Anchor Our Special Ale 2013
Anchor Our Special Ale 2013
Rated 3.640 by BeerPalsBrewed by Anchor Brewing Company
San Francisco, CA, United States
Style: Spiced Beer
5.5% Alcohol by Volume
Availability of this beer is unknown
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2013 Anchor Christmas Ale. New tree. New recipe. Same traditions. Every year since 1975 the brewers of Anchor Steam® Beer have brewed a distinctive and unique Christmas Ale, which is available from early November to mid-January. The Ale’s recipe is different every year—as is the tree on the label—but the intent with which we offer it remains the same: joy and celebration of the newness of life. Since ancient times, trees have symbolized the winter solstice when the earth, with its seasons, appears born anew. Our tree for 2013 is the California White Fir. It was hand drawn by local artist James Stitt, who has been creating Christmas Ale labels for us since 1975. Not everyone who came to California in 1849 came in search of gold. A few came in search of trees. English botanist William Lobb was one such plant hunter. As a collector of California’s exotic flora for English nurseries, Lobb (born in East Cornwall in 1809; died in San Francisco in 1864) was responsible for the introduction of fifty-eight species of California plants to English gardens, including Giant Sequoia and California White Fir. Each year our Christmas Ale gets a unique label and a unique recipe. Although our recipes must remain a secret, many save a few bottles from year to year. Properly refrigerated, the beer remains intriguing and drinkable for years. Different nuances emerge as the flavor mellows slightly, much like the memories of great holiday seasons past. Celebrate the holidays with Anchor Christmas Ale, an Anchor tradition since 1975.
ID: 55068 Last updated 3 years ago Added to database 10 years agoKey Stats
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0
Drunk7
Reviews0
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Most noted beer attributes
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Statistics
| Overall Rank | 1520 |
| Overall Percentile | 97.2 |
| Style Rank | 25 of 1270 |
| Style Percentile | 98 |
| Lowest Score | 3.6 |
| Highest Score | 4.3 |
| Average Score | 3.914 |
| Weighted Score | 3.640 |
| Standard Deviation | 0.241 |
Rating Distribution
Beer vs Style
7 Member Reviews
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Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8
A dark black color with a beige head. Aroma.contains cloves, cinammon, pine, chocolate. Malty with some bitterness maybe more than many fresh ones I've had in the past. Still the classic standard for winter beers.
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Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8
Pours a very dark brown mahogany color with a thick tan head on top. Smells of mellow spiced fruit, toffee, molasses, pine resin, and gingerbread. Dry, spiced, somewhat gingerbread-y flavor. A little tart fruit, spruce, bitter chocolate, orange peel, and faint maple. Medium body, creamy texture, with a slickness that sticks to the tongue. Definitely better as it warms up.
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Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8
Maybe THE Christmas beer to buy every year... Deep amber copper pour with a tantalizing lingering creamy head leaving copious amounts of beautiful lacing. Caramel malts, spices, orange zest, cinnamon, dark honey - all int he aromas and flavors. Really a great beer and a must-have every Holiday season. Yum.
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Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 7
I can't really quite put my finger on what is different about this year's Anchor Christmas brew, but the on thing that stood out for me was the drier aftertaste. Maybe a few more hops in this year's brew?. Other than that, things tasted pretty much the same. Usual Christmas spice overtones and nice dark fluid. A liquid gingerbread cookie! Always a great holiday choice every year.
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Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 7
Pours a burnt caramel color with a one finger head that goes down fairly quick. Too dark to see if it is carbonated but from what I can see it isn't. Aroma is quite mild with hints of cinnamon, molasses, and other spices. Aroma is very sweet with hints of caramel, cinnamon, and molasses. Chewy malt ending. Not completely blown away by it but it is a nice CHRISTMAS ale.
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Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8
I picked up this beer from the Wine Gourmet in Roanoke, VA. I couldn't agree more with Slowrunner on this. His assessment was spot on. This was a great year ... a little less spices bit more malt. I loved it.
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Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 9
Every year I really like this brew. The "off" years are still really nice, and the better years are elite. This is close to that, and I LOVE that you can get a beer this good and flavorful for less than $2 a bottle and 5.5% abv. Molasses and spruce and pine at the fore. Other spices are light this time around, maybe some ginger and orange peel. Soooo smooth, like usual. Not disappointing. CostCo has the GIANT bottles for $12.
