The late fall and holiday season is an exciting time in the beer world. As the weather turns colder and the days grow shorter, people begin to forgo the fruity, lighter wheat beers and shandies for heartier brews that offer something special in flavor, and perhaps the warmth of a little extra kick in strength. Just as it might not seem very refreshing to drink a dark, malty 9% ABV beer while lounging in the August sun, a wispy 4.8% wheat beer just may not cut it when trying to get warm around a December fire after a big day on the slopes. And that's one of the great things about beer. It can be made to suit almost any taste or situation, and its ability to be adapted is limited only by the imagination of the brewer.
The tradition of heartier, stronger and often spicier brews can be traced back to ancient traditions based around the winter solstice. Cultures in Northern Europe celebrated the solstice as Yuletide, and brewed special beers for the occasion. Medieval England celebrated with a drink called "lambswool", a Christmas Ale made with roasted apples, nutmeg, ginger and honey. Later came "wassail", a Danish influenced tradition of hot ale that spread throughout England. Originally a general toast to your health, wassail became a popular tradition during the Christmas season in England, and is associated with caroling and holiday celebrations. Wassail and other traditional winter warmers were ales meant to be consumed warm or hot. They were either lightly hopped, or not hopped at all, as hops do not stand up well to being heated. Instead a variety of spices were used to offset the malty sweetness of the beers, and to give them their unique flavors suitable to the colder winter weather. One British tradition was to float toast on top of the hot ale for added flavor. And so the practice of brewing a special beer for Yuletide and Christmas became common from home brewers to commercial brewers and monasteries as well. Spices such as nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon, higher malt content for a fuller body, and higher alcohol content, are the hallmarks of these special holiday offerings.
The homogenization of the beer industry worldwide during the middle of the 20th century was not a good time for holiday beer. The consolidation of commercial breweries, popularity of lighter, mass produced lagers and decline in the number of home brewers contributed to make holiday brews seem like a thing of the past. Wassail just wasn't cool anymore. But as the craft beer revolution that began in the late 70's brought a renewed interest in beer styles and brewing traditions, the proliferation of Christmas and holiday beers has had a resurgence. Anchor Brewery in San Francisco came out with their "special ale", otherwise known as Anchor Christmas in 1975. Coors has been brewing its Winterfest since 1985. Belgian style beers lend themselves particularly well to holiday beers, as added spices go well with the candied sugar and wild yeasts already prevalent in their styles. Give the St. Bernardus Christmas Ale or Delirium's Noel a try. Today it seems like most breweries offer some kind of holiday beer or winter seasonal. Some favorites here in Colorado are Breckenridge's Christmas Ale, Avery's Old Jubilation, New Belgium's Frambozen, Odell's Isolation Ale and Hibernation Ale from Great Divide. Upslope Brewery began brewing a Belgian double with secret spices, weighing in at a hearty 8.2% for the holidays this year. And holiday beers are not just limited to Christmas brews. The Schmaltz Brewery of New York and San Francisco celebrates the Hanukah Season with its own gift pack of special releases, complete with menorah.
From American style lagers to spicy Belgian's to barrel aged stouts and porters, there is no shortage of seasonal holiday beers for you to try. So stop on in and treat yourself to a little something special for these cold winter nights. You deserve it!
Happy Holidays!
Chip Bartsch
Beer Buyer
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