Wow, it’s towards the end of January and this is the first post I’ve had in a month. Ouch. I’ve been slacking.

Well, to be honest my excitement for writing about beer definitely has been in a slump for me since I’ve started to make some changes to my health.

Starting at the end of November I’ve been meeting with a CrossFit personal trainer 3 times a week and changing my eating habits.

My whole life I haven’t adopted much of a regular exercise routine and I ended up as a lazy out-of-shape slob who was in need of a new wardrobe since my clothes no longer fit.

Sitting in front of a computer 10+ hours a day and drinking 2-3 beers a day (along with eating pretty much anything I wanted all the time) sure didn’t help my waistline. While there are a lot of health benefits with beer, there is no denying the fact that there is a lot of calories in each bottle. Without exercise and proper eating the inevitable beer belly start to develop when you drink a lot.

So with this is mind I decided enough was enough. I was tired of having little energy and feeling bloated all the time and I made some changes in my life.

Part of the changes is that I significantly cut back on the amount of beer I drink. I’ve made a rule for myself that I can only drink on days when I’ve exercised, and I don’t have to drink everyday (although I really want to).

I’ve cut out most grains from my diet (with the exception of beer) and over the past month and a half I have so much more energy. I’m down 16 pounds (still about 10 to go) and am getting strong and stronger every week.

I feel great!

So with the limited amount of beer I’ve been drinking, my excitement for writing about it has decreased.

However, it is just a temporary slump while I turn my body into a fat burning machine and figure out a proper balance.

Craft beer is still a huge passion of mine and I plan on stepping things up and making this blog one of the best on the web.

I’m currently working on my 2012 goals and plans for this blog, let me know in the comments below what you would like to see here?

Thanks for your patience over the past month and heres to a great 2012!

Cheers!

It’s Christmas eve which means it’s also the final day of my 12 Days Of Christmas Beer Fun series. To end it off I came across a video which seemed fitting for the occassion.

The “real” 12 days of Christmas sung by Bob and Doug, 2 regular canadian guys. If you’re like me and not from Canada, here is some Canadian to English translation that will help to understand the video a little better:

Back Bacon = Canadian Bacon

Toque = Knit Cap (beanie)

Two Four = A Case Of Beer (24 pack)

Have a Merry Christmas! I’m going to be taking Christmas day off from the blog so have an amazing day!

I tend to get excited about beer this time of year, especially since winter beers are by far my favorite seasonals. I love drinking, reading, smelling, looking at, and hearing about Christmas brews.

While a lot of the posts in my 12 Days of Christmas Fun series have looked at more interesting and humorous stories related to Christmas and beer, today I wanted to highlight some chat going on about the actual beers of the season.

One thing great about the beer community online is that there are some really amazing people blogging about the industry. I’ve enjoyed reading a lot of great posts and series related to Christmas beers from some of my favorite beer blogs and decided I’d share them with you.

So without further introduction, here are a few of the great must read posts and series from some great beer bloggers.

Beer Advent Calendar 2011

This is a great series written by 2Beerguys.com and Seacoastbeveragelab.com highlighting 31 of the best winter/holiday beers presented by multiple beer bloggers.

12 Beers of Christmas – Better Beer Blog

This is a series from Peter at Better Beer Blog which reviews winter seasonal beers 12 days in a row. It looks like it should be 24 beers of Christmas though since there are two beers reviewed each day with some nice photos.

50 Must Taste Winter Beers for 2011 – Brewpublic

An awesome list of 50 great winter beers to try. If you need help coming up with idea of what to drink, just take a look at this list.

Holiday Craft Beer Cocktails – CraftBeer.com

I don’t write much about Craft Beer cocktails, but they always sound pretty good. Here are a few cocktail ideas you can make with beer for the holidays.

A Christmas Poem – Beer Nut

Just a little fun poem written by Beer Nut. He may not be the next Shakespeare, but still a great take on beer poetry.

On the 10th day of Christmas my true love gave to me…beer. That’s right, beer is one of the greatest gifts you can give to your loved ones and friends.

If you need a last minute gift idea, just put together a 12 pack of some of your favorite beers. If you need help, just head to your local bottle shop as they generally love to help you out.

I came across a great way to give your gift called Beer-y Christmas. Unfortunately it looks like it won’t be ready until next year, but I at least wanted to put it on your radar because it’s a cool little box.

Basically it is an advent calendar where you just have to add the beer and wrap it. They have pretty well done promo videos to check out below.

Have yourself a very beer-y Christmas!

Today is day 9 in my 12 Days of Christmas Fun series, which means it’s only a few days away from the big day.

Yesterday I had a guest post on Christmas dinner beer pairing that should help you decide on what to drink on the 25th. However I don’t want to leave Santa out of the planning.

Generally kids leave out cookies and milk for the big guy, but I have a feeling he gets a little tired of that.

I’m sure Santa would enjoy a nice craft beer on Christmas eve. He’s got a lot of work to do so it might take the stress out of his routine.

For me and my family, I think we will be leaving out a Deschutes Jubelale for him.

Instead of giving you a long list of suggestions, I’m turning the tables on you today and asking you for your thoughts.

In the comments section below, let me know what beer(s) you’re going to be leaving out for Santa this Christmas.

Christmas day is now less than a week away, and as the craft beer industry continues to grow more and more people will be reaching for beers this year. Whether you’re looking for the right beer to complement your meal or just something tasty to sip while the kids open presents, you’ve come to the right place. With Christmas traditions varying greatly from place to place, I’ll do my best to suggest versatile beers that are widely available so this is as useful to as many people as possible.

I know you’ve been waiting all year for this, so let’s get to it.

Before the Meal

For a pre-meal beer – what some would call an aperitif – you should look for something crisp, clean and refreshing to whet your appetite. You can definitely dip into some hoppy and/or tart beers here, but nothing too crazy.

Pilsners are a classic style that fit the bill for this, and no, I’m not talking about Miller Lite. There are several great examples of pilsners on the market today:

• Pilsner Urquell, if you can get it fresh, is an iconic example
• Victorys Prima Pils is a bit of a hoppy-er take on the style.
• Noble Pils by Sam Adams is another solid option.

All three of these are widely distributed, and all are tame enough that you could knock back a few before dinner without having to worry about keeping your forehead off the table.

As an alternative keep an eye out for Bell’s Winter White Ale, a Belgian Witbier that Bell’s brews as a winter seasonal. While not quite as light and clean as a pilsner, it’s still light enough to drink before dinner, and the fruity flavors of Witbiers are generally a crowd pleaser.

With the Meal

Now, if your Christmas dinner table is anything like mine, there’s gonna be a lot going on. Since meats are usually the centerpiece I’m going to focus on this aspect of the meal for both your sanity and mine. Many of the most common Christmas cuts – roast beef, roasted chicken, turkey, and roasted pork – will all be complemented nicely by a good Oktoberfest, which you should still be able to find on the shelves.

• Ayinger and Paulaner are two classic German takes on the style that you can’t go wrong with.
• Victory Festbier is an outstanding example of the style by a great American brewery.
• Brooklyