Winter Beer Roundup

Here are my thoughts on some of the Winter Beers on the market this season. I've had a random sampling of some of this year's offerings over the last several weeks. So here are some brief comments in no particular order:

Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale - Fruity. If you like fruity beer you should like this beer...because it is really fruity.

Young's Winter Warmer - Wow. They should make you sign a waiver before drinking this! Not bad actually...but may cause you to (mistakenly) believe that you can beat any challengers in a game of darts.

New Belgium's 2 Degrees Below - Spicy and Fruity. Contrary to its name the room temperature seemed to rise at least 20 degrees after drinking. Did I mention this is a spicy beer?

Samuel Adam's Winter Lager - Sweet beer. A little bit spicey. Nice taste. Pretty good over all.

Samuel Smith's Winter Welcome - Nice taste. Creamy and a little bit sweet. Overall is a pretty good beer.

Saint Arnold Christmas Ale - I was fortunate enough to try the cask conditioned version of this ale down at the Duck. This is really a great beer! If you are in the Houston area you MUST try the cask version. The only two places in town that I know have it are the Mucky Duck and the Ginger Man. The regular bottled version is more widely available. Has a great taste that is the perfect mix of spicey and sweet. One of the best tasting beers I have ever had! Well worth the extra cost.

Anchor Brewing Christmas Ale - The old traditional favorite. Very good ale. Very sweet with just the right amount of spice. Another excellent offering from the folks at Anchor.

and the winner is...

Saint Arnold Christmas Ale (Cask Conditioned) - Just one more reason to live in Houston. : )