TELEGRAPH WINTER ALE REDUX

(Pictured: Brian Thompson of Telegraph Brewing)

I was so convinced that this TELEGRAPH BREWING WINTER ALE was called “Telegraph Mexican Christmas Ale” last year that I bought it thinking it was some reformulation, and would be entirely new to my palate. No, as it turns out the WINTER ALE we reviewed in March of 2008 was brewed again with the same recipe this winter, and packaged in the same bottle as last year. Why I thought it was some seasonal change-up this time, I don’t know. In any event, last year we scored this roasty, nutty, cocoa powder-infused winter beer a 7.5/10, and I don’t see any reason to bring that very healthy score down this year. TELEGRAPH WINTER ALE is a dark, dark brown cockle-warmer, and comes in a corked 750ml bottle. You can taste light chilies and the dance of chocolate of the tongue and in the back of the mouth, and it’s certainly one of the more interesting winter seasonals out there. I’ll probably buy it again next year as well – but right now I’m mostly excited about the RESERVE WHEAT and STOCK PORTER bottles from Telegraph that I just bought. I’ll holla back at you when those are ingested, OK?