The Brew Site
For today’s Advent beer we travel to the land down under, to Victoria, Australia to visit Bridge Road Brewers and its seasonal treat—Magical Christmas Pavlova Unicorn. It’s a fruited cream ale that I have to admit that I picked because I liked the name, although since it’s summer in Australia … Continue reading
Throughout the years of doing this Beer Advent Calendar, there has only been one constant: Anchor Brewing Christmas Ale (also called Our Special Ale, and Merry Christmas & Happy New Year). It’s a nod both to the longevity of this brew as well as acknowledgement of it as an American … Continue reading
Today’s Advent beer hails from Le Roeulx, Belgium, and the Brasserie St-Feuillien, which brews a range of abbey-styled beers, saisons, and others, including its popular Christmas ale, Cuvée de Noël. It’s a strong, dark ale with 9% alcohol by volume first introduced in 1969, one of the first Christmas beers … Continue reading
Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol was published on this date in 1843, which tells the tale of misbegotten elderly miser Ebenezer Scrooge who is visited by three spirits of Christmas, an experience which transforms him into a kinder, gentler man. What better beer to choose for today’s Advent reveal than … Continue reading
On this day in 1966, the television special How the Grinch Stole Christmas! first aired, based on the 1957 children’s book by Dr. Seuss. Like Charlie Brown, Rudolph, and a few others, the animated special is considered a holiday classic, so in honor of that debut, today’s Advent beer celebrates … Continue reading
Beer by monks—and you don’t even have to travel to Belgium! Today’s Advent beer comes to us from the first Trappist brewery in America, Spencer Brewery in Massachusetts: Trappist Holiday Ale. This Belgian-styled strong dark ale is 9% alcohol by volume, and the brewery says, “Mahogany in color, wholesome in … Continue reading
Cider! In recent years I’ve been featuring cider on the Beer Advent Calendar since cider is a natural fit into the beer world, even as it straddles the line between beer and wine. This year I set out to include it again and discovered BlackBird Cider Works of New York, … Continue reading
When it comes to beer in Denmark, most of us are familiar with the big names—Carlsberg, Tuborg, Mikkeller—so naturally for today’s Advent beer I’ve selected one from none of those. Instead, we visit Hancock Bryggerierne in Skive, for its holiday lager, Merry Christmas. Merry Christmas is brewed with Saaz hops … Continue reading
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 … Continue reading
For today’s Advent beer pick let’s drop in to St. Louis, Missouri, to visit Perennial Artisan Ales, and scare up a bottle of its Belgian-inspired bière de Noël, a strong dark ale with 10% alcohol by volume, Fête de Noël. It’s a “Christmas party” of a brew that just begs … Continue reading