On the fifth day of Christmas...

Boulder Beer Company brought to me: a 12 oz. bottle of Never Summer Ale, a 5.94% winter warmer from Boulder Beer Company in Colorado.

For the second straight day, I struggled to decide which of the eight remaining beers to gift to myself. Instead of contracting out the job as I did yesterday, I reached blindly into the fridge and out came a chilly bottle of Never Summer Ale. Fair enough, I'll give it a shot. I remember trying Boulder's Hazed & Infused a while back, and to be honest, I can't remember if I liked it or not. I probably did; that's usually the case with beer. All right, enough with the pleasantries -- on with the tasting.

Pours a nice coppery brown, capped with a finger off fluffy off-white head that disappeared quickly but clung heartily to the the sides of the glass. Smell doesn't give any hints of this being a winter warmer. There's a faint floral hop aroma -- not getting much else. There's a touch of caramel sweetness up front, followed by a burst of grapefruit bitterness backed up with notes of roasted malt, toffee and biscuits that I can't quite pinpoint and I don't much like. Some bitterness lingers, led off by a slightly off metallic flavor. This would be pretty drinkable stuff were it not for the finish.

Is this really a winter warmer? In the sense that I expected some spice, something evocative of the season, I'd say no, probably not. But the style is pretty indiscernible. Tasting vaguely of gingerbread does not a winter warmer make, I suppose. That said, this isn't a bad beer. It's reminiscent of many regular old ales I've had and deemed quite worthy. Just goes to show that labeling affects one's tasting mindset.