The Bowdoin Orient

While most people dread the winter, beer enthusiasts embrace the colder months with open arms, aware of the delicious elixirs breweries save for this special time of year. Hats, boots and multiple layers are superfluous once you understand that the best cold-weather protection comes in liquid form.

Traditionally, American brewers make a spiced ale or malty lager in the six percent ABV (alcohol by volume) range for the winter. This style is commonly called a winter warmer. Though there are good examples of winter warmer available, most are not well-respected in the beer community, as they are either cloyingly sweet and spicy or bland and unoriginal.

In the past 10 years or so, breweries have realized that they are not married to winter beers that taste like Red Hots dipped in maple syrup and rolled in nutmeg. Nowadays American craft brewers are making the beers they and their customers quite simply love to drink when the weather gets nasty.

Winter beers are usually designed to be maltier, more filling beverages: they are the comfort food of the beer world. Common winter stylings include stouts—often of the imperial variety—malty Scotch ales, powerful barley wines and spiced beers. These are beverages that will warm the soul and satisfy the taste buds when you're curled up in front of the fireplace.

Instead of rambling on and on about some esoteric beer topic, I've decided to devote the bulk of my article to describing several excellent winter seasonals. Here are five diverse beers that American craft brewers have released in recent weeks. Keep your eyes peeled for even more tasty offerings that will come out in December, January and February.

Gritty McDuff's Christmas Ale

Gritty's is a Maine standby with brewpub locations in Freeport, Portland and Auburn. Though not all of their beers are incredible, all of them are solid, and Christmas Ale is one of their best. It is a malty ESB or Extra Special Bitter, an English beer style. Pouring a deep chestnut brown, this ale combines rich toasted malts with earthy hops to create a traditional, well-balanced ale. Buttery and toffee-like with an exceptionally smooth and full mouthfeel. A well-crafted English style ale.

Magic Hat Howl

I'm not always a huge fan of Magic Hat: they seem to rely on their image and marketing—which are creative and great—instead of the actual quality of their beers. However, the Vermont-based brewery impressed me with Howl, a new seasonal offering. Howl is a black lager likely modeled after German Schwarzbier. This is a style of dark beer that is actually light and drinkable, normally weighing in at under five percent ABV. Howl's flavor is malty and woody, suggesting the use of black patent malt.

Anchor Our Special Ale

Anchor Brewing Co. in San Francisco is oddly secretive about this beer. They claim the recipe and spice blend vary from year to year, but don't say how. The 2009 batch drinks almost like a dry porter. Our Special Ale pours a deep brown with ruby highlights. The flavor is nutty and subtly spicy, reminiscent of nutmeg, almond and hazelnut. A darker malt profile provides a richness and tanginess. Well-balanced and mellow.

Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale

Celebration Ale is one of the finest beers made by the iconic Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. in Chico, CA. Unlike most breweries, Sierra Nevada brews an outstanding IPA for the winter months. Celebration Ale is a reddish-colored elixir that showcases Chinook, Cascade and Centennial hop varieties. The hop character is citrusy, with piney sweetness. A robust malt profile balances this bitterness nicely, creating a smooth, savory IPA. One of the most sought-after winter seasonals.

Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout

Like so many other American breweries, Brooklyn Brewery saves its best for the winter months. Black Chocolate Stout is a Russian Imperial Stout, brewed in the tradition of the strong stouts that English brewers produced for tsarist Russia in the 1700s. The flavor is rich and complex, reminiscent of dark fruit, anise, bitter chocolate and dark roasted coffee. Heavy and chewy mouthfeel. At about 10 percent ABV, this stout is definitely a sipper. Pour into snifter for optimal drinking experience.

The Bowdoin Orient has created a promotion in partnership with Bootleggers Beverage Warehouse in Topsham, Maine. This week only, Bowdoin students can receive 10 percent off Gritty McDuff's Christmas Ale, Magic Hat Howl, Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale and Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout upon presentation of a Bowdoin ID.