The brewer Brasserie Des Legendes makes this lovely Christmas beer (which means Christmas of the Giants).  Man, are a lot of good beers made in Belgium.  This particular beer comes in at 8% ABV and is imported like so many other beers by The Shelton Brothers.  You might have been able to tell from the label, but this beer comes from the French-speaking South of Belgium. 

When I poured this beer it took a long time to settle because of its high carbonation level.  I actually got a little gushing out of it, which wouldn’t have happened if I had it at 55 degrees, but I prefer room temp.  There was a tall, creamy head with a copper-colored, semi-hazy body.  

Upon smelling the beer, I noted a spicy and peppery quality.  It was somewhat tannic and oaky like a wine.  I caught aromas of marshmallow and vanilla in the nose.  There were also some spicy hops that balanced out the candy sugar aromas.

The beer was very spicy in its approach.  In addition, it was woody and had a very dry maltiness in the finish.  Alcohol was readily apparent in the taste of the Ale.  As noted in the nose, Noel des Geants had a slight peppery quality and an apparent herbal quality.  I could have sworn the the herb was oregano.  Overall, I thought it was a pretty good Christmas beer, which means that I wouldn’t drink it as a session or daily ale.