Boulevard Nutcracker Ale

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 6

Comes out of the tap a clear, bubbly mahogany with a thin cinnamon-tan head, but lack of head must be due to how it is served. Aroma has caramel, nutty and cloves notes riding a sweet malty undertone. Flavor delivers a little more than what the aroma promises: caramel, cinnamon, cloves, hints of molasses and horehound. Texture is fizzy and smooth, if none too firm. Don’t wait for the official beginning of the winter holiday season, enjoy one today.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Saw it for the first time this afternoon and couldn't resist... love nutcrackers - my time in Germany perhaps... Festive aroma of caramel, nuts and Christmas spice. Beautiful hazy ruby red with a light to moderate off white head... little lacing. Medium in the mouth and maybe the most disappointing part of this one. Nice flavor, same as aroma, although milder than I would have imagined. Good beer overall, very good for the uninitiated into the world of holiday/winter/Christmas beers.

Aroma: 10 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8

12oz bottle, best by 2/15/11. Pours a bright hazy copper chestnut color with a medium creamy off white head that retains fairly well and laces the glass.

The aroma is resiny, fruity, slightly perfumey hops with some bready caramel/toffee malts.

The flavor is caramel malts, nuts and a little molasses with some bright resiny fruity hops in the finish. As it warms, a lot more fruitiness comes out. The mouthfeel is medium to full bodied with soft carbonation.

Overall, a nice surprise. It's very well balanced and has some nice bright hoppiness. I'll have to add this to the list to get each winter.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Sampled on 4/30/2010. This English Strong Ale pours a medium orange gold color from a 12oz bottle. Small sized white foamy head. The aroma is malt, caramel, a hint of bread and some spices. A medium bodied English Strong Ale. The malts are caramel, bready and sweet. The hops are citrusy and grapefruity. Nice balance. Good carbonation. Mouthfeel is full and round. Finish is clean and smooth. Aftertaste is slightly bitter.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 4 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

ruby red .. . low head .. . very mild christmas brew .. nice hop presents with a nice balance of sweetness .. . real simple .. . a perfect brew to just eeease into the season.. I'd kill for a piece of corn that wasn't creamed..

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 7

The Boulevard christmas beer, and not a bad cxhristmas beer at that. A dark gold pour, a little haze, and a medium sized white cap. The aroma is yeast, spice, caramel malt, and citrusy hops. The flavour is a complex mixture of spices and caramel. A very good beer.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

Wow good to finally find this winter seasonal on Easter. To quote bluesandbarbq..."In Tennessee we get Monday Night Football on Thursday afternoon" Anyway this poured a dark amber color with a moderate to large beige head. The aroma contains some dark fruit, toffee, molasses, caramel and spices pretty nice! The flavor is somewhat sweet with a hint of bitterness in the finish. I’m tasting cherries, caramel, molasses, raisins, and toffee. I also detect a hint of spices. Overall this is a nice beer!

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 7

Aroma of caramel, nuts, and spices, it poured a deep, almost murky amber body, not much carbonation, head, or lace. Flavors of ginger, caramel malts, alcohol and toasted nuts. Overall a decent brew, but i am not sure if i would buy it again.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

A vigorous pour into my 25cl tulip glass sees me with five fingers of a lightly browned, full tan colored head. The beer is a deep reddish amber hue that shows an almost brilliantly clear, deeply red stained, dark copper hue when held up to the light. The aroma is a nice mix of toasted grain, caramelized malt, herbal hops, and some fruitiness reminiscent of currants and perhaps a touch of sweet citrus towards the finish. As the beer warms it gets more hoppy smelling.

This has a nice sweetness to it up front that accentuates a nice berry-like fruitiness towards the middle, but then picks up an orange-zest & herbal like flavor that lingers a bit on the tongue after the beer has passed down my throat. Nice toasty malt flavors remind me of browned bread crust and just a touch of blackened, lightly bitter toast in the finish. As the beer warms up the hop character really starts to kick in with a solid, citrus character of orange zest and ruby red grapefruit as well as a sharp, herbal hop character that has touches of menthol and pine. I like the how the fruitiness from the hops and malt is well balanced by the herbal hop notes and bitterness as well as by the dry toasty malt character. While I wouldn't characterize this as light, it is still quite drinkable; there is a definite malty heft to this beer, but it still drinks pretty easily.

This is quite a bit more hoppy than I was expecting, but it definitely adds a nice dimension to this beer. This is like a more malt balanced version of Sierra Nevada Celebration in some ways, though with the all Chinook character it might be more akin to a little brother of Arrogant Bastard. Definitely a nice beer and I could see cruising through a couple of these in an evening.

Purchased: South Bay Drugs, Imperial Beach CA

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

Not what I would consider for a Christmas brew, but nice nonetheless. Pours a dark copper colour with a small off white head. Aroma is a little dull, but noticeable ginger, oak and grass on the nose. Taste is rich and full, finishes slightly off and has a taste that is a litle alcohol-y.