My first experience with Prairie Artisan Ales was last year's Christmas BOMB! I remember it being good but nothing that blew my socks off. With a hefty price tag of around 10 dollars for a 12 oz bottle I expected the beer to taste like liquid gold. With that same hope, I tried it on draft afterward and was disappointed to find out I still had the same general feelings toward it. I then tried regular BOMB! on multiple occasions throughout the year and I was blown away every single time(you can read that review here). As the year progressed, I wondered if I was fair to Christmas BOMB! Were my expectations too high initially? Or were my initial thoughts that Christmas BOMB! was an overpriced average stout with holiday spices correct? I decided to pick up a bottle of this year's batch and find the answer once and for all.
Prairie Artisan Ales Christmas BOMB! pours a rich black with minimal carbonation. There is almost no head but dark tan lacing does show up. The aroma is what I would describe as holiday coffee. There is a strong coffee aroma, which is complimented by cinnamon and chocolate. Upon tasting the strong flavors of chocolate, coffee and cinnamon flooded my palate right off the bat. There are also hints of ginger and nutmeg as well, before a light peppery finish. Most of the flavors I expected are there, and while they are fine they are nowhere near as good as the flavors developed in regular BOMB! The coffee in regular BOMB! is incredible. It works so well with the beer. Here the coffee tastes like a more watered-down version of the one found in BOMB! Additionally I found that the flavors did not develop as well in Christmas BOMB! as it warmed. Mainly because the spices drown out almost any subtitles in the flavor.
It may appear that I am being harsh on Christmas BOMB! But the truth is I like it. I think the flavors work, they just do not work as well as regular BOMB! or Stone Brewing's Xocoveza which is very similar in flavor, significantly cheaper, easier to find and just flat out tastes better. But if you have to try it, especially due to the limited availability of Christmas BOMB! I feel it is worth trying if you get the chance. That being said, if you are a fan of regular BOMB! keep your expectations in check.
Overall I would rate Prairie Artisan Ales Christmas BOMB! a 3.25/5. Think of a thinner, lower ABV version of BOMB! with watered down coffee and a ton of cinnamon, that's exactly what you get here.
Rating Scale:
1 - Repugnant and undrinkable
2 - Acceptable but forgettable
3 - Good, worth a purchase
4 - Excellent, a step above the norm
5 - Truly exceptional
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Thanks for reading. Sláinte!
