Blase’ medium-bodied mahogany-hued French-styled Biere de Garde lacks fruity luster and seasonal spicing. Modest mocha malting lulls cinnamon-nutmeg spicing, sullen dried fig interlude, and nominal earthen tepidity. Dispirited Christmas celebrator leaves me cold.

Brewed each year by Young’s from an ancient recipe, this distinct holiday treat from around 2004 retained rich yeast assertiveness, burnt caramel sweetness, and nutmeg seasoning. Fine malt blend offers characteristics of red and brown ales.

Tiny Flemish homebrewers’ wintry nickel-hazed reddish-glazed strong ale places orange-candied lemondrop tartness above warming alcohol sensation and spongy carbolic fluff. Serene seasonal spices tingle oncoming red apple ripeness and tangerine-orange tang as sugary yeast sinew further sweetens festive treat.

Clear auburn bourbon-barreled oak-aged seasonal fades badly to metallic dry-hopped finish. Slick caramel-molasses malt initiation sports vanilla bean sweetness, cream soda appeal, sneaky cinnamon-nutmeg spicing, and restrained cotton-candied marshmallow-coconut dint. But thin buttery texture and diffident bourbon character ransack deficient laggard. 2010 version: tame candied orange frontage, cinnamon-toasted pumpkin-pied nutmeg spicing, and vanilla-butterscotch ice cream finish better defined sharply alcohol-fueled winter ale.

Dry-bodied, tiny-headed, oats-toasted light amber seasonal seems closer to defiant Pale Ale. Determined spice hop frontage and orange tang coat tongue before sugared malts overwhelm evasive chicory, nectar, and herbal hints.

Pedestrian medium-bodied nickel-hued seasonal (?) brown ale seems conflicted. Barley cereal toasting picks up likable tea-like component and slim cherry-berry fruiting, but earthen nuttiness and clove-spiced herbal tinge fail to integrate. Dismal chocolate malting and phenol hop bittering wilt. Honey-roasted fig, pecan, and chestnut illusions slip by tangy orange lilt. Never cuts to the chase.

Gritty, reddish purple-hazed, 7.5% alcohol-fueled, barleywine-styled winter warmer in short long-neck 9.9-ounce bottle lacks expectant molasses malt thickness. Nonetheless, fulsome yeast sinew, milk chocolate coating, burnt caramel seducement, and muted dried fruiting bring luster. Stewed prune, dried apricot, banana taffy, fig, plum and cherry illusions seep into honeyed mocha backdrop.

Candied chocolate, cola nut, and mild prune sufficiently seduce elegant wheat-wined barleywine luster. Roasted barleymalts fade at creamy finish while waning wintry spices and lack of proper wheat punctuation hurts its ‘style.’ Brewery defunct: 2006.

Puffy-headed, cloudy-hued, moderate-bodied ale (a.k.a. Rogue Juniper Pale Ale) featuring flirty juniper wisp and firm yeast foundation remains less bitter than brewers’ Dead Guy Ale. Sharp piney spruce tangent grazes grapefruit-lemon souring, residual herbal-nipped green tea slip and citric-splashed spice hop finish. Perfect for celebrating Christmas in July since darker fruited elements bring summertime aspirations.

Dry fruited prune-fig souring and roasted chestnut dirge override tepid hop bittering. Astringent finish reminiscent of dimmer copper ales, lacking expected holiday seasoning.

Less interesting 2009 version falters early. Funky fertilizer-wafted reddish-browned winter ale lacks seasonal floral spicing and persuasive grain-malt blend. Reserved barley-roasted nuttiness dissolves into tepid caramel chocolate finish. Major disappointment from an otherwise great brewer.

“Rich and dark like a dobbel,” spicier than a copper ale, but nowhere near as potent as Affligem Tripel. Buttery, ginger-snapped, hop-fizzed holiday treat crowds wispy cobwebs of spongy lace above heartwarming medicinal center aiding earthen wheat-dried red grape musk and latent prune-ripened gunk. ’07 version brought creamier caramel malting and bruised orange-cherry vigor to brandy-soaked Chardonnay sumptuousness.