During the winter holidays many people enjoy beers that have a higher alcohol content and more richness. Many breweries produce unique seasonal drinks. They may be darker, stronger, spicier and more complex than their normal beers.
What makes a Winter Beer – also known as a Winter Warmer – special? They usually include seasonal spices, special sugars and other ingredients that remind you of the holidays. These beers are generally stronger and darker. They also have a rich body with a warming finish to heat you up in the cold winter season.
Many interpretations are possible when it comes to appearance, taste and aroma. Therefore the style has no mandatory specifications. Most of the time Christmas beers are clear, dark, sweet and complex.
Grain bill
| Variety | Quantity | Quantity | Colour EBC | Colour ºL | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swaen Ale | 4 kg | 7.5 lb | 7 | 2.6 | 64% |
| Swaen Munich Dark | 1 kg | 1.1 lb | 4 | 1.5 | 16% |
| Swaen Melany | 0.3 kg | 1.1 lb | 3 | 1.1 | 5% |
| Gold Swaen Aroma | 0.3 kg | 0.66 lb | 100 | 38 | 5% |
| Black Swaen Barley | 0.15 kg | 0.66 lb | 1100 | 415 | 2% |
| Dark candy sugar | 0.5 kg | 0.22 lb | 8% |
The majority of your grist should be an Ale style malt, with a possilbe addition of a darker base malt for some extra body. We wanted the sweetness of Melany, complemented by a darker caramel malt. Feel free to replace them by a mid-dark caramel malt. For the colour and roasty flavourwe add some roasted barley. We recommend a single step mash at the higher end (70⁰C / 178⁰F) to have some residual sugars. Many brewers add flavorful sugars as well, like honey, molasses, candy sugar, brown sugar, maple syrup, etc.
Hops and spices
| Variety | Quantity | Quantity | Duration | Alpha acid | IBU |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Brewer | 28 g | 1 oz | 60 min. | 7.5% | 26 |
Hops are primarily for bittering. We advise traditional English varieties or noble hops. There is no Christmas beer without seasonal spices, most often allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, ginger or orange peels, but any mixture is possible. Feel free to experiment. We recommend to add them 5-10 minutes before the flame out.
Yeast
Although some dark strong lagers exist in this style, an ale yeast can enhance the fruity, sweet aromas and spices much more. We would recommend to use a Belgian style yeast. In order to increase estery fruitiness, keep temperature above 22°C / 72°F. Stronger beers may need to be aged for months or even years.
Dry examples: Fermentis Safale T-58 or Mangrove Jack M47 Belgian Abbey.
Liquid examples: Whitelabs WLP002 English Ale or Wyeast 1214 Belgian Abbey.
Results
| Batch size | 19 L / 5 gallon |
| Efficiency | 75% |
| Original gravity | 1072 |
| Final gravity | 1015 |
| Colour EBC | 51 |
| Colour Lovibond | 20 |
| IBU | 26 |
| ABV % | 7.5 |
| Carbonation | 2.4 |
| pH | 5.1 |
Appearance
Deep brown colour, with creamy foam.
Taste profile
Sweet maltiness, with seasonal spices.
Food pairing
Desserts and spicy meals.