By Mary Ann Bourbeau
The tradition of brewing special beers for the winter holiday dates back to ancient Viking culture. The Vikings enjoyed dark, malty brews during Scandinavian Yuletide celebrations, when they drank to the Norse gods. They experimented with ingredients such as juniper, tobacco, sugar and syrups to create interesting flavors.
Many brewers at the Jersey Shore still hold on to the standards of their ancient counterparts, offering a number of specialty brews.
This season, Carton Brewing in Atlantic Highlands is releasing Sense of Urgency, a fruity, hazy IPA made with Old World yeast from Norway. They’re also re-releasing Gilded Lily, a white truffle Belgian tripel. The truffles, imported from Italy, are known as the diamonds of the culinary world.
“The beer is very expensive – $26 for a four-pack,” said Augie Carton, one of the brewery’s founders. “But people love it.”
Carton is also bringing back Chekhov’s Gun, a Belgian Quadruple Ale with a 15% ABV (alcohol by volume), brewed with pomegranate molasses and fermented in peach brandy barrels. Will It Kringle is a nitro pastry cream ale, similar to a chocolate stout but with the addition of pear, cream cheese and marzipan, known as a Kringle dessert.
Kane Brewing in Ocean Township has two special brews this year. Do I Even Like Eggnog? is a 7.4% IPA brewed with pilsner, wheat, oats and lactose. After fermentation, they add ground cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla.
“It’s bursting with warm, fuzzy feelings and holiday nostalgia,” said Kane vice president Erika L. Kane.
Holy Nights is a 9.1% imperial stout brewed with Rook dark roast coffee, Madagascar vanilla beans, roasted cacao nibs and freshly toasted coconut. “There’s a little holiday cheer in each sip,” said Kane.
In the coming weeks, Bradley Brew in Bradley Beach will release Holiday Break, a hazy double IPA; Laughton, a spruce tip West Coast IPA; a winter ale called Winter Friend; and a dessert stout known as Christmas was Tomorrow.
Monmouth County’s newest brewery, Birdsmouth Brewing in Oceanport, is celebrating the holidays with a special Doppelbock that will be released in mid-December. They will also be canning their dark lager. Expect a full slate of live music and holiday events at their brewery on the former Fort Monmouth commissary complex.
In mid-December, Neptune City’s Little Dog Brewing will release Spiced Amber Ale with 5% ABV. It is malty, complex and conditioned on cinnamon sticks, cloves and star anise. Another December release will be Sleeper Dark Lager.
Twin Lights Brewing will release Years of Solitude, a 10.2% imperial milk stout brewed with toasted coconut, Madagascar vanilla beans and cacao nibs. The Tinton Falls brewery also has a Pictures with Santa Day from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 10, where kids and dogs are welcome. Wear your ugliest holiday sweater for a contest at the Twin Lights holiday party from 6 p.m. to midnight Friday, Dec. 23.
Red Tank Brewing in Red Bank has created Broad Street Stout. At 4.5%, it has a drier taste than English and American sweet stouts with a dark chocolate and coffee aroma. Their imperial stout, on the other hand, clocks in at 12% ABV.
For Siriusly Black Wizard Stout – a play on the Harry Potter character Sirius Black – Red Tank partnered with Colts Neck Stillhouse, using their bourbon barrels for the maturing process.
Ross Brewing in Port Monmouth will release two holiday beers this season. Milk & Cookies is a 6.8% pasty stout flavored with vanilla, chocolate, gingerbread and graham crackers. Year Two, the brewery’s anniversary ale, is a 14.5% bourbon barrel-aged stout made with vanilla, Belgian chocolates, toasted coconut and dark, sweet cherries.
Triumph Brewing in Red Bank is currently pouring its Belgian holiday ale called Grand Cru. It is gently spiced with juniper, orange peel and coriander.
“Its alcohol content – a hefty 9.2% – belies its body for a deceptively balanced brew, perfect for festive winter evenings,” said Eric M. Nutt, Triumph’s corporate sales manager.
Of course, breweries aren’t the only ones getting in on the holiday festivities. Local distilleries are mixing up festive holiday cocktails for the season. Dachshund Distilling in Neptune has four signature cocktails to help customers stay warm and happy this winter.
Café Correcto is made with Dachshund’s coffee rum served with hot coffee, a touch of sugar and whipped cream. Hot Spiced Apple Cider is the distillery’s spiced rum served with hot apple cider. Hot Buttered Rum is a classic hot toddy made with spiced rum. Vegan Coquito is spiced rum served with coconut milk, coconut cream and condensed coconut milk. It will also be available to go in 16-ounce and 32-ounce bottles.
One of the most popular cocktails at Colts Neck Stillhouse is a hot drink called No Mulligans. It’s made with Muckleyeye East Coast Crafted White Rum, muddled spice demerara, warm pomegranate and Concord grape. They also sell bottles of 60 proof Pecan Pie Moonshine, and a 40 proof Bourbon Cream will launch in December.
“Folks will delight with this smooth, luscious, creamy spirit,” said founder and distiller Geoff Karch.
The article originally appeared in the December 1 – 7, 2022 print edition of The Two River Times. It was updated Dec. 8, 2022.
