Holiday Beers

Ho,Ho, Ho, and mistletoe, the holiday beer season is upon us. This is the time of the year that breweries send out their variety packs or their winter ales or lagers. Great time to be a beer drinker. You always seem to get the best around holiday time.

In my part of the world, distribution is very limited, but we are able to get 5 different variety packs 9 different winter brews. Michelob has 6 different beers packed in their variety pack and the most interesting is the Pumpkin Spice. I haven't had this one, but I have tried a few pumpkin beers. They make a nice treat after gobbling down that turkey dinner.

The Holiday Porter found in Sam Adams is a new addition for this year and after reading about it on their web site, I can't wait to try one. The Cranberry Lambic and the Old Fezziwig are always interesting and fun.

Molson got rid of their Golden and replaced it with their Triple X. That and the Export are worth buying this package.

Saranac packs 12 different beers in their holiday package. Usually it contains a few of their everyday beers along with a few of their specialty beers. The caramel Porter and the Oatmeal Stout are fun and I wonder what the new one Winter Wassail tastes like. The best part about this is package is that you get to try 12 different beer styles. Great way to learn about beer.

Yuengling , America's Oldest Brewery, variety has the Traditional Lager, Lager Light, Black & Tan and the Lord Chesterfield in their package. Production problems last year prevented this package from hitting the market, so it is nice to see that it is now available.

Some of the more traditional holiday beers include: Sam Adams Winter Lager, Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale, Harpoon Winter Warmer, Sam Smith's Winter Welcome and Brooklyn Chocolate Stout.

Victory's Storm King is worth the money along with Weyerbacher's Winter Ale. Weyerbacher's niche is making "big beers" and the names they come up with are excellent. Blithering Idiot, what a great name for a beer.

Two that are more into the holiday spirit are Troeg's Mad Elf (an elf on the bottle) and Penn Brewery's Saint Nick Bock.

So, grab some friends and set up a tasting of the holiday beers.

Have a holly, jolly Christmas, it's the best time to drink beer. Well that's what the lyrics of the song should have been.