Rating: 3.75/5 

Gift of the Magi by The Lost Abbey is a 10% ABV Biere De Garde style beer. This is the second time I try this beer and so I decided to give it whirl. First off, let me explain a little bit about this style of beer. It is a style brewed in the Nord Pas De Calais region of France as a strong Pale Ale or keeping ale. Like that of the style of the Old Stock Ale I tried before. These beers are “Winter warmers” made for the season of the cold. Why did I try one for the summer?… Global Warming…LOL Christmas in July… But really, since the one I had was in the winter, I decided why not this year in the summer. Typically these beers emphasize on malts and spice with a variety of hops. Lost Abbey, being Lost Abbey, focused on the yeast portion of the extract. The combination of ingredients that give this beer some unique and delicious flavors. I almost wanna call this a Belgian Amber, but honestly I am still a rookie when it comes to the complexities of beer. There are some people out there that really know their stuff. So anyways, the beer to me has some caramel, vanilla, biscuit bread, honey and some minor chocolate. Some berry, wine and pear notes are prevalent. There is definitely some Christmas spices like cinnamon and nutmeg. It is a little bit peppery like a saison but not too much. The alcohol is masked quite nicely. I would definitely recommend to those that wanna try something a little bit different that the usual beer styles. Here is the label for more info: