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We stick with plums for another day as we head to Colorado and Upslope Brewing Company for their Wild Christmas. The base beer is an “ale aged in Oak Barrels with our house sour culture and re-fermented on red plums” . It is the Q4 release of their Lee Hill Series.
When one thinks of Christmas and Sierra Nevada beer, you think Celebration their fresh hop winter seasonal. But dig a little deeper and you find a plum festooned 10%ABV beer as well.
Sierra Nevada didn’t have to do the Ovila line of beers. They continue to hold a stellar reputation, they are building on the east coast and they grow some of their beers ingredients. But we are blessed (pun intended) with this group of Belgian Abbey style ales.
This beer comes in a small but heavy bottle that is caged and corked. The aroma is slightly plummy with a sharp medicinal note. It pours a cola brown with a touch of red to it. The taste is very dry and those plums really come through. There is a slight warming to it but it really hits that strong set of Quad notes. I’m glad it is in the size of bottle it is!
This is how the brewery describes it, “Ovila Abbey Quad is heady with aromas of caramel, rich malt, and dark fruit balanced by the spiciness and delicate fruity notes of a traditional Belgian yeast. This complex beer is a collaboration between Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. and the monks of the Abbey of New Clairvaux. It features sugar plums grown on the grounds of the Abbey and harvested by the monks in Vina. We hope you enjoy this collaboration ale.”