The Jolly Inebriate

When it comes to drinking, beer is my default option.

I’ll have a cocktail to celebrate and wine often finds its way onto the family table with a meal but whether I’m on the tail end of a long day or out with friends, a pint or two is very often just the thing.

This preference owes its allegiance to no particular season but as far as I’m concerned, beer is at its best in winter. Although crisp lagers will always embody summer for me, much like cider and pumpkin ales do in the fall, the first sight of snow always brings to mind winter beers.

Not a brew style per say, they do embody a number of characteristics that make them perfect when taking refuge from the cold. They’re stronger (with ABVs ranging up to 12%), both in flavor and alcohol content, with a complexity that can come from the addition of spices, fruit or even specific combinations of malt and hops.

Very often, a winter beer won’t taste quite the same from one year to the next which means you should pick up at least two or three. Some brews cellar quite well and giving it a couple months or even longer can result in an interesting shift in its flavor.

This year’s release was pretty good but a bit heavy on porters and stouts. It would be nice to see some more variety but one can’t have everything, can one? For information on cellaring your beers, check out The Malt Monk’s article in EatDrink magazine’s holiday issue.

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