Follow Sean Inman to the best in craft beer
Time to skate over from pilsner to lager and a beer you will find all over the country in Sam Adams Winter Lager.
“Same old holiday? Not this year. Sam Adams Winter Lager is brewed with cinnamon and orange peel — no baking required. Full-bodied, festive flavors and smooth as a sleigh ride, bring an unexpected twist to your holiday parties.”
Let’s take a step back from two straight cold IPA’s and highlight a pilsner instead, a Winter Pils from Short’s Brewing.
“Made with all Michigan ingredients from Empire Malting Co, Great Lakes Malting Company, Valley View Farms, MI Local Hops, and Hop Alliance, our Imperial Pilsner is ready for brilliant snow days and the long, dark nights of Michigan winter.”
One of the standouts from this year’s trip to the CCBA Conference was Alaro Brewing. I adore their labels and the fact that they package their beer in these weird things called bottles. Including Long Nights…
“Winter brings short days, long nights and our Cold IPA! This special IPA is made using an ale yeast fermented slowly at cold temperatures and is made with high-quality malts for a soft mouthfeel complimented by a juicy hop bill of Citra, BRU-1 & Sultana for layers of citrus, pineapple & topical melon. The cold fermentation creates a light and clean mouthfeel that is perfect to showcase all these amazing hops!”
Each year, from the day after Thanksgiving to the day before Christmas, one of my two daily posts will showcase a different holiday seasonal. So it is appropriate to start with a beer from Hopworks Brewery in Portland, Oregon.
“This Cold IPA is light and crisp. Seamlessly blurring the line between a refreshing lager and a bright, aromatic IPA. Notes of pine sap, lemon zest, and grapefruit with a dry, crackery finish.”
Off to the snows of Utah and the Wasatch Brewery for their take on the holiday ale which is not the norm, an imperial amber…
“Bundle up and get ready for an Imperial Amber Ale that you’ll reach for when the temps go down. Jump on the lift and crack open this deep red ale with a rich caramel malt backbone and an elevated fruity hop profile.”
We head out to McMinnville, my college town, for one of the best named Christmas beers out there, Tannen Bomb from Golden Valley Brewery.
“Massie complex beer brewed especially to bring warmth and cheer to the cold wet winter months of the great Northwest.”
I like a beer that has the one of these things is not like the other ingredient. In the case of Winter Stout from Institution Ales, you have vanilla, cocao and …. pecan wood.
Not all holiday celebrations go swimmingly, if you feel like you are turning sour, remember Polite Conversations. The cranberry sour from Inglewood’s Three Weavers. It may not help a conversation into fun but it will pair with both food and walking away.
A sour ale “overflowing with cranberries and buzzing with the perfect hint of pomegranate.”
The U.S. does not have a monopoly on Christmas beers and today we have a sparkling beer with a twist on the Lambic spelling from Belgium’s Oud Beersel.
“Winterlambiek Oud Beersel” is infused with pine buds. The incredible aroma takes you to the evergreen trees of the pine forest. The earthy pine buds give a spicy flavor to the smooth and complex Lambic, which offers a mild, slightly dry finish that will have you looking for the next sip as soon as possible!
“Winterlambiek Oud Beersel” is also very unique because it does not follow the traditional path of a winter beer. lt drinks like a light beer, has a refreshing carbonation and focuses more on the complexity of Lambic to drive the flavour forward instead of the sweetness that typically prevails in a winter beer.”
It is tough to pick the beer to start the season with but sentimentality for my home state of Oregon and the fact that I love the rotating artwork each year means that Jubelale from Deschutes Brewing gets the nod.
“Cozy up fireside with this festive winter ale full of spice notes and a robust malt character of toffee and dusted cocoa.”