England is the source of the Advent beer pick for today, and we’re hearkening back to one of the original winter warmers from the iconic Samuel Smith’s brewery—Winter Welcome Ale.

Winter Welcome Ale is a strong (by English ale standards) brew with 6% ABV and is a classic of the style, the type of which many others are based on. The label artwork changes each year as well. The description says:

This seasonal beer is a limited edition brewed for the short days and long nights of winter. The full body resulting from fermentation in ‘stone Yorkshire squares’ and the luxurious malt character, which will appeal to a broad range of drinkers, is balanced against whole-dried Fuggle and Golding hops with nuances and complexities that should be contemplated before an open fire.

Here in the U.S., Merchant du Vin imports the Samuel Smith’s beers, and has been since 1990; in fact, MdV says it was “the first imported winter seasonal beer” (which I can’t verify but seems plausible).

Samuel Smith’s Tadcaster-based Old Brewery dates to 1758 and leans heavily on tradition in crafting its beer—for instance, the Yorkshire squares are open-topped stone fermentation vessels used to ferment nearly all of the brewery’s beers, and Smith’s is one of the few British breweries still using them. In addition to Winter Welcome, the company offers a lineup of other styles now considered classics.

But Winter Welcome Ale is the one to toast in the holidays and the changing of the seasons. Cheers!

Find Samuel Smith’s Winter Welcome Ale on:

• Merchant du Vin Beer Finder
• Untappd
• BeerAdvocate
• RateBeer
• Facebook

Image credits: Samuel Smith’s Facebook page and press material.