Prairie Artisan Ales of Tulsa, Oklahoma makes, you guessed it, artisan ales – fantastic, top-notch beer in many different and difficult-to-master styles. Christmas Bomb! is a spiced Imperial Stout on an epic scale.
Christmas Bomb! pours jet black with a touch of burgundy color around the rim of the glass. There’s no foam, only a little
In 2014, Stone Brewery produced Stone Xocoveza Mocha Stout using a recipe by Chris Banker who won Stone’s home brewing competition with his take on Mexican hot chocolate brewed with spices. That beer was meant to be a single release, but fans said otherwise, and Stone Brewery is now producing Stone Xocoveza as an annual holiday beer.
Stone Xocoveza is a Milk Stout and pours
Last year I bought a few bottles of several Christmas beers to age. Tonight I pulled a bottle of Corsendonk Christmas Ale to see how aging affected this beer.
It pours reddish brown with a two-finger head that stays firm. Obviously, the year of aging hasn’t changed the carbonation.
It tastes very much like a fresh batch (see my review here), but the whole beer is knit together and the flavors are better integrated. The carbonation is smoother, the dark fruit notes pop, and the “sharp” edges of a fresh Corsendonk are aged off in this year old ale. I like it better.
Throw a few bottles in your cellar and taste a aged Corsendonk for yourself… next year.
Mac & Jack’s Brewing Company has bottled their first beer. Since 1994, Mac & Jack’s has been a favorite tap-only beer in the Pacific Northwest. Their African Amber is the quintessential unfiltered Amber, and sales prove it. Their first beer to be released in bottles, however, is Bourbon Barrel Aged Cascadian Dark Ale. Here’s my review of the 2015 vintage.
Jubelale is a medium-bodied, dry malty with hops Winter Warmer out of Deschutes Brewery in Bend, Oregon.
Julelale is garnet colored, and pours with a finger-thick tan head of foam on top that disperses to a layer of small bubbles. The aroma is roasted malts, dried prunes, with molasses and
Oakshire Brewing brews in Eugene, Oregon – the middle of the state and the middle of the Northwest craft brewing scene. Ill Tempered Gnome Winter Ale is made with six specialty malts and four American hops. It’s close in style to an English Strong Ale, but with stronger hops as you would expect from an Oregon craft beer.
Christmas Beer Advent calendars are helping craft beer lovers to count down to Christmas. This year there are several Advent calendars pre-loaded with Christmas and winter brews. I’ll share a few. If you can’t find one, you can make your own. I’ll show you how.
Advent is the season that begins four Sundays prior to Christmas, some time between November 27th and December 3rd. Most Advent calendars
