in my favourite pub (The Marble Arch, Manchester), with my favourite person in the whole world (my missus, Jo), listening to one of my very favourite songs (‘Vagabonds’) by one of my all-time favourite bands (New Model Army), whilst supping a rather excellent pint of beer (a rich, fruity, roast-malt chocolatey Marble Port Stout), which the lass behind the bar had recently informed me was completely free of charge (I think the Marble Arch has an annual tradition, or an old charter, or something). Now, if that’s not my own personal idea of Xmas perfection, then I really don’t know what is.

And that was just the start of the evening. From there I moved on – not wanting to abuse our host’s hospitality too much – to a full price pint of Ossett Winter’s Tale; a 5% ABV dark-amber ale with a thick tan head and a rather lovely mouth-feel. This one delivered a rich, malty, chocolate base note, with a lightly spiced, dry finish. It was very pleasant indeed. Jo and I weren’t able to stop too long as the trams stopped running at nine, so we just had time for one more after that. Earlier in the evening I’d exchanged season’s greetings with Opening Times editor John Clarke, so what with him being a big fan of the Belgian beers, I asked him for a recommendation from the Marble Arch’s bottled Belgians menu.

John had no hesitation in suggesting I go for the St Feuillien Triple, an 8.5% ABV golden Belgian and in John’s words, “the best triple in Belgium”. I’d already tried this one back in October last year at another Belgian-loving friend’s recommendation, and I had no hesitation in giving it another go. St Feuillien Triple delivers a huge flavour-burst: massive hops up front with a sweeter note dancing on top; grapefruit sharpness followed on, with herbal, faintly liquorice, slightly medicinal highlights. A quite delicious slow-sipper to savour.

The one minor disappointment of the evening was the blackboard at the end of the bar, which was advertising draught halves of Marble’s Chocolate Dubbel. But when I asked, I was told they’d run out earlier on and now only had the 750ml bottles left. So there was only one thing to do: head on home and crack open the bottle that I’d been saving since I bought it back in November. It was another big, boozy, deliciously dark beer, packed full of rich cocoa flavours and smooth as silk. I happily sipped that one over the course of an hour or so whilst catching up with a few Xmas specials on the telly box. Lovely stuff, highly recommended. I can see another couple of those coming home with us next time we visit the Marble Arch, if they’ve got any left by then.

Xmas Day

Round about two of the clock, as I stood there in the kitchen – elbow-deep in sprout-trimmings, gluten-free stuffing mix and streaky bacon rashers – I realised something was missing: a glass of beer. So I reached for a bottle of Hook Norton Twelve Days, which I’d picked up in Selfridge’s earlier in the year. Dark, chocolate malt flavours characterised this 5.%% dark ale, along with lighter, spiced highlights. It was quite delicious and the perfect accompaniment to Xmas dinner (lemon, garlic & thyme chicken, with all the trimmings). An all-round winner in the winter warmer stakes and far too good to only drink at Xmas. I tried to stock up the other day, but Selfridges in Manchester had run out. Somehow I’m not surprised.

After dinner, it was time for a drop of Harveys Tom Paine Ale. This 5.5% ABV golden amber ale was packed full of tangy, sweet, orange-citrus hop flavours and light spices, as well as honey, marmalade and perhaps the faintest hint of whisky-smoke. Very tasty indeed; a rather excellent after-dinner palate refresher. Next up: Hook Norton Old Hooky. This one is a darker, maltier, but no less refreshingly tasty cousin of one of my personal faves, Hooky Gold, and it’s one that I’ll definitely be buying again when the opportunity arises.

Later in the evening, after a round of family phone calls and a bit of a sit down in front of the telly, it was time for Xmas pud. And what better to accompany that than a glass of Het Anker Gouden Carolus Christmas? This 10.5% ABV Belgian seasonal special was a glorious riot of sweet, fruity flavours; with its rich, dark-sugar malt base and an explosion of cherries, dark berries and ripe bananas it’s definitely one for the sweeter-toothed palate. Jo thought it tasted like highly alcoholic Vimto. I thought it tasted like liquid fruit cake. Either way, it was delicious and almost as good as the draught version I’d enjoyed at the Marble Arch last Xmas. And yes, it went fantastically well with our Xmas pud and brandy cream.

Boxing Day

Another day at home with not much to do but eat, drink and be merry in front of the TV. After a couple of regulars – a Fuller’s Bengal Lancer and a Black Sheep Ale – I reached for a couple of seasonals that I’d saved over from our trip to Beer Ritz in Leeds back in December ’09.

