Beverages that warm up the winter season
Fleece jackets, flannel sheets and a fire to cozy up to are good winter warmers. Great Winter Warmers are a class of seasonal beers that are very warming.
The history of these warming tipples dates back a few centuries to English strong ale and a spiced-up wassail. Wassailing began centuries before Christmas caroling and involved cups of warm, spiced cider or ale and troupes of merrymakers roaming the countryside singing to the fruit trees to encourage them to bear fruit in the coming year.
It progressed in the cities as Christianity spread. It still involved the big bowl of a warm, spiced beverage and groups of revelers strolling door to door singing Christmas carols, spreading good cheer and best wishes for the new year.
According to the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) style guidelines, a British Strong Ale is “of respectable alcoholic strength, traditionally bottled-conditioned and cellared. Can have a wide range of interpretations, but most will have varying degrees of malty richness, late hops and bitterness, fruity esters, and alcohol warmth.”
An English strong ale is just that – strong with an alcohol content between 6-10%. Many of the English versions contain no spice, they’re just strong from a big malt presence. Hop bitterness is late and low but balancing.
BJCP describes Winter Warmers/Christmas ales as having “a wide range of aromatics," but adds that "many examples are reminiscent of Christmas cookies, gingerbread, English-type Christmas pudding, spruce trees, or mulling spices. A stronger, darker, spiced beer that often has a rich body and warming finish suggesting a good accompaniment for the cold winter season.”
American Winter Warmers, with a color range from brownish red to basic black, generally have spices added. It is sometimes called Christmas beer, which is similarly strong in alcohol content and spiced. Those spiced versions follow the wassail tradition of blending robust ales with some combination of cloves, allspice, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and other baking spices.
Christmas or Winter ales are sometimes barrel-aged and may have added sweeteners like maple syrup, molasses, plums or raisins. These big beers are often served on their own as a sweet, malty treat.
Winter Warmers and Christmas ales begin showing up in October at Washington breweries. These seasonal treats rarely last past the holidays and many age very nicely. In no particular order:
Kitsap breweries
Rainy Daze Frosty Chairlift Winter Ale is only 6.9% ABV. And at 50 IBUs (or, International Bitterness Units), this mahogany-colored, hoppy, piney, brown-sugar-flavored ale is on tap at the brewery in Poulsbo.
Visit Valholl Brewing in Poulsbo to taste the War Hammer Strong Ale. This is a winter ale that is made to fortify. Deceptively strong and malty with hints of caramel. War Hammer is a heavy hitter at 7.25% ABV and 60 IBUs.
Fasten your seat belts for the Bourbon Barrel Aged Old Scrooge from Silver City which tops up at 9.6% ABV. A long slumber in single-use Kentucky Bourbon barrels marries fruity esters and a rich malty body with cherry, wood and vanilla. 60 IBUs.
Wing Point Winter Ale from Bainbridge Brewing is a Pacific Northwest Winter Warmer. “Malty and dark with notes of caramel, raisin, pine and cedar, with enough alcohol to keep you toasty. The addition of fresh cut Doug Fir* boughs” reminds one of the beautiful Evergreen State. A mere 6.2% ABV.
*The evergreen boughs are mixed into a batch of beer using a hop back, a device that’s inserted into the line when the beer is transferred from the hot boiler, cooled, and then into the fermenter. The hop back protects delicate oils and aromas that would otherwise be destroyed by heat.
In Woodinville
The Black Raven Festivus Pale Ale is a copper-colored holiday ale brewed with orange peels, cranberries, galangal root and other festive spices weighing in at 7.3 ABV.
Tripelhorne Mystic Belgian Strong Dark is really strong at 9.9 ABV! This barrel-aged, sweet, malty Belgian strong is brewed with honey, caramel and candied sugar, which makes it a perfect match with pumpkin pie.
Bosk Brewing’s KRAMPUS spiced holiday bock is amber-colored, smells and tastes like liquid gingerbread with star anise, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, allspice, orange peel and cloves all from the beautifully scented World Spice Merchants in Seattle.
Beyond Washington
A list of winter warmers wouldn’t be complete without Anchor Brewing Christmas Ale. It was 1975 when Anchor released the first holiday beer, making it as much a part of today’s celebrations as jingle bells and swags of evergreens.
Since then, each year’s distinctive Christmas ale is a rich, dark, spiced ale. Along with an ever-evolving recipe, each year’s new label features a different tree. In the tradition of ancient celebrations, trees have been a big part of the winter celebrations.
Another old timer, Sierra Nevada, has been making Celebrationsince 1981. This beer is a different sort of Winter Warmer made with Pacific Northwest Cascade, Chinook and Centennial hops (65 IBUs) that give this perennial ale its citrusy, piney and floral character.
Deschutes Jubelale has been brewed since 1988. This Winter Warmer has a bigger hop finish (65 IBUs) than normally found in Winter Warmers but it’s balanced by the big grain bill and roasted barley. 6.7% ABV
Belgian-based Brouwerij Huyghe brews Delirium Noël, a Christmas brew that packs 10% ABV. There’s spice and sweet fruit flavors, with a very modest touch of bitterness for balance.
In West Flemish, Brouwerji St. Bernardus has been brewing a festive beer since 1946. The Christmas ale is dark in color and has rich, malty flavors — a perfect fireside brew. And you’ll want to be sitting for this special top-fermented beer at 10% ABV.
The Washington Beer Commission’s Winter Beer Festival returned to Magnuson Park on Dec. 2-3 with over 25 breweries serving up dark malty stouts, barrel-aged beers, Winter Warmers and other unique beers.
While doing exhaustive research for this article, I ran across a couple of Winter Warmers that I have not tasted but the very thought of them made me grin.
Wet Coast Brewing Holiday Jeer! is a full-bodied stout with a big dose of molasses and the usual suspects of ginger, allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Bah Humbug!
Griffin Claw Brewing in Michigan makes 3 Scrooges Winter Warmer brewed with molasses, honey, orange peels, and cloves.The label brings winter cheer to all scrooges. Nyuck, Nyuck, Nyuck!
Mary Earl has been educating Kitsap wine lovers for a couple of decades, is a longtime member of the West Sound Brew Club and can pair a beer or wine dinner in a flash. She volunteers for the Clear Creek Trail and is a longtime supporter of Silverdale.
This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Beverages that warm up the winter season
