Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. And I can prove it. Because this year, I asked Santa for a present, and wouldn’t you know, I got it, and on Christmas Eve no less. What I wanted was Karbach Yule Shoot Your Eye Out Seasonal Ale from the Karbach Brewing Company of Houston, Texas. I had seen reviews of the beer in Honest Craft Beer Reviews and was very impressed. Oh, and there was another thing, too.

The label is really neat, you see. The name of the beer is fashioned after one of my favorite Christmas movies, A Christmas Story. That famous, exotic, wonderful lamp from the film is there on the label and, well, I thought that was really cool, too. Thanks to HCBR’s own Bill and Jenny, I got to try the beer. I had no idea this beer was coming, which made it all the more apropos for Christmas.

Karbach Yule Shoot Your Eye Out Seasonal Ale is a strong spiced beer of 8% alcohol by volume. The beer is sold in 22-ounce bottles, and that’s a good thing because 12 ounces of this gem just wouldn’t be enough. The beer has 37 IBUs and is made with the following ingredients per the Karbach website:

Malts: Pale Vienna, Munich, Chocolate, Carafa, Crystal

Hops: Spalt, Hallertauer, Saphir

Extras: Ginger, Cocoa Nibs, Orange Peel, Cardamom, Allspice, Nutmeg, Cinnamon

Apparently, Ralphie is all grown up now, because he wanted the same thing from Santa that I did this year. From the bottle label:

Dear Santa.

I know I don't deserve anything special this year, but there's a really awesome beer I'd like to get my hands on called Yule Shoot Your Eye Out. I know my boss will tell you I really botched the Penske file and I forgot my anniversary (again), but I PROMISE I will be good if you could get me some of that beer. It's loaded with specialty malts, fresh ginger, cocoa nibs, orange peel and other holiday spices. I heard Karbach only brews a limited quantity so if you could just think back to that year when I was SO good and you got me the BB gun that would be great.

Respectfully yours,

R

Karbach Yule Shoot Your Eye Out Seasonal Ale pours to a dark brown color with a thick creamy head formation and a wonderfully seasonal gingerbread man nose. Taking a sip, the beer has a medium body with a sweet cookie like brown ale character and strong notes of ginger that really make this one taste just like a gingerbread cookie. Hints of chocolate come through, definitely some nutmeg and a little cinnamon, Light roastiness from the cocoa nibs, but not so much the orange. It’s the ginger that dominates, though. A balanced dry finish from the hops, allspice and nutmeg adds drinkability. Those hops are gently grassy and herbal with a very light bitterness.

This is a very delicious beer and again, really a lot like a fresh from the oven gingerbread cookie in a glass. Who knew that Santa has elves undercover at Karbach brewing? He does, and I for one am glad about it.

And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box .

*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.

(B)=Bottled

(D)=Draft

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