Day 5 of the 6th Annual Advent-ure Calendar
Day 5: Abita Brewing Company Office Party Holiday Stout
The first of two Abita beers on the calendar and also the first stout. From the website: “Office Party is a holiday stout brewed with oats, pale, caramel, and chocolate malts…generous amounts of cocoa nibs, cinnamon, vanilla, and nutmeg are added to infuse the spirit of the holidays into this limited release.” Well fire up that copier and show us some butts!
Reflections
Ben: Ahhhhhh I wanted to like this more cause it’s such a fun name! When I drink a stout I’m expecting it to be thick and luxurious, and this is just too thin for me. I do like the subtleness of the spices, and it has a lovely chocolate aroma, but the vanilla tasted a bit artificial to me. It also finished very dry, which I don’t think is the right backdrop for these spices. Great effort, love a dark beer this time of year, but there’s much better stouts out there to enjoy in this weather.
Julia: This is an interesting beer. I get tons of chocolate and vanilla flavors but honestly cannot tastes cinnamon or nutmeg. It starts off very smooth and chocolatey but the aftertaste is a bit bitter and dry. I could probably drink one of these but not much more because I really don’t love the sweeter beers. I would try this again next year to see if it tastes any different.
Adam: Abita Office Party has that smooth feel of a stout which I enjoy but I’m a little underwhelmed by it as a “holiday” stout.
It reminds me of Boulder Shake. I like the chocolate and the vanilla but I don’t get any of the cinnamon or nutmeg at all. It’s a bit on the malty side and I do get oats in there.
Honestly, I want to do whatever the Christmas version of a carbomb is with this. Maybe half a glass of this, baileys, and a some Christmas whiskeys?
Alex: Abita’s Office Party is another new one this year. It tastes kind of like a milkshake, and is very easy to drink. I can taste chocolate and vanilla, but can’t really taste any of the cinnamon and nutmeg. This doesn’t scream holiday beer, but I would drink this one again. I wouldn’t say it’s super memorable, but I did enjoy it.
Scott: Loving the diversity we have this beer advent-ure! Coming off the sour seasick crocodile to the ultra malty office party is such a fun change of flavors. I’m not sure this is a beer I’d seek out every year, but it’s unique enough that I’m happy to try it. As mentioned before, it’s very malty with a strong caramel flavor that would be perfectly paired with a cinnamon sugar rim beer glass. Literally as I drink and write this review I like it even more so I’d categorize it as one that grows on you. Happy to have this one as part of our group this year!
Christa: Wow I really enjoyed this one. Which, I’m happy to say. Scott took a sip and said I wouldn’t so nanananahhh Scott, you’re wrong. The cinnamon carries this stout. It cuts the bitterness I usually find with stouts that make me avoid them. A very nice, pleasant and enjoyable beer. I don’t think it stands out yet but I’ll def be exited if it enters into the 2021 rotation.
Tony: Full disclosure: I love stouts and porters and Megan and I picked this one so theres all sorts of bias happening here….that being said, right when we popped off the cap we both said “ooo smell that!” because it smells delicious. Its very dark in color and has pretty good carbination when you pour. The taste is pretty good. It mentions cocoa nibs which I think might be giving a slight extra bitterness and then they mention caramel and chocolate malts along with holiday spices like cinnamon and nutmeg. So its got a good amount of complexity. I’m not sure everything is jiving together exactly right, but overall I enjoy the darkness, malts, and sprinkle of holiday spices. Awesome name too!
Megan: I love the name and the bottle. An office party themed beer is a fun spin on the holidays and this is a beer I would bring to the next office holiday zoom party. It smells really good, almost like it’s going to have a smoky taste. Once you dive in, it has that deep richness of a stout with cocoa, vanilla and nutmeg. It’s not too robust, just the right balance. I like this one and would get t again or send it to friends for the holidays.
Brad: I enjoy stouts and was excited for this Abita Office Party, but, I just couldn’t get into it. It tastes overpowered by the cocoa nibs which left a bitter taste in the mouth. The smell is filled with vanilla and it pours as a nice dark stout should, but the carbonation seems off as well. Maybe I got a bad bottle, maybe it’s just what they were going for? I’ll never know but I am still excited for the other Abita varieties.
Heather: Whole lotta cocoa in this stout, without the sweet finish. I had high expectations for this one, but it didn’t do it for me. It’s decidedly seasonal with the spice, but the bitter taste in my mouth makes me feel like I just sat through a conversation with Frank in Accounting in which he creepily comments on Laura’s dress. No thanks.