Winter Beer for Wetting your Whistle
In the depths of a classic British Winter - dark, early nights, huddled around the fire (or electric heater) - crisp, refreshing pale ales, lagers and IPAs just aren’t the ticket sometimes. Sure, many of these beers hit the spot all year round, but these winter months call for something at the other end of the spectrum: a tipple that’s rich, full of flavour, and sometimes a little bit decadent.
It’s times like these that dark beers really come into their own with the darker malted beers such as stouts and porters often taking precedence over the barrage of IPAs that have dominated the craft beer market in recent years. However, in this ever evolving industry in which we operate, tastes have begun to adapt and beer drinkers are starting to expand their horizons when it comes to styles.
2019 was truly the year of the sour beer, and this may well continue, but again, they aren’t necessarily the best winter beers. As a result, many brewers are shifting towards production styles that turn out seasonal specific brews, tailoring to the consumer’s changing tastes as the year goes on. Despite this, 2020 looks to continue with the rising popularity of dark beers offering tastes from the other side of the flavour wheel: chocolate, coffee, spices, dark fruit and less potent hop combinations.
Naturally, we couldn’t write about Winter beers without mentioning our flagship stout, Cambridge Black, which we believe to be ideal for such occasions. With a hefty proportion of roasted barley on the malt bill, our Black draws out plenty of dark, rich flavours with strong notes of coffee, followed by a touch of chocolate. These fairly powerful flavours are juxtaposed by light fruit undertones, allowing for an all-round balanced beer. But what really augments the luxuriousness of this brew is the added oats and wheat that make for a super-creamy mouthfeel; an attribute you just don’t get from most summery beers, which aim to quench thirst rather than offer a full-bodied, textural drinking experience.
Room for dessert?
Consequently, the industry has seen an influx of beers catering to this idea, particularly those designed as ‘dessert’ beers. These also happen to work pretty well as Winter beers due to their sweet flavourings and more often than not, higher ABVs. As Bloomberg states, now you can ‘have you cake and drink it, too’ with brews including Lorelei Extra Maple (Omnipollo), a porter heavily infused with maple syrup or Goose Island’s Bourbon County Barley Wine which is aged in Whisky barrels with added coffee too. Welsh Brewers, Tiny Rebel, who are experts in the field, even make a jam doughnut pale ale (Pump Up The Jam) as well as a marshmallow porter (Stay Puft). It seems that the thinking behind these styles of beers is that rather than knocking several back in session, as you might with a standard pale ale or lager on a summer’s day, these beers are designed to be savoured and relished; to be drank slowly so one can appreciate the depth and array of flavours that come from the unusual added ingredients and speciality malts used.
Equally, unless you’re a real seasoned drinker with an iron stomach, the high percentages of most of these beers means they can be difficult to finish off a whole pint or can. As a result, these are the kinds of beers that work well shared with friends so you can marvel at what is being brewed these days in the craft industry. I personally couldn’t drink a whole pint of 10.5% porter saturated in maple syrup anyway. Not only are the kinds of beers we are drinking changing, but the way we drink them is too; quality over quantity appears to be the mantra of many younger beer drinkers. NHS research proves this to be true with a 2018 investigation stating that ‘the drop in numbers of young people drinking suggested a shift in attitudes towards alcohol. They say this could be due to increased awareness of the health risks of alcohol, as well as changes in the way young people spend their leisure time.’
But if you’re looking for something a little more unusual to get your tastebuds stuck into, our Obsidian Black IPA is what you’re looking for. Naturally, as a Black IPA, it includes those dark, roasty flavours that come from using malts such as roasted barley and one of our speciality favourites, Carafa Spezial, yet it is balanced out by fairly powerful hoppiness, courtesy of lots of mosaic during the late hop. So if you’re after that dark beer fix with an edge to it, our enigmatic Obsidian is just the ticket: dark and coffee-like, yet super green and floral too for those serious hopheads out there. This particular style has risen in popularity recently, probably due to the fact that it offers a combination of the opposite ends of the beer flavour spectrum. On paper, these flavours shouldn’t really work together, but it is their juxtaposition that gives a unique and confusingly pleasing drinking experience.
Belgian quaffable
However, if dark malted beers in the stout and porter sector just aren’t your thing, there are other choices when it comes to winter beers. This is where you have to go continental. For example, think about the huge array of quality beers that come out of Belgium, the spiritual home of brewing. Again, many of these Belgian style beers are suitable all year round, but the majority of them fulfil our criteria for what we might consider a ‘winter beer’: they are often high percentage, they often produce stronger, more distinct flavours and they aren’t always ‘sessionable’ beers - they are to be savoured and appreciated. Belgian beers are famed for their unique flavours ranging from clove to banana, among many other spices and fruits and this is mainly due to the yeast strains that are typically utilised in Belgian brewing.
Forget your Stella and Jupiler, this isn’t what we’re talking about - think about those Belgian dubbels, tripels and even quadrupels that get increasingly strong in ABV, whilst also getting more potent in flavour and aroma. They offer rich, deep, malty flavours, rather than juicy, hoppy ones (as found in modern IPAs and pales), sometimes providing sweet and decadent notes of honey, herbs and spices without the need for dark, roasted malts. Most beers falling under these styles tend to be amber in colour rather than the dark, opaque shades we associate with stouts and porters. For some beer drinkers, this is enough to put them off trying one and so this is where Belgian beer provides a more approachable alternative.
As a result, we want to create a sort of ‘winter beer manifesto’ so you know what to look out for when choosing your tipple for a cold evening. Consider these points below:
Winter Beer manifesto
Dark malted beers provide, warm, roasted flavours perfect for winter. Mainly exhibited within stouts and porters
High percentage beers might leave you feeling a little wavy, but they are often sweet and decadent, as per many Belgian and ‘dessert’ style beers
Look for flavours such as spice, candied fruit, coffee, chocolate - basically anything that sounds rich and luxurious
Don’t always be put off by colour (a good rule to follow when it comes to beer in general)
Texture plays a big part- thick, full bodied beers can be the way to go for warming your beery soul from the inside
Savour these beers and take time to appreciate their complexity and what has gone into the brew
Treat yourself :)
If there is anything else you think we should add to our winter beer manifesto, please let us know - we’d love to hear your thoughts and experiences!