Looks:
Smell:
Taste:
Overall:
Description:
Spicy & bold, this festive ale is bursting with the flavors of the season. With a full body and spice it’ll help those long winter nights pass more quickly. The rich malt character creates notes of sweet toffee, caramel, & roasty chocolate while classic holiday spices like cinnamon, ginger and orange peel dance on the tongue bringing with them the celebratory spirit of the season. (Description provided by company)
Brewer:
Beer Style:
ABV:
5.90% ABV
Availability Frequency:
Winter
Containers Available:
bottle
Locations Where Available:
nationwide
Store/Serve Temperature:
close to 55 degrees F
Comments
Spicy!
Pours into a glass a dark reddish brown, with very little head. Not the most appealing looking, but the nose is strong and helps you forget the appearance.
Nose is very malty. Chocolate, nutty, coffee, and caramel notes abound. Some orange and a little ginger as well, even though the label says cinnamon, I couldn't smell any.
Taste is similarly strong on malt flavors and the ginger and orange offer an interesting brightness to balance the rich malt flavors. Hop flavors (which are mostly earthy) are low, but the slightly bitter malt flavors are moderate. A fairly long and lingering aftertaste.
A medium full body, with just enough carbonation to keep it a little fizzy in the mouth.
Strong malt flavors dominate Sam Adams Old Fezziwig Ale, with an interesting twist provided by the added spices and citrus. Although very tasty, this is one of those beers that sticks around on your palate for quite a bit of time after you are done with it - the strong flavors may not go with everything, and I certainly wouldn't try to switch from this beer to your after dinner nog or pumpkin pie!
Fezziwig, you old so and so!
Samuel Adams Old Fezziwig pours a deep, yet transparent reddish brown with a super malty nose. The ale has a hint of cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger, and they’re just subtly there in the bouquet as well (yeah, I called it a bouquet). The flavor has a bit more of the flavor from the spices, but not much. Again, it’s subtle. The malt is the star here, and it’s delicious. Well done, Sammy.