Walking in a Winter Warmer Wonderland

“I’ll have a Wassail,” are words you hardly hear spoken at a bar, at least in America. 

This spiced and malty beer was born in England. (Pronounced “Whoss-al,” and translates to ‘be well’;’ If only all beer name origins were that polite - leave it to the British to be nice even when drinking).

Named after the british tradition of Wassailing which involves singing and drinking to the prosperity and good harvest of apple trees. The idea is to give life to the trees, and scare away any looming dark spirits. 

To me this sounds fabulous. I’ll indeed have my Wassail with a side of witchcraft, bartender!

Anyways, enough about me. Let's get back to our topic..

It wasn’t just the English that loved a rich and malty brew. The Scandinavian countries of Denmark, Sweden and Norway actually made these beers a mandatory part of their holiday “Jul” or Yule celebrations. They would offer these dark beers to the Norse Gods as part of their Viking traditions. 

The English born Wassails are the precursor to the more American version we call a Winter Warmer. These beer styles are amber / brown to almost black in color. Moderate to high ABV ranging from 5.5-8%. 

What makes these styles unique is the use of baking spices like clove, cinnamon and nutmeg used commonly in the more traditional English versions. (The Reinheitsgebot Gods are turning in their graves). 

The American version often gets their “spice” flavor and aroma from hops; Kent Goldings, Chinook or Centennial would be nice hops options. 

Drinkers are meant to feel a warming effect from the slightly higher alcohol which makes these beers the perfect counterpart to low temperatures. 

Dropping just in time for the holidays, these are also the perfect social lubricant to deal with Uncle Randall’s political rants.

Winter Warmers are sort of a vague beer style since they are also called Christmas beers or Holiday ales. They really just encompass non-porter styles that are also dark, often spiced, and released in the Winter. You can, however, certainly have a spiced Stout and call it a Winter Warmer though. It’s the spice that gives it the separate category. Plus, the beer police are pretty relaxed this time of year.

I once had a “Holiday IPA” from a great brewery in San Antonio. While the beer was nice, I felt this was cheating since it was “spiced” with hops, and Ipas always have a heavy dose of hops. Plus, Ipas are not a dark beer style.

But, I get it; put holiday on anything this time of year and it will sell.

I spoke with Jarrod Szydlowski, head brewer at Wanderlinger Brewing Co in Chattanooga, TN to get his thoughts on brewing this seasonal style. 

“From a brewer’s perspective, there is a lot of possibility in designing a winter warmer because of the sheer diversity of ingredients to combine. For example, cinnamon sticks contain a fair amount of tannins which can lend an unpleasant, medicinal bitterness to a beer if they are used in excess, boiled too long or if the beer isn’t conditioned properly. 

Sourcing is also a major consideration when using spices. 

The quality and strength of spices can vary considerably from one supplier to the next. To control for such variability, brewers often make extracts or concentrated teas from spices and flavor additions so that they can dose a beer incrementally.”

Fa la la la laaaaa let’s talk about glassware and food pairings.

Glassware is important, but not the most important thing in my opinion, but it's fun, and can certainly enhance any beer style. 

I’d recommend a goblet or a snifter for your higher alcohol and / or barrel aged Winter Warmers. The stem will look elegant at the holiday table next to the wine snobs. 

Plus, you can swirl to open up the malt profile therefore helping balance the alcohol, and open up common vanilla aromas from the barrel.

A nonic pint is suitable for the lower abv choices. The protruding top enhances aroma, and offers better head retention.

As far as food pairings, I’ll be honest a spiced beer would not be my top choice with food. You can definitely go like for like with a pumpkin pie, and match the sweet spiciness of the two. 

I would also recommend it with a fruit pie.

For the main course a tenderloin or roast beef would pair well. I would avoid it with a salty ham though. Save your bitter beers for salt as the salt will neutralize bitterness. It will likely over power turkey as well. Stick with savory meats for a rich Winter Warmer.

For drinkers wondering how to select a good Winter Warmer at the bottleshop without the benefit of sampling, Jarrod suggests finding an established brewery that has been able to improve the recipe over time (not assuming first time releases won’t work out palatable of course). 

Also, noting ​​if the brewery discloses the origin of their ingredients. Avoiding styles that seem “too busy” could decrease the margin for error as well. 

So, my beer friends, may your winter be warmer with this delightful approach to darker beer styles during the cold months. Stay merry, drink up, and remember life’s too short to drink crap beer. 

Cheers!

Published in Hugging The Bar