the beers of christmas eve and christmas day

“Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” — Benjamin Franklin

Last year the Christmas Eve gala at our house went beyond the traditional gathering of family, a few drinks, eat and have a good time. We introduced a beer tasting with a few micro brews that I had bought for the evening.

This year it continued and will become tradition not just for Christmas Eve and Day, but also for Thanksgiving and any other gathering where we have enough beer drinkers interested in interesting beer.

Some may think that after the 1st few that they all begin tasting the same. Not so, especially if you try to arrange from lightest to heaviest.

 

The Beers of Christmas Eve

Voodoo Love Child Ale: Voodoo Brewing Company — The label on this beer says it is aged on cherries, raspberries and passion fruit. It definitely had a strong Belgian Lambic influence. It was sweet and perhaps if we had read the label we would have expected the sweetness. One other character we noticed was the carbonation did not dissipate. It was a fine carbonation similar to what you would find in Champagne. It also held its carbonation for a long time. At the end of the tasting one member of the group said this was his favorite. I like the Lambic style beers but I need to be in the mood for one.

Alpine Black IPA: Otter Creek Brewing — I was introduced to this delicious black IPA on Thanksgiving when my son, Max, brought it as his contribution to the day. It immediately became a favorite and I set out to get a sixtel for the kegerator. It arrived on the week of Christmas and Max was good enough to deliver it from Jersey City on Christmas Eve, early enough for it to settle and get nice and cold. Too bad it’s a seasonal, we all agreed it was something we could drink all year. The normal bitterness of an IPA is masked by the roasted hops making this very smooth and an easy beer to drink. Loved by both groups (Xmas Eve and Xmas Day) of beer lovers.

Lilith: Birrificio Bruton — I was looking for something interesting for the holidays and the help at the liquor store shared a story about some goth looking guy that came in to sell them beer from this brewery and the two Italian beers in this tasting were part of it. The staff at the store all liked the Diece product from the same company. If you click on the website you will see it is in Italian, this is Italian beer,  more specifically an Italian Amber Beer. While the beer was good it didn’t send us. And since I chose this, I can say there are better out there for half the price.

Harpoon Chocolate Stout: Harpoon Brewery — We drank this after dinner and before the Exit 13. Initially it could have been a contender, up until you actually sipped it. Bringing the glass to your lips you were presented with a strong chocolate aroma (nose if we were drinking wine) but after that it fell short. All agreed that there was something missing when you actually tasted it. That strong chocolate aroma disappeared as well as any supporting stout taste. There was no body to the beer; it seemed like water. Very disappointing after the initial smells.

Red’s Rye P.A.: Founders Brewing — Also a favorite of the group, this one was very smooth and flavorful. The hoppiness of the pale ale came through on the finish, but was not noticeable on the initial taste. Usually a hopped up ale will hit the palate initially and remain there, which may be why many do not like IPAs. Liked by both groups of beer aficionados.

Diece: Birrificio Bruton — Another from the Italians, home of the Romans and civilization. Beer has often been associated with the barbarians that overran Rome and the Italians more famous for their food and wine than beer. This beer bills itself as an Italian Abbey Ale, but the sign in the store had it listed as a barley wine style ale. Even the help proclaimed that they liked this barley wine style beer, with some adding that they usually don’t. It tasted more like an abbey ale than a barley wine style beer. Nothing wrong with it, but again we didn’t think it was worth the price. Someone did mention that the Italians weren’t known for beer.

Railbender Ale: Erie Brewing — A Scottish style ale worth your taste. Another favorite of both tasting parties, this one surpasses my old favorite — Belhaven Scottish Ale. Another candidate for the kegerator.

Exit 13 Chocolate Stout: Flying Fish Brewing Company — This is the sixth in a series of beer created by Flying Fish named after the exits on the New Jersey Turnpike (no link to this much maligned road, but it is easy enough to google). This was the last beer drunk in our tasting on both nights and by far the favorite in the stout class. A great aroma of chocolate as you drank as well as a full bodied chocolaty taste. I have sampled all of the exit series and this one ranks up high. The beers of the exits are based on the area, so exit 13 is Elizabeth, a port, so the stout is made with imported chocolate. See the website or get a bottle and read the label for the full story behind the beer.  The series is limited production. My local liquor store only had 1 case and sold out immediately. I had to travel to Jersey City to find it.

 

The Beers of Christmas Day

Different from Christmas Eve:

Bear Mountain Ale: Defiant Brewing Co. — The name of the brewery is catchy as well as the beer, but unfortunately we found the Bear Mountain Ale to be nothing to write a blog about. There was nothing wrong with this selection, it just didn’t have anything that knocked our palates for a loop. The label also proclaimed it to be an ale that “honors summer and Bear Mountain in New York.” This led us to believe it was a summer style ale, but I found it among beers set out for the holidays.

Burton Baton: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery — Wow! That’s the consensus. Wow! The label proclaims this “An oak aged Imperial India Pale Ale.” Definitely a winner with the Xmas Day crew, unfortunately we did not get to this one on Xmas Eve. According to the website this is an “Occasional Rarity” released 3 times per year. I will certainly keep it on my radar and hopefully get a sixtel for the kegerator.

Olde School: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery — This barley wine style ale boasts a 15% alcohol content. Most of the ales I have had with that level of alcohol have been hard to drink, usually leading me to say I’d rather have scotch on the rocks. For some reason Dogfish Head has been able to produce this high proof beverage without the side effects of increased alcohol (taste wise at least). While a barley wine taste might take some getting used to this one is easy on the palate, enjoyable and a break from the usual. The directions on the label are pretty interesting. Will post in a future installment.

Terrapin Coffee Oatmeal Stout: Terrapin Beer Co. — Very nice, brewed with Jittery Joe’s coffee, this oatmeal stout was well received. We drank this before the chocolate stout and although it held its own, did not surpass it. Certainly one to try again.

“Our Special Ale”: Anchor Brewing Company — This is a holiday seasonal brew put out each year for the past 36 years. The ale’s recipe changes every year. This is the first year I have tried it so I can’t relate it to past recipes. The beer was good, no one panned it, but there were others that were more impressive.

So there you have it boys and girls. Eight brews sampled on Christmas Eve and seven on Christmas Day. Only my son and I were present for both tastings. There were 6.5 members for Xmas Eve (one stopped after a few) and 4 of us on Xmas Day. It also seems like you drink less than normal since there is only so much to go around from 2 12 ounce bottles or one 22 ounce (remember this is a tasting not a binge). Then there are the reactions, the ratings and the talk about the beer itself. Makes for an interesting few hours.