Beer Style: Winter Beers
Chocolate Winter’s Embrace
This winter seasonal beer has a rich malt character, underpinned by a pleasing chocolate note. The winter spices are present but not overpowering, providing a warming finish.
Revolution Brewing Co.’s Fistmas clone
Appropriate for the season, Fistmas is a holiday beer for hopheads! “As a homebrewer, I always would do spiced ales around the holidays,” Revolution Head Brewer Jim Cibak said, “but honestly, they just wore out my palate. Fistmas goes more with Revolution’s theme of brewing hoppier beers.”
Bell’s Brewery’s Song Of The Open Road clone
Song of the Open Road will pour a nice shade of brown with garnet notes. The hearty ale is best served in a snifter glass and will pair well with rich desserts, a fine cigar or, of course, the literary works of Walt Whitman.
Winter Seasonal Beers: Winter warmers, Christmas beers, and holiday treats
With the onset of winter in the Northern Hemisphere, winter warmers can be found on beer shelves everywhere. This year, make your own best version at home with some guidance from Gordon Strong.
Gordon Strong’s Winter Seasonal Beer
I’ve been making Christmas beers since my fifth batch and this version has several of my favorite ingredients and combinations, and is richly malty, complex, and spicy for the season.
Winter Warmers
Looking for a taste of the season? Winter warmers are just that; with the bite to take away the cold, these rich beers often have spices and flavors reminiscent of the holiday season. Here are 5 winter warmer clone recipes to brew for when the weather gets cold.
Collision Bend Brewing Co.’s 8 Crazy Nights clone
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)OG = 1.078 FG = 1.018 IBU = 25 SRM = 13 ABV= 8.2% 8 Crazy nights is a full-bodied spiced winter ale brewed with cinnamon, honey, and apples. Ingredients13
Tröegs Brewing Co.’s Mad Elf clone
Back in 2002, Owners Chris and John Trogner decided to brew a special beer — a big Belgian-style ale with cherries and honey — for the holidays, and thus, a superstar named Mad Elf was born. The calculated SRM is the color prior to the cherry puree addition. The final color of the beer will be ruby red.
Weekend Welcome (Samuel Smith’s Winter Welcome Homage Brew)
Weekend Welcome (Samuel Smith’s Winter Welcome Homage Brew) (5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)OG = 1.056 FG = 1.010IBU = 32 SRM = 16 ABV = 6% Samuel Smith’s Brewery holds the recipe for Winter Welcome
The Lost Abbey Brewing Co.’s Gnoel de Abbey clone
The Lost Abbey Brewing Co.’s Gnoel de Abbey clone Gnoel de Abbey is a blend of two different beers. To re-create Gnoel de Abbey at home, brew both base beer styles, then
Great Lakes Brewing Co.’s Christmas Ale clone
Great Lakes Brewing Co.’s Christmas Ale clone (5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)OG = 1.070 FG = 1.012IBU = 30 SRM = 19 ABV = 7.5% By Cleveland tradition, the annual release of Christmas Ale
Lompoc Brewing Co.’s C-Sons Greetings Ale clone
According to Lompoc Brewing Co.’s website, C-Sons Greetings Ale features “A deep copper colored ale brewed and dry-hopped with all seven “C” hops for a piney, citrusy, floral and resinous aroma. Offers a full hop flavor with a rich caramel malt finish and an endless developing hop presence.”
