Cold, frigid weather calls for a warming, higher ABV beer. Sure, you can grab a double IPA or even a barrel-aged stout, but when the snow is swirling around outside, it’s difficult to beat the appeal of a well-made winter warmer.
In my years of writing about (and drinking) beer, I’ve found that nothing hits better on a frozen night than a well-made, complex winter warmer. But that brings us to one important question: what exactly is a winter warmer?
What is a winter warmer?
The winter warmer is not so much a style (like IPA, stout, or lager) as a collection of winter beer styles. You better believe that, regardless of the style, it will warm your bones even if there’s a winter squall outside. At its essence, a winter warmer should be a malt-forward, higher-alcohol-content brew with an ABV of 7-10%.
While you might actually find a beer labeled as a “winter warmer”, the category also includes holiday ales, spiced ales, barleywines, strong ales, imperial stouts and porters, doppelbocks, IPAs, and more.
While the flavor profile can vary depending on the beer itself, winter warmers often feature flavors like molasses, sticky toffee pudding, caramel, and a heavy malt presence. Some also include winter spices like cinnamon, ginger, cloves, or nutmeg.
The best winter warmers
Now that you’ve learned about the appeal of sipping on winter warmers during the cold season, it’s time to find some to add to your refrigerator. Below, you’ll find some of our favorite warming, seasonal brews. Keep scrolling to see them all. Bundle up, sit by a roaring fire, and enjoy one or more of these epic brews.
Highland Brewing Cold Mountain
With a name like Cold Mountain, you should have a decent idea about what you’re in for when you take a sip of this winter seasonal beer. This 5.9% ABV brew is a little lower in alcohol than most winter warmers. But what it lacks in alcohol content, it makes up for in flavor thanks to ingredients like 2-row, Pilsner, Vienna, Chocolate, and Caramel malts as well as Cascade and Mount Hood hops. The result is a multi-layered beer loaded with flavors like toasted vanilla beans, dried fruits, and candied nuts. As a bonus, Highland also makes a barrel-aged vanilla version, as well as Coconut, Breakfast, and Cinnamon Roll versions. Try the original or one of the alternative versions this winter. You’ll be happy you did.
$12.99
Bale Breaker High Camp
If you don’t want to wait for spring to enjoy a complex, balanced IPA, grab a can or two of Bale Break High Camp. This winter
$12.49
Summit Winter Ale
This popular winter ale is brewed in the style of a traditional British winter warmer. It’s brewed with ale yeast as well as 2-Row Pale, Caramel, Crystal, Deingeman’s De-Bittered Black, and Carafa 2 malts and hopped with Fuggle, Tettnang, Willamette, and Goldings. The result is a balanced, warming winter beer centered on flavors of caramelized sugar, dried cherries, toasted vanilla beans, and coffee beans. Drink this one on an unseasonably cold winter night, and you’ll feel warm from the inside out.
$16.99
Samuel Smith’s Winter Welcome Ale
If you only purchase one of the winter warmers on this list, make it Samuel Smith’s Winter Welcome Ale. While this beer is designed to “welcome winter”, it’s a great choice for this whole frigid season. This 6% ABV beer was brewed with simple ingredients: ale yeast, selected malted barley, and Fuggle and Golding hops. This creates a malt-forward, balanced winter beer filled with flavors like butterscotch, vanilla beans, chocolate, and dried fruit. While not spiced like many winter warmers, it has a warming, festive flavor profile that you’ll want to drink from now until the end of the chilly season.
$12.99
Southern Tier Old Man Winter
Southern Tier Old Man Winter is a 7.5% ABV beer brewed with ale yeast, two different hops, and four select malt varieties. It’s known for its mix of bready malts, toasted malts, sticky toffee pudding, dried fruits, vanilla beans, and just a hint of dank, resinous pine at the finish. It’s one of the most balanced winter warmers you’re going to find. Add this one to your winter drinking list. Stock up on it and drink it until the spring thaw.
$11.99
