Christmas? Really? Already?!
Point St Benedict's Winter Ale
I opened up shop this morning, and flipped on the radio to the fiendish sound of Christmas Cheer. It’s 70 degrees out! And sunny! It’s only the 4th of November! I suppose that’s better than Christmas music in July… but a sunny 70 degree day in November is not the time to picture snow covered wreaths. I’ve been hearing Christmas music since Halloween and I’m pretty sure these radio stations are still jumping the gun a bit. I was angry for a second, but then 15 minutes later one of my jolly ol’ beer guys comes in hauling a stack of beer, and I realized I’m contributing to the madness. THE WINTER ALE’S ARE HERE!
It also happens to be election day. This summoned thoughts about allowing a choice to select which beer will be reviewed… but I don’t have that kind of time, or patience. So in a very dictatorship-ish way, I have chosen for all of you. That’ll teach you to take the American voting system for granted! While that sounds mean and evil, at least it’s not communist…
What all this banter really means is that I grabbed the winter ale that took the least amount of physical effort to get. It turned out to be Point’s “St. Benedict’s Winter Ale.” All you Wisconsinites know that Point is from Steven’s Point Wisconsin, but for the benefit of my international readers, I’m throwing that tasty knowledge morsel out there.
For those of you less experienced in winter ales, they tend to have a wide range of colors and flavors. Typically they are darker than your “every other season than winter” ales. Point’s St. Benedict has a nice brown color and, when poured properly, a thick full head that stayed nice and foamy thoughout the first few sips of the beer. This Winter is not as heavy as your typical brown ale and has a bigger aroma and taste of hops as well. The finish is long and delicious — it makes you want to take another sip once its gone. Turns out I can’t complain that much about the holiday season coming after all! So go out, get a 6 pack of Point St. Benedict’s Winter Ale, put a bow on it, and check one of your beloved beer drinking buddies off your list. As for the rest of the folks on your Christmas List… it’s only November 4th and I still have a bunch of other winter ales to taste!
