This is the 20th year that the arrival of Samuel Smith’s Winter Welcome Ale has heralded shorter days and the end of the warm months – Winter Welcome was the first imported winter seasonal beer, first brought to the US in 1990.

Winter Welcome’s rich honey-amber color; creamy, complex flavor and firm strength; the incomparable Samuel Smith signature of great balance and refinement . . . these are reasons to look forward to fires, warm sweaters, and the cozy days of fall and winter.

In England, “winter warmers” — beers of deep richness and higher alcohol — have tempered winter’s chill for generations. Winter Welcome is the perfect beer to serve when friends get together to enjoy the season. It adds cheer served alone, but it is wonderful with roasted and smoked foods, hearty root vegetables, fresh pears and apples, even with cake and eggnog. Look for Winter Welcome starting soon after the first of October.

Sold in 18.7 oz. “Victorian Pints,” as well as 12 oz. 4-packs; ABV: 6.0%; IBU: 32; OG: 1.056

Samuel Smith’s Old Brewery, in Tadcaster, Yorkshire, was established in 1758. The hard crystalline brewing water is still drawn from the original well sunk 250 years ago, and the yeast strain has remained unchanged for over 100 years. All Samuel Smith ales are still fermented in stone “Yorkshire Squares,” the traditional open-topped vessels made of locally-quarried slate.

Merchant du Vin imports Samuel Smith from England; Traquair House from Scotland; Ayinger & the organic beers of Pinkus from Germany; and Zatec from the Czech Republic. Our offerings from Belgium include Lindemans lambics and Green’s gluten-free ales as well as the Trappist breweries of Orval, Westmalle, and Rochefort.