I hate the winter. The cold, the frosted car windows, slippery sidewalks, the death of outdoor drinking… just writing about it makes me shiver. The winter brings with it, though, some of my favorite seasonal happenings. I love the Christmas season, I love looking at snow outside of the window, Christmas decorations, I love being able to wear hoodies again. Most of all, I love winter seasonal beers. This year, Christian Moerlein is set to make me a happy camper with the release of their new winter seasonal, called ‘77 Winter.
The Winter of ‘77
The winter of 1977 was a bad one, so bad that here we are, 40 years later, and we’re still talking about it. The temperature in Cincinnati dipped all the way down to minus 25. It was so cold outside that the Ohio River froze over. Seriously, google it. You can find pictures of people literally walking across the Ohio River (even though people were told not to do it because of the danger).
It was such an insane winter here in Cincy that Christian Moerlein Brewing Company not only still remembers it, they are looking to remind this city with a shining beacon of wintery hope – Beer! They’ve also teamed up with a charity to do some good in the process, and we’ll get to that, but let’s talk about that beer first!
The Beer
This sounds like a really unique take on a Winter Warmer to me. It comes in at a reasonable 6.3% ABV which makes it a little warming, for sure, but still mild enough that you can knock a couple back and not be upside down on the floor. The beer is loaded up with some interesting flavors to “spice it up” a bit.
It starts out with the essence of Glayva, which is a Scottish liqueur that was first created in 1947 to warm and comfort drinkers in Leith Scotland. The spices used bring all the notes of the liqueur to the beer, like Mediterranean tangerines, cinnamon, almonds and honey. The brewery says that the beer has a strong malty backbone, full of nuttiness and nutmeg, with a slight note of orange aroma which comes from a late boil addition of sweet orange peel. The flavor is dominated by almond, spice and malty sweetness. It all sounds pretty ideal for a cold winter day.
Starting 11/4 you’ll be able to snag this beer in 6 snacks of 12oz cans, as well as on draft at all your favorite places across town – so keep your eyes peeled and let me know what you think!
Tying It To Charity
The Christian Moerlein Brewery didn’t just want to release this beer like any other, though. They wanted to use the release to do some good in the community, as well. They are hosting a coat drive with St. Vincent DePaul in their taproom. It works like this… Bring in a new or gently worn coat (all sizes and genders) to the taproom starting ton Friday (11/4) and you’ll receive your first pint of ‘77 Winter for only a dollar. You’ll be able to drop your coats off through the weekend, but the $1 pint promotion ends every night at 9pm due to Ohio happy hour laws.