Baby, It's Cold Outside

Dude, non sequiturs are logical
fallacies, not literary devices.

Thanksgiving is officially in the rear-view, which can only mean that the Christmas season has officially begun. You can expect more of these blatantly obvious puns, asides, palindromes, and other literary devices to be used to insert Christmas carol lyrics, non sequiturs, and other such holiday cheer into these blog posts.

And since it is quite cold outside this morning, what better topic to address than the seasonal style of beer called the winter warmer.

Winter warmer, by defined style, is an English strong ale that is brewed in the winter months. They are malty sweet offerings that tend to have a big malt presence, both in flavor and body. The color ranges from brownish reds to nearly pitch black. Hop bitterness is generally low, leveled and balanced, but hop character can be pronounced. The primary characteristic is strength; the average alcohol content by volume ranges from 6.0% to 8.0% ABV and some winter warmers reach 10% ABV or more.

Traditionally, the style does not contain spices, and relies on the malt and low amounts of hops for its flavor. It is common today to find a seasonal beer that is heavily spiced and called a winter warmer – technically, it’s not a winter warmer, and the brewer is attempting some marketing hoodwinking. Winter seasonal beers that are spiced tend to follow the "wassail" tradition of blending robust ales with mixed spices, as a nod to the good old days before hops became the chief "spice" in beer. In America, not surprisingly, our varieties of winter warmers have a larger presence of hops, both in bitterness and flavor. Murica!

All bundled up, ready for the cold.

When you think of winter warmers, you often think of Christmas Ales, and for good reason. Christmas beers are similarly strong in alcohol content to their winter warmer cousins and are usually spiced with a variety of unusual ingredients. The exact hierarchical relationship between Christmas ales and winter warmers is difficult to pin down – many would categorize Christmas as a sub-style of winter warmer, while others (myself included) would rank the winter warmers as a sub-style of Christmas Ales. In the end, it doesn’t matter, as the two are always seen together on the shelves and oft-mislabeled anyways. For more on this interesting juxtaposition, consult last year’s blog post on Christmas beers, by clicking here.

In their natural habitat.

Some good examples of winter warmers that I highly recommend are Anchor Brewery’s Christmas Ale, Harpoon Brewery’s Winter Warmer, Starr Hill Brewing Company’s The Gift, and Flying Dog Brewing Company’s K-9 Cruiser. There are, of course, countless fine examples of the style beyond the four I just listed, so don’t feel like it will be hard to find winter warmers to help warm you up this cold, holiday season.

Here’s to craft-brewed happiness… Cheers!