Tag: Seasonal Beer

Is the “seasonal beer” still relevant in a marketplace where a record number of new brands and styles are available to consumers year-round?

The character on Muskoka Brewery’s Double Chocolate Cranberry Stout label has taken on a life of its own, inspiring look-alike and beard-growing contests at the Ontario brewery.

Three Boys Brewery produces a lineup described as “tradition with a Kiwi twist,” modifying classic recipes to meld with New Zealand tastes and locally available ingredients.

As hop farm acreage swells beyond the Pacific Northwest, more breweries showcase local hops in seasonal beers.

In Beer for All Seasons, Randy Mosher reminds us that March isn’t the only month connected to the cyclical rhythm of beer throughout the year.

No, Sommerbier and Winterbier are not seasonal specials. At least not in the sense you’re thinking. They’re two of the earliest lager styles, now almost completely forgotten, though traces of them remain.

Every season, we see fall beers on the shelves in June and winter ales in September. It sounds ridiculous, and kind of is, but there’s reason behind the madness.

Whether it’s a Fourth of July party or just a regular summer bash, it’s a great time to crack into seafood and beers. Summer beers pair perfectly with seafood, and fresh seasonal produce like corn and watermelon.

Whether you love or hate Halloween, you’re doubtless going to be asked to participate in some way. Anyone can find something to like about the holiday, no matter how opposed you may think you are. Here’s a party formula that no one can resist: fun, scary movies and very good beer.

Supplanted by seasonal brands, endangered by the race for the holy one-off grail, and lost in the hunt for more hops, these respected and balanced brands look increasingly out of place in the wider world of craft beer.

Many brewers put a lot into a beer that misses the mark because the temperatures changed during fermentation or it wasn’t given enough time to ferment and age. To prevent the heartbreak of releasing a beer before its time or too late, Christian Lavender created The Home Brewing Calendar.

Here’s a solution for the skeptical fall pumpkin beer party-pooper. Host a soirée with a handful of craft pumpkin brews. Cook up a variety of dishes that focus on just that winter squash, and have some other fun, seasonal activities to pair it all with.

Will Straub’s returnable bottles get canned?; Independent Brewers United acquired by North American Breweries; no Christmas this year for Goose Island; and Sierra Nevada teaming up with Trappist monks.

Are seasonal beers being released too early?

As craft brewers move beyond their core portfolios and venture into seasonals, special releases, large formats, private labels, cans and distribution beyond their local areas, is it possible to have too many beer options?

In the absence of technological obstacles, such as sufficient cooling resources, it’s more than a touch peculiar that we can’t enjoy year-round examples of many classic beer styles, some of which are lager beers.

For craft brewers tempted to focus their attention on high-priced, limited-edition beers that appeal to a tiny fraction of beer lovers, it’s telling that the original craft brewer, Anchor Brewing, has not embraced the high-alcohol and hop-bomb craze.

A look at the origins and resurgence of Pumpkin Ale, as the spiced seasonal beer returns to shelves once again.

Spiced holiday brews have a long, flavorful history. Rather than a perversion, Spiced Ale is the original beer.

Just as leaves fall from trees every autumn, beer enthusiasts drop everything for pumpkin ales. To celebrate the cornucopia of harvest, we’ll look at how to brew typical and atypical examples of the style.

Samichlaus, widely regarded as the world’s strongest lager at 14 percent ABV, may very well be the original Extreme Beer.