Seasons Greetings is a special version of our strong Oud Bruin created as an ode to Belgian Christmas Ales. While I’m not generally a fan of spiced beers, I do enjoy many of the Belgian Christmas Ales, which are generally dark and strong beers brewed with various spices.
At Odd Breed I like making stronger, more intensely flavored versions of moderate alcohol beers. Most traditional versions of Oud Bruin are about 5-6% ABV, although there are some stronger versions that are up to 8% ABV. Seasons Greetings comes in at 9% ABV.
Our Oud Bruin was brewed on September 6th of 2018 with a base of imported Pilsner, Munich, and Rye malt, alongside a smattering of specialty caramel malts and dehusked roasted malt to contribute notes of chocolate without burnt or astringent flavors.
Seasons Greetings spent 9 months in a French Oak barrel that previously held Italian Marsala, before being transferred into a heavy char American Oak barrel that previously held Widow Jane Bourbon. To further accentuate the dark fruit notes already present in our Oud Bruin, I filled the Widow Jane barrel with organic dark cherries at a moderate rate of 1 pound per gallon (most of our fruited beers contain 2-3 pounds of fruit per gallon). After 4 months in the Widow Jane barrel with cherries, the beer was transferred onto organic Mexican Vanilla beans. Rather than the common Madagascar Vanilla, Mexican Vanilla beans are sundried, and feature light smoky aromatics with intense fruity notes that are not present in other varietals.
Medium-Full bodied with notes of freshly roasted coffee transitioning to doughy rye bread and dark chocolate. On the finish the flavor is dark fruit notes and sweet vanilla, contrasting with the acidity from our mixed culture. This unique beer gains complexity with each sip as it warms.
My taste in beer has changed a little since I first became interested in beer 17 years ago. But there are a few types of beer that I have always been passionate about. This is the kind of beer I have always been passionate about.