I don’t know about raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens, but one of my favorite things is the range of seasonal beer during the Christmas season. I enlisted a trusty panel of three brew-loving gentlemen to rate some of this winter’s finest offerings. Here are the results, along with a brief description of each beer from the breweries.
Young’s Winter Warmer – “The definitive winter beer and a longtime favorite. A rich, ruby-colored beer, luscious and full bodied, with a splendid nutty flavor.”
A.B.V. 5%
Jack - I like this one because it’s not very hoppy. The citrus finish is nice.
Joel – Yea, the malt overpowers the hops. It’s pretty good though.
Tom – It tastes a lot like Newcastle. I like it.
Maggie – I think it could use a little bit more spice.
Upland Brewing Co.’s Bad Elmer’s Porter – “A medium-bodied dark beer. Extremely smooth with hints of roasted grains and bitter chocolate flavor.”
A.B.V. 5.5%
Tom – It’s okay. I wouldn’t necessarily buy it, but it has a good, strong flavor.
Jack – I like it. It’s not an everyday beer. It’s more of an occasion beer, but that’s the beauty of it. It has a nice finish, and big flavors.
Joel – I like the balance of chocolate, coffee and caramel. Nice aftertaste, too.
Maggie – I like it because it’s chocolatey. Yummy.
Flying Dog’s Old Scratch Amber Lager – “A malty, mellow beer that is fermented at medium temperatures to develop both ale and lager characteristics.”
A.B.V. 5.5%
Jack – This one is a lot lighter than the last two and has a little more hops. It’s the Coors Light of red beers.
Tom – This one smells good! Not much flavor, though.
Joel – Probably because we drank it after two fuller bodied beers. This one has great lacing.
Maggie – This is a very drinkable, all occasion beer.
Great Divide Brewing Co.’s Hibernation Ale - “The lengthy aging process gives Hibernation its revered malty richness, complex hop profile and hearty warming character, which is perfect right out of the bottle or cellared for longer periods of time.”
A.B.V. – 8.1%
Jack – Smells like Rock Bottom’s Raccoon Red. This has a leathery, cedary, pencil shavings taste. It’s a poor cousin to the ones we’ve been drinking so far.
Joel –The initial hoppiness is good, but I hate the aftertaste.
Tom – This one is pretty acidic. This is definitely my least favorite so far.
Maggie- Wow, I wasn’t expecting this at all. This has an earthy flavor. But ew, the aftertaste is a lot like toilet water.
Jack – Yea, the finish is poor. It tastes like wet dog.
To be fair, after we let this one sit awhile, many flavors came out and it was much, much better.
Thirsty Dog Brewing Co.’s 12 dogs of Christmas Ale – “Spiced for the holidays with honey, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and Santa's secret recipe.”
ABV = 8.3%
Tom – Woah, it smells exactly like Christmas – just like peppermint candy. This is not a beer. This is a woman’s beer.
Jack – I’m not going to go that far, but this is definitely a frou-frou beer. It’s sprucey, and floral – it’s a lot like drinking potpourri, actually. Not a good choice for a true beer lover.
Joel – Yea, it’s clovey – just way too much brewer spice. This is a child’s beer.
Maggie – It smells like Listerine. This is very spicy, with a perfume finish.
Dogfish Head’s Punkin Ale - “A full-bodied brown ale with smooth hints of pumpkin and brown sugar.”
A.B.V. – 7%
Joel – This isn’t what I would normally choose to drink, but it’s good for a pumpkin ale. Not bad.
Tom – Better than the last two, but I’m still not a fan. This isn’t a real beer.
Jack – Yea, people should make up their minds. Do you want to drink beer or don’t you? Not a hairy man’s beer.
Maggie – Uh, I like this one. I guess I can’t be a hairy man. It smells like pumpkin pie spice and tastes better than it smells. The finish isn’t that great though.
Ridgeway’s Reindeer’s Revolt – An English strong ale.
A.B.V. – 6%
Tom - I really like this one. I love the smell.
Jack –It has the bite that you want with a crisp finish. Two words: real beer.
Joel – I like this a lot. It has decent head and great lacing. This is my favorite so far.
Maggie – This has a good balance and enough spice, but it isn’t really Christmasy.
Yuengling Black and Tan – “Combines our popular Dark Brewed Porter and Premium Beer to create a brew that is rich and dark in color. It has a faint sweetness with hints of caramel and coffee from the dark roasted malts.”
A.B.V. – 4.7%
Tom – I like it - it’s very smooth. There isn’t an afterbite.
Jack – It has some chocolate and coffee, but this isn’t as heavy as Bad Elmer’s. It has a short finish. It’s a good compromise between a porter and a lager .
Joel – I like it - you don’t taste the alcohol. It’s very smooth and well balanced.
Maggie – There’s no kick of flavor, but I like the smoothness.
Schmaltz’ Jewbelation Twelve– “Brewed With 12 Malts & 12 Hops.”
A.B.V. – 12%
Tom –No bite. This one tastes great. It would make a great Christmas gift… Hint, hint.
Jack – It has a long finish, it’s a classic malty porter. It has some leather and chocolate with a coffee finish. This is the “Chosen beer.”
Joel – I love this one. The smell is great, the aftertaste is great, and I like the molasses flavor. This beer stands out over the rest that we’ve tried.
Maggie – This is so smooth for how much alcohol there is in it. This is my favorite so far.
This one got a round of applause from our panelists.
Ridgeway’s Lump of Coal – “A bittersweet chocolate stout.”
A.B.V – 8%
Jack – This has a dirt smell. It’s very malty, kind of like Guinness’ twin sister. It has some toasted coffee beans, charred wood, and hints of leather.
Tom – This is a good one – I love the smell, love the finish – this is one you can really hammer down.
Joel – Less creamy than some of the others. It has chocolate and molasses. It looks dark, but it's also translucent.
Maggie – This one is earthy with some tobacco notes. I like it – it’s very complex.