First up – accompanying the traditional cold meat with bubble and squeak dinner – was Ridgeway Very Bad Elf. As far as I know, this 7.5% ABV dark ale is brewed primarily for the US export market and I think it’s one of a few ‘Bad Elf’ variants. It turned out to be quite a bit lighter that I’d expected – golden amber rather than darker brown – but it still had a smooth, luxurious mouth-feel and a warming chocolate malt-sweetness, plus hints of sherry or maybe whisky. There really wasn’t much hop action from this one at all and the alcohol hit was noticeable but not at all harsh. All in all, another deliciously, dangerously drinkable winter warmer. One for the keep-an-eye-out-for list, most definitely.

Finally, I finished the evening off with Hepworth’s Vintage Christmas Ale. Another boozy, 7.5% ABV winter ale, this one poured a mid-amber colour and had a slight sour edge to the underlying sweetness – maybe from the herbal flavours, cloves in particular, in the mix – over a malty base, with good hop notes and a light dryness to the after-taste. It was pleasant enough, just not as great as some of the others I’d tried. Of all the Xmas beers I tried this year, I think this is the one I’d probably give a miss in future.

So there you have it: three days’ worth of relaxing and feasting, helped along by a selection of (mostly) terrific beers. That’s what I call Xmas!

Brewery: Alkan-Maes/Heineken
Location: Jumet, Belgium (according to RateBeer)
ABV: see text
Version: bottles
Source: Tesco, The Vineyard

I had originally intended to post a round up of the Belgian beers to be found in the major UK supermarket chains but then I popped into Belfast’s fine beer stockist The Vineyard and found another couple of Grimbergens. So instead I decided to compare the four of those I now had – Blonde, Dubbel, Triple and Optimo Bruno.

The abbey at Grimbergen was founded in 1128 by Saint Norbert and became well known over the years for its hospitality to visitors, including offering home-made beer. Destroyed several times by fire and rebuilt, the abbey adopted the phoenix as its emblem, and this prominently adorns the bottle labels. The abbey also has a beer museum. (Source – Google translation of the dedicated French website, also available in Dutch).

So, on with the tastings, and the first two should be readily available in most Tesco stores. The Blonde is a mid gold colour, with a light hoppy, herby aroma and 6.7% alcohol. Taste is quite restrained and tame, in comparison to others of the style I’ve had – fruity hops, bit zesty with an underlying dryness, hint of orange and herbs, but still quite smooth and easy drinking, with a lingering light hoppy finish. It’s just a bit too light for any lasting appeal to me, but it would probably serve as a fine starting point for those just beginning to dip their taste buds in the abbey beer world.

The 6.5% Dubbel is a red tinted dark brown, and gives off a dried fruit aroma, with warm, malty notes. There’s more malt in the flavour, which is still quite restrained, with elements of treacle, dark chocolate and raisins, and a touch of bitterness in the finish. Not up there with the best dubbels, it’s still reasonable, and like the blonde I reckon it would serve as a decent enough intro for newcomers to the style.

Next up, the Triple. Dark gold with an amber glow, there’s loads of bubbles, with an aroma dominated by oranges and sugar, and some floral notes. It tastes like a citrus fruit punch with some bananas, and a load of sugar dumped in, but oddly I didn’t think it was overly sweet, managing to stay on the acceptable side, just about. Considering the 9% strength it’s quite easy going, laid-back but not lazy, but still demands not to be rushed. Much better than the blonde for those, like me, who find that one just a bit too tame.

And so on to the Optimo Bruno, a dark brown 10% monster that means business from the start. Crack open the bottle and first impressions are…not much. Other than cola there’s very little to the aroma, until it’s poured and left to settle. Then I got caramel, dried fruit, plums and cherries. From the first sip it’s clear this is a strong one, with a rush of sugary sweetness quickly followed by spiciness. I got toffee, plums, raisins and liquorice in there as well, before my taste buds were overwhelmed by the syrupy, cloying sweetness. Less of that last bit would make this more to my taste.

So overall, of these four the one I’d most likely go back to is the Triple, which is an unusual choice for me, as based on what I’ve had before it should really be the Dubbel. I can see me getting the occasional Dubbel as it’s so easy to find, and sometimes I just want to be able to shove a few decent beers in the trolley along with the rest of the groceries without the need for a trip to a specialist off-licence. But to be honest, none of them are likely to be regular purchases, there are much better abbey/trappist beers out there.