Ho, Ho, Ho

Everybody seems to offer some sort of Christmas ale. I mean everybody. Coors markets a seasonal under the Blue Moon umbrella, our wonderful friends at AB spew out something with a catchy name under one of their divisions and even European brewers get in on the act by marketing a number of dark ales with a Christmas theme. Some are actually really good while others are just rebadged stock beer sent to the US to trick consumers. That doesn’t mean they’re bad, just not as special as you might think.

When you’re buying beer as a gift there’s really no wrong way to go. Buy me a case of Bud Light and I’ll graciously accept it. Gifts are always appreciated. At the very least I can keep it handy for gatherings where not everybody shares my taste in beer or, if I receive the gift early enough, I can re-gift it to somebody who will really enjoy it. There’s nothing wrong with re-gifting, by the way, which is why I love to make a gift of booze. I often buy alcohol knowing that the person who receives it might very well give it to somebody else. That’s fine. It’s as good as giving away money. Of course we don't give away money because it looks like we didn't put any thought into the gift even though we don't put much thought into gift cards but alcohol isn't like that. Everybody likes to get alcohol as a gift.

So you don’t have to be intimidated by the selection of Christmas beers. It’s really hard to go wrong. That being said, there are some fantastic beers to keep an eye out for.

Great Lakes Brewing Company offers a great Christmas Ale. It’s one of the best on the market. Like most Christmas ales it has higher alcohol content, and it’s a little less bitter than the other beers they offer. Great Lakes does a good job of not over spicing this beer which is sometimes a problem with Christmas ales. The hops lend a nice scent of pine and impart a touch of citrus that pull the rest of this big-bodied beer together.

Sadly, Great Lakes is offered in a limited area so a lot of people never get to try this one.

Leave it to Rogue to satisfy national demand with a great beer. Santa’s Private Reserve is a bold red ale that has a nice malty body that has a profile like roasted chestnuts and a nice piney finish from the hops. When Christmas ales go wrong, and some do, they either go too heavy or too light on the hops. Rogue strikes a perfect balance here.

Southern Tier Brewing Company is also hard to find but if you can track their beers down you should try their imperial Christmas offering; Krampus. Lately Southern Tier has been drawing inspiration from obscure mythological resources and Krampus represents the dark half of Christmas lore. This beer, is a strong imperial Helles lager that packs a lot of flavor. It’s big and aggressively hopped.

If I’m being honest I think Southern Tier is reaching for marketing angles with the history/mythology gimmick but that doesn’t detract from the fact that they make outstanding beer and Krampus is no exception. If you can get a hold of a bottle you should open it and have a sip or two. Or the whole damned bottle. But be warned: this is an imperial beer which means it’s got a high alcohol content. That could be a good thing if you have to weather the holiday season with extended family.


I’ll be enjoying these beers in the days leading up to Christmas, when I buy beer as a gift I try to find things that are really unique. Unfortunately I can’t write about one that I was really excited to find until after Christmas because one of the four or five people who read this blog is getting it and that would spoil the surprise.

One that nobody is getting is a beer I was dying to try all summer long. Then it was released and bought up before I could try it. It’s a special beer from Dogfish Head called Theobroma. This is a beer based on a recipe that the crazy brewmasters at Dogfish Head believe was served to kings and sacrificed to the gods by ancient Mayans. The beer features ancho chilies and Central American cacao along with honey, annatto and traditional brewing ingredients.

I expected a dark and nutty beer that lacked subtlety. I thought it would be good because Dogfish Head doesn’t make beer that isn’t but I was looking for something really primal. What I got was a beer that is as nuanced and refined as it gets. Theobroma delivers a wine-like experience complete with the 10% alcohol content. Unlike other high ABV beers this is light and clean in flavor. It’s tart and smooth with delicately sweetness and just a tiny bite from the chilies. You can’t compare Theobroma to other beers because Theobroma really doesn’t fit into any modern beer category. It’s a beer in the broad sense of the term, but you can’t find anything like it. It’s not even fair to compare it to the other experimental brews that Dogfish Head has had the sheer audacity to put on the market. You’d be better off comparing Theobroma to a sparkling wine like a tart Cava or a citrusy Proseco.

I loved this beer from the first sip but it took me a couple of days to take it all in. I’ve been waiting for this beer for half 10 months and had an image in my head of what it would be like. That image was shattered from the first pour.

Theobroma is still tough to find. It was a limited release in 750 ml bottles. Several beer/wine people I talked to were perturbed that they couldn’t acquire more than a case at the time of the initial release and it might be a year or two before Dogfish Head beefs up the output to accommodate the surprising demand. It’s worth looking around, however. There are some stores, such as Whole Foods, that often move merchandise like wine and beer from one store where it might not be selling to one where it is. I think that’s how I got my hands on two bottles.

Yes, I still have a bottle on hand but it’s mine. I love giving beer as a gift but I have my limits. I might not open that one remaining bottle until I know I can get another. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t give it as a gift. Especially if you know somebody who likes it.