De Struise Tsjeeses Belgian Christmas Ale (9/10)

Some of you are wondering "Why the heck is he reviewing a Christmas Ale in August?"  That's a fair question, with a simple answer, this Christmas Ale seems to be available year-round and it's one of my very favorite ones.

The image on the label, and the name of the beer itself, generates a certain amount of discussion. Some friends and family members find the image upsetting, seeing it as depicting a famous religious figure with a Santa Claus hat on his head.  Others say the image looks nothing like that religious figure and is probably just a picture of one of the brewers with a hat and sunglasses on him.  Whatever it is, it might lead you to take the beer less than seriously.  It might even convince you to pass it by on a store shelf.  That's fine with me, because it leaves more available for me to buy.

The label says "Tsjeeses is a jolly, blond winter ale with a fluffy white cap.  Its aroma is elegant with hints of fruit, spices, refreshing herbs, and noble hops. The taste is robust, very complex, and quite dry for its style.  This warming ale is our gift to you for the holidays. Enjoy!"

Tsjeeses pours a nice coppery brown with an extremely generous off-white head that lasts a while.

The aroma is sweet, hinting at dark fruit, caramel, spice, and a strong alcohol presence... all as the label suggests.

The flavor starts sweet, malty, and with definite dark fruit notes.  The warmer the beer gets, the more pronounced the sweetness and fruitiness.  The colder it is, the less sweet it is and the more the hops bitterness is noticeable.  Ideally, I like it the upper 40's and lower 50's Fahrenheit.  Your taste may vary. To me, this is pretty much everything a Belgian beer should taste like.

I typically see this at Whole Foods in Dublin, at The Andersons General Store in Dublin, and at Weiland's Gourmet Market.  Even at $6-9 a bottle, I'll tend to pick one up any time I see it, unless I know I have a couple at home.

De Halve Maan Straffe Hendrik Quad 2012 (10/10)

Warning: If you're not comfortable spending $25 or more for a large bottle of beer, you may want to stop reading right here.

De Halve Maan of Belgium produces Straffe Hendrik Quad, a true Belgian brewed Quadrupel which is barrel aged before bottling.

It pours a dark brown, bordering on mahogany, with thin beige head that lingers a while.

The aroma is sweet and malty, with notes of dark fruit and spice.

The flavor follows the aroma, with a well-balanced malty sweetness and dark fruit element.  Cherry and brown sugar also make an appearance.  Hops bitterness is detectable but by no means obvious. The finish is dry with some tannins in it.  It's a very smooth beer and easy to drink.  The 11% alcohol comes through as a warming note in the finish.  I can't do this beer justice in a verbal description except to say that it's absolutely delicious.

The Beer Advocate crowd rates it a 91 or outstanding.  RateBeer gives it a 99 overall.  I'm giving it a 10 out of 10.

There are very few beers I'm willing to pay $20 a bottle for, or more.  I've paid $27 a couple of times for this one at World of Beer, and I picked up a bottle at Savor Pint for $25 a few months ago.  Those are the only places in town I've seen it.  I wouldn't hesitate to buy it again.

J.W. Lees Harvest Ale 2013 (10/10)

In late January, I found myself at The Winking Lizard on Bethel with a good friend.  I wasn't finding too much on the draft menu that interested me, so I took a chance on a bottle of J.W. Lee's Harvest Ale from 2013.  I'd never had the beer before, so it was something of a crap shoot, but I knew at least that as an English beer it was unlikely to be over-hopped like most American ales tend to be.

The beer pours a cloudy brown with thin white head that leaves behind rings of white lacing that gradually reincorporate into the beer.

The aroma is one of spice and dark fruit.

The flavor, in a word, was outstanding.  It combined all the best elements of sweet malt, dark cherry, dark fruit, and a warming alcohol presence with mild bitterness.  It was a complex but extremely pleasing array of flavors.  Despite the price of the bottle, I ended up ordering a second.  It was that good.

Lest you should think I'm exaggerating here, consider that Beer Advocate rates JW Lees Harvest Ale a 100/100 or world-class beer.  Rate Beer gives it a 99/100 overall.

I've only seen this on the shelf at Kenny Road Market and in the Cellarville room at The Winking Lizard on Bethel Road.  You might find success elsewhere in town, but you might want to call first. Shelf price at Kenny Road Market when I last bought a bottle was $8.99.

New Holland Night Tripper (6/10)

New Holland's Night Tripper is an Imperial Stout.  Their web site says "An abundance of roasted malts and flaked barley create rich, roasty stout with deeply intense, lush flavors."  It's rated at 11.5% alcohol by volume and 45 IBUs, which is relatively low for a stout.

Night Tripper pours a clean dark brown with hints of mahogany. A thin tan head atop the beer lasts a while.

The aroma combines bourbon, alcohol, and malt.

The flavor starts sweet and malty, turns to bourbon, and finishes smoky and bitter... far more bitter than you'd expect for 45 IBUs.

It's an OK stout, but nothing I'm in a hurry to have again.  I'm giving it a 6 out of 10. RateBeer likes it much better than I do, giving it a 99 overall.  Beer Advocate also likes it much better, giving it a 90 overall.  They must see something in it that I don't... or maybe I was just having a bad day.

I tasted this at The Daily Growler in Upper Arlington back in 2014.  I haven't seen it locally in a while, but BeerMenus.com claims you may be able to find a bottle at Pace High Carryout for $8.99.  I'd check with them before making the trip unless you're heading there for another reason.