Posted on 15/12/21
Oli Meade
There’s just one week left to stock up on glorious Christmas beer.
In need of a few tips?
Cause if so, read on – these are the most exciting beers just in this week!
Northern Monk’s OFS Series has hit a country we’ve all been waiting for – Scotland! And that naturally means whisky barrel-aged goodness in BA Wee Heavy.
This is black as night, full of rich, dark, malty character, and comes with lots of peaty smokiness to top things off.
It’s 11%, so perffect for sharesies, ideally over copious amounts of turkey stuffing.
There’s a few new wicked BBNo’s just in too, and for the time of year 08 Stout: Chocolate & Orange is the stand out bestest.
They might not be able to say it for legal reasons but I will: this is a Terry’s Chcolate Orange in silky velvet stout form!
Cacao nibs, lactose and orange zest all go into this one, and you get smooth milk chocolate with subtle orange as you sip.
Plus, at just £3.75 a can, it’s a massive bargain!
Oh, and there’s new Christmasy Tartarus stuff just in too!
Marshmallow Abaddon Russian Imperial Stout is a 17% BEAST made with no fewer than 15 different malts. It’s complex, it’s rich, it’s decadent, it’s brilliant.
(Meanwhile, King Arthur Barley Wine is all dark chocolate topped with sticky marmalade and chewy currants. It’s a right, cakey treat.)
If there’s ever a right time for a TIPA then it’s at Christmas, and if you’re going to go ahead and bust open a boozy TIPA then you may as well be having one by Pentrich, who are up there with the best when it comes to big, boozy, hop-forward deliciousness.
December Dreaming TIPA is the latest of the brilliant lot, and it’s exactly what you want in a TIPA: thick, rich, fruity and juicy.
Speaking of those who know what they’re doing with hops, we’ve just taken in DEYA’s The Results Are In DIPA, and this really showcases what DEYA are all about.
It all starts with a nice, clean malt base, which quickly becomes an orange and pineapple medley thanks to choice hops Azacca and Idaho 7, which DEYA pack in in spades for another hazy fruit-bomb that caps off another great year for one of the finest breweries on the planet.
Seriously, we’re lucky to have these guys right here in the UK – thank you DEYA!
Beak aren’t as well known as DEYA, but for my money their hoppy stuff matches that of anyone in the UK – and Wool DIPA is yet another perfect example of what the Lewes brewery can do.
Beak brews are pretty much always soft and fluffy, and this is no different, with notes of squishy overripe mango and rum punch, and sweet pavlova to finish. Yeeess!
Breaking and very important new: this week, S43 released three Quality Street stouts!
There’s the Strawberry Delight Cream Pastry Stout, into which the brewery swirl bucketloads strawberry puree and creamy layers of lactose to recreate one of my favourite chocolates of all time.
There’s also the Toffee Penny – here, S43 dunked a whole load of toffee into their fermenters to dial up the chewy, fudgey, toffee notes within… and unlike the annoying sweets, there’s no danger of this glueing your mouth shut.
My favourite though? It’s The Purple One! Think gooey caramel on top of crunchy roasted hazelnut on top of chocolate malts, all on repeat. S43 are always good value too – get in on this Christmas crop!
I obviously can’t let a week pass without mentioning a sour, and I can’t think of a better sour to mention right now than Overtone’s Ruby Jewel Pomegranate, Raspberry & Cranberry Berliner Weisse.
You need some palate-cleansing refreshment sometimes at Christmas – and this is it!
Other darks just to drop include Box Car’s Double Dark Mild (their mad-popular Dark Mild, amped up) and their Dark Harvest Robust Porter.
Pressure Drop’s Velvet National Honeycomb, Vanilla & Chocolate Imperial Milk Stout is bang on trend. Their American Brown Ale is a subtle, welcome curveball.
There’s a new Maple Scotch Ale from Pentrich, Milk Chocolate by Overtone is one to pair with your selection box, and you may as well add in Brew York’s Imperial S’more Tonkoko Milk Stout while you’re at it.
Would it be wrong to have Left Handed Giant’s Solitude Vanilla Hazelnut & Coffee Milk Stout on Christmas morning?!
As well as their Chocolate Orange Stout, BBNo have weighed in with a ton of their lovely hoppy brews, including 05 India Pale Ale: Citra, Simcoe & Centennial, Boxcar collab 21 Pale Ale: Amarillo & Simcoe and more of their famous 55 DIPA: CBD Infused DIPA.
Pressure Drop’s India Rubber Ball Blood Orange IPA works nicely in December, Left Handed Giant have a lovely GF Citra & Amarillo Pale Alefor those who want to reserve their gluten quota for cakes and whatnot, Track’s Hikari IPA is all gooseberry and orange, and Boxcar’s Mycology DDH IPA is all apricot and peach – and pours an epic colour too.
And finally, Howling Hops are out with a couple of little treats in West-Coast style Flipper League DDH Pale and also Flipside DDH Pale Ale.
I really hope you get to enjoy some of these wicked new beers this Christmas. Last postage is 22nd December… but I’d recommend getting an order in earlier to guarantee its arrival!
Happy drinking!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
Step 1
We trawl the globe tasting great beer
