The Spirit World

This is the last beer of Christmas from the U.S. and it’s a regional brew from Matt Brewing Company in Utica, New York. Saranac Winter Wassail is a spiced beer built on top of a Classic English Ale. The label reports that the hops used to bitter the beer are Fuggles, and the spices added are cinnamon, nutmeg, orange, and allspice.

Eyes: This beer is a transparent, light-brown color. The head initially bubbles aggressively, but dissipates quickly.

Nose: Before I looked at the label, I had my nose in this beer trying to identify the spices. There’s enough cinnamon in the brew to come through in the aroma. The cinnamon changes the character of the nutmeg, but it’s still detectable over the cinnamon. I was literally on my knees in the kitchen going through our spice collection trying to find other matching aromas. When I took a whiff of the allspice, I told my wife that the beer probably had allspice too. “Why don’t you look at the label,” she said. “Maybe it says.” Sure enough. The only aroma I didn’t get from this beer was the orange.

Taste: While I was writing my notes for this beer, I asked my wife, “Why would a brewer want to build a holiday spice beer on top of an English Bitter?” The base style for this beer is an excellent brew, but for my taste is too thin to support the spices. What happens is that the beer comes off floral and perfumy. This is not unlike the Anchor Christmas Ale which is also floral and perfumy, but the difference is that in the Anchor, the base style is thick and rich enough to hold the spices together without making them seem an annoying distraction from what would otherwise be a decent beer. On the other hand, this is probably just a personal bias. I know people who really like spice additions to lighter bodied ales.

Overall: The beer is definitely drinkable and even enjoyable. The spices do give the beer a distinctly floral character. The base style is well done and sufficiently bitter to be satisfying.

My Rating: 9/20 or 4.5/10

Pro: A good Classic English Ale with a satisfying Fuggles bitterness.

Con: The spices come across as perfumy and detract from the beer rather than add to the tasting experience.