A seasonal beer is a beer that is typically brewed during or for a particular season, holiday or festival period. [1] [2] Many breweries and microbreweries produce seasonal beers. Seasonal beers may be produced when fresh ingredients are available during various seasons, per climatic conditions during the time of the year, and also as a tradition. [1] [3] Furthermore, seasonal beer is produced based upon seasons, holidays, festivals and events.
Lambic has been described as a seasonal beer that is prepared during the winter for consumption in spring and summer months. [4] Traditionally, the preparation of lambic includes leaving the wort mixture outside overnight to absorb wild yeasts in the air. [4] It is also prepared with beer yeast for fermentation and bacteria such as lactobacillus and acetobacter for aging, after which time during the warmer spring and summer seasons, the wild yeasts and souring bacteria in the mix predominantly influence the final product's flavor and characteristics. [4] They are aged in wooden barrels or stainless steel tanks. [4] Lambics are typically liberally hopped as a preservative to control bacteria levels, however the hops are usually aged as to not add too much bitterness. [4] Some varieties are aged for years. [4] They typically have a slight sweetness, along with a distinct sourness. [4]
Summer seasonal beers are typically formulated for warmer weather, and are typically light-bodied. [5] They may have citrus or fruity flavor, which may be accented with the use of honey, brewing spices and floral hops. [5] Many summer seasonal beers are ales and wheat ales. [5]
Saison (literally the French translation of season) has been described as a summer seasonal beer. [6] [7] As a beer style, the saison originated from ales brewed during the cooler and less active months in farmhouses in Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium, and then stored for drinking by the farm workers during the summer months. [8] General characteristics include a fruity flavor and smell, light or bitter hoppiness, pale orange body, thick head, and a light- to medium-body. [7]
Autumn seasonal beers may incorporate the use of spices such as cinnamon and nutmeg, which serves to associate the season with the beer's flavor, or to create a "frame of reference unique to that season". [3]
In Germany and the United States, Oktoberfestbier or Märzen, originally produced for the Oktoberfest celebrations held in Munich, are commonly released throughout September and October. Beers served at modern Oktoberfests tend to be lighter lagers, while traditional recipes are amber-colored, dry, and malty.
Bière de Garde (English: "beer for keeping") is a seasonal beer that is traditionally brewed in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France. [9] [10] It is brewed in Autumn, after which it is stored during the winter, to be consumed during the next year. [9] Bière de Garde was originally brewed in farmhouses in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region. [9] Varieties of Bière de Garde are produced by some American craft brewers. [9] Some of these American varieties have a high alcohol by volume content, ranging from 7-9%. [9]
Pumpkin ale is often brewed as an autumn seasonal beer. Well-known examples include Saint Arnold's Pumpkinator, Shipyard's Pumpkinhead, and Schlafly's Pumpkin Ale. [11]
Bock was traditionally produced during winter for consumption during either winter or Lent and Easter festivals in the spring. [12]
Winter warmers are a type of winter seasonal beer. [13] [14] [15] These include old ales and mild ales that have been brewed during the winter months. [15] Prior to the times of the Industrial Revolution in the mid-eighteenth century in England, some winter warmers were aged in barrels for months, and even years, which added to their flavor profile. [15] The barrels were typically made from oak. [14] During this time, tannins from the wooden barrels served to add flavor notes to winter warmers, and wild yeasts added a mild sour flavor. [15] Winter warmers also sometimes have spices added for additional flavor and tend to be full-bodied, darker, and malt-driven styles. [15] [16]
Wassail-style beer is sometimes described or categorized as a winter warmer. [17]
Seasonal beers produced for Thanksgiving and Christmas include pumpkin ale and gingerbread-flavored beer. [3] Holiday spiced beers may also be brewed with orange zest to add flavor. [3]
Christmas beer is seasonal beer brewed for consumption during Christmas or the winter in a number of countries. [18] Some varieties of Christmas beer may be strong [19] and spiced with a variety of unusual ingredients. Spices used in Christmas beer varieties includes allspice, cardamom, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg and star anise. [20] Christmas beers are sometimes referred to as winter warmers. [18]
The style of beer dates back to at least 2,000 years, when it was produced to celebrate the Saturnalia during winter. [18] This tradition was carried on through and beyond the Middle Ages by monks who would produce beer for the Christmas season. [18]
Some seasonal beers are produced for the Oktoberfest festival. [3] [21] Oktoberfest seasonal beers include those named and labeled as "Oktoberfest" (e.g. Oktoberfestbiers), ales, spiced ales, pumpkin ales, and others. [21] Oktoberfestbiers are the beers that have been served at the festival since 1818, and are supplied by six breweries: Spaten, Löwenbräu, Augustiner-Bräu, Hofbräu-München, Paulaner and Hacker-Pschorr. [22]
Pale ale is a golden to amber coloured beer style brewed with pale malt. The term first appeared in England around 1703 for beers made from malts dried with high-carbon coke, which resulted in a lighter colour than other beers popular at that time. Different brewing practices and hop quantities have resulted in a range of tastes and strengths within the pale ale family.
Wheat beer is a top-fermented beer which is brewed with a large proportion of wheat relative to the amount of malted barley. The two main varieties are German Weizenbier and Belgian witbier; other types include Lambic, Berliner Weisse, and Gose.
Pale lager is a very pale-to-golden-colored lager beer with a well-attenuated body and a varying degree of noble hop bitterness.
