During the colder months more and more breweries are going to be putting out darker, more complex brews, that tend to have a higher ABV to them. The style that tends to dominate this time is the Barleywine. This type of brew is fairly thick. Tons of complexity goes along way in these ales, from notes of molasses, plums, figs and dried fruit with a nice boozy quality to follow. The great thing about this type of beer is that it can be cellared for years, because most have a high ABV (from 8-12%), giving some a chance to open up with more flavors and complexity then they would normally possess. A few examples of this style are, Brooklyn Monster Ale, Bigfoot Ale from Sierra Nevada, Third Coast from Bell's and Old Ruffian from Great Divide Brewing.

Brooklyn Brewery- Monster Ale ABV 10.8%

This barleywine is available from December through March and is a nice drinkable barleywine. Most of these ales are made to be sipped on and one to two will suffice the normal beer drinker. This ale pour a nice amber copper color and has a sweet smell of toffee, floral hops and sweetness. The taste of this ale is very well rounded with a nice malt profile, spiced hops and of course the boozy quality which most barleywines bring. This beer would pair well with a sharp cheese or even most desserts because of its sweetness. I recommend to pick up a few bottles for cellaring as it will definitely mellow out a bit over time.

This article appears in Nov 4-10, 2010.