Eggnog, bourbon and creamy liqueurs like Bailey's tend to steal most of the spotlight this time of year. But beer lovers know that the holidays are time for them to celebrate, too.
Like the deluge of delightfully refreshing summer beers that hit the shelves each year, winter is when breweries roll out their Christmas ales and spiced seasonal brews. The labels and names are jolly, the alcohol percentages are double-digits (or darn close) and all are guaranteed to give you a warm and toasty feeling.
Here are some of the best to sip in 2017:
Great Lakes Christmas Ale
With subtle notes of cinnamon, honey and ginger, the golden-colored Great Lakes Brewing Company's Christmas Ale is synonymous with Christmas in Cleveland. This beer's annual arrival on the shelves is heralded as the official beginning of the season and the start of very merry nights out on the town.
This beer is so beloved that there are stories of Ohioans stashing away bottles each December in order to bust them out throughout the year-when they need a little Christmas cheer.
Hardywood Christmas Morning
What do you get when you take a gingerbread-flavored imperial milk stout and condition it so it picks up flavors of locally roasted coffee beans? Christmas morning in a bottle, that's what.
Perennial Abraxas
While this acclaimed St. Louis brewery doesn't use any jolly jargon in the name of this beer, there's no doubt that Abraxas from Perennial Artisan Ales is as celebratory as they come.
This dark imperial stout is only available seasonally and combines ancho chili peppers, vanilla beans, cinnamon sticks and cacao nibs for toasty tasting notes.
Anchor Christmas Ale
Arguably the one that started it all, San Francisco's venerable Anchor Brewing has been putting out their Christmas Ale every winter since 1975. The recipe of the beer and the type of tree on the label change every year, with 2017's version having a St. Lucia Fir on the outside of the bottle and flavors of honey, toffee, cacao and roasted nuts inside.
Prairie Christmas Bomb
What's the best way to combat a windy and cold December night in Oklahoma? WIth a bottle of Prairie Artisan Ales' Christmas Bomb, a cinnamon, coffee and vanilla-flavored stout that comes in at 13% ABV.
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