Old ale is a form of strong ale. The term is commonly applied to dark, malty beers in England, generally above 5% ABV, and also to dark ales of any strength in Australia. It is sometimes associated with stock ale or, archaically, keeping ale, in which the beer is held at the brewery. In modern times, the line has blurred between Old Ale and Barley wine.
Spruce beer is a beverage flavored with the buds, needles, or essence of spruce trees. Spruce beer can refer to either alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages.
Victory Brewing Company (Victory) is a brewery founded in 1996 in Downingtown, Pennsylvania, United States. The main brands are HopDevil, Prima Pils, Headwaters Pale Ale, Golden Monkey, DirtWolf, and Storm King, which are distributed in 34 states and nine countries. Victory Brewing is located at 420 Acorn Lane Downingtown, Pennsylvania 19335.
The Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company, doing business as Leinenkugel's, is an American beer maker based in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. Leinenkugel was historically distributed only in the Upper Midwest, but is now available throughout all 50 states. The company is the seventh oldest brewery in the United States, and the oldest business in Chippewa Falls. It is a subsidiary of Molson Coors. It produces both traditional beers, including lagers and ales, as well as a popular line of shandys, which are a mixture of beer with fruit juices, such as lemonade.
Beer in Belgium includes pale ales, lambics, Flemish red ales, sour brown ales, strong ales and stouts. In 2018, there were 304 active breweries in Belgium, including international companies, such as AB InBev, and traditional breweries including Trappist monasteries. On average, Belgians drink 68 liters of beer each year, down from around 200 each year in 1900. Most beers are bought or served in bottles, rather than cans, and almost every beer has its own branded, sometimes uniquely shaped, glass. In 2016, UNESCO inscribed Belgian beer culture on their list of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity.
Brewery Ommegang is a brewery located near Cooperstown, New York, United States, that specializes in Belgian-style ales.
Beer styles differentiate and categorise beers by colour, flavour, strength, ingredients, production method, recipe, history, or origin.
Blue Moon Belgian White is a Belgian-style witbier brewed by MillerCoors under the name the Blue Moon Brewing Co. It was launched in 1995, and was originally brewed in Golden, Colorado.
Saison is a pale ale that is highly carbonated, fruity, spicy, and often bottle conditioned. It was historically brewed with low alcohol levels, but modern productions of the style have moderate to high levels of alcohol. Along with several other varieties, it is generally classified as a farmhouse ale.
Rahr and Sons Brewing Company is a brewery in Fort Worth, Texas. USA, owned by Fritz and Erin Rahr. Since opening in 2004 Rahr has released numerous beers. Their core line up is made up of 6 year round beers, including their newest year round release, Rahr’s Original. Along with these they release 4 seasonals, and several specialty beers throughout the year. Rahr is currently distributed in most of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Tennessee, Missouri, Arkansas and Nebraska.
Brasserie Thiriez is a small craft brewery located in Esquelbecq, a town in the Arrondissement of Dunkirk in the Nord département, in the Hauts-de-France région of France, quite close to the Belgian border. It is situated on the grounds that formerly housed the Poitevin farm brewery, which was active and served the local area until 1945. The current brewery was founded in 1996 by Daniel Thiriez, who had become interested in homebrewing as a college student, and later left his career as a "human resources professional for a large supermarket chain" in the interest of reviving the tradition of the small village brewery. It exports beers in Europe, and the USA.
Triangle Brewing Co. (TBC) was a microbrewery owned and operated entirely by business partners Rick "the Brewer" Tufts and Andy "the Bloke" Miller who, in 2005, resettled in Durham, North Carolina from Connecticut. Andy Miller had extensive local restaurant management experience, and Rick Tufts apprenticed at Flying Fish Brewing Company and was an avid homebrewer long before founding a new brewery. TBC began selling beer on July 4, 2007 and was the only microbrewery in Durham. The arrival of a microbrewery in Durham is arguably part of the current downtown art, building, and cultural Renaissance.
Captain Lawrence Brewing Company is a craft brewery located in Elmsford, New York. The brewery is owned and run by head brewer Scott Vaccaro. Vaccaro, a homebrewer since 1995, trained in brewing science at UC Davis.
Avery Brewing Company is a regional brewery located in Boulder, Colorado, founded in 1993. The brewery produces year round beers as well as seasonal beers, some of which have received praise from brewing competitions and festivals such as White Rascal Belgian-Style White Ale at the 2015 Great American Beer Festival. In 2017, Spain-based Mahou-San Miguel Group acquired a 30% stake in Avery. In 2019, Avery sold another 40% stake to Mahou-San Miguel Group and Founders Brewing Company.
Most beer sold in France is pilsner lager, mass-produced by major breweries which control over 90% of the market, although there are also traditional beer styles, such as top-fermented Bière de Garde, and a number of microbreweries.
Christmas beer is a seasonal beer brewed for consumption at Christmas. They are usually strong and spiced with a variety of ingredients including cinnamon, orange peel, cloves and vanilla.
Pumpkin ale is a popular style of beer in the United States. Pumpkin ale may be produced using pumpkin flesh in combination with malt or other more typical beer grains as a portion of the mash bill, contributing fermentable sugars to the wort. It may also be produced by adding natural or artificial flavor to a finished beer. Spice flavor may be added to evoke the flavor of pumpkin pie, a popular American wintertime dessert.