Let’s take a beer breather and look at my favorite spirit, gin. Specifically Old Curiosity Christmas Gin.
“The Gin is distilled with ginger, cinnamon and cardamom which gives the undeniably familiar smell of Christmas and provides a festive spicy flavour. The drink is infused with mallow petals to provide a distinctive festive colour which transforms to a vibrant pink when mixed with tonic water; the perfect showstopper for any Christmas party. The seasonal gin is smooth and elegant with a light base. For a real festive feel, garnish with a slice of dried orange peel, a cinnamon stick and a dash of tonic to witness the glorious colour change”
I had my first Northern Monk beers at this year’s Firestone Walker Invitational. Loved both and now I am longing for their winter seasonal, Festive Star.
“Our annual festive release, Festive Star, returns for 2023. Our Northern Star with a party hat. A silky porter with chocolate, vanilla and cinnamon to get you into the festive spirit. “
My wife breaks out the earmuffs when it dips below 75 degrees. I would prefer the 4 Hands Brewing version myself.
“Earmuffs is an enchanting hazy winter IPA that embraces the season’s serene chill through the use of CRYO hops, a hop product created by freezing raw hop cones to sub-zero temperatures with liquid nitrogen before shattering them, sifting the lupulin and pressing that green goodness into pellets that provide accentuated aromas and flavors. Expect intense notes of lime, melon, bright berries, pink grapefruit, dried roses and pine resin contributed by a blend of CRYO Cashmere and Talus hops.”
Back to my backyard for the next advent beer. It comes from Hop Secret Brewery in Monrovia and it is Winter Wit.
“Introducing our spiced holiday ale, brewed with Papua New Guinea Vanilla Beans, Cinnamon, Orange Peel, and Coriander. This delightful combination will transport your taste buds to a cozy, festive paradise.”
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.”
I have reviewed a pilsner and an IPA as possible Thanksgiving table choices and now it is time to do a dark beer, Pan A Flores from South Norte Brewing and it has a lot. Cajeta (caramel-esque) , cinnamon, Mexican chocolate and coffee.
This is a porter and not a stout so it doesn’t bog you down. Caramel and cinnamon is there with the coffee and Mexican Chocolate making cameos I would expect that different people would get stronger hits from different flavors depending on what people are more sensitive to. This may not play well with starters or cranberry but I think it would add pizazz to the turkey and stuffing for sure.
One, it is an oft repeated trope that Thanksgiving brings out the family blowhards who claim to not know that what they just said was beyond the pale (to put it lightly). To the point where pretty much everyone wishes the meal could be enjoyed in quiet.
Second is that like the blowhard, you can’t ignore IPA because it is everywhere for both good and bad. So we have to see if there is a way to wedge a good bitter hop charge with the turkey and stuffing.
That leads us to The Art of Quiet from noted SLO brewer Liquid Gravity.
Described on their website as, “Hopped with massive doses of Somcoe and Citra this clear hop nectar explodes with papaya, citrus and pine needles. A moderate bitterness helps keep this beer highly drinkable and each sip finishes dry, crisp and refreshing.”
Pours a bubbly light yellow. Could fool a person into thinking it’s a pilsner. And the aroma doesn’t give away the game too much either. First sip does reveal a goodly sized amount of bitterness but it has a secondary fruit juice flavor. Grapefruit and papaya for my tastebuds. Damn tasty West Coaster this.
I think this could work under the right circumstances. Turkey will not be a problem if it is the mainstay simple prep. If the stuffing isn’t spiced or the potatoes are not super buttered, this beer would work. I do think it would be a discordant note for other side hustles on the table though.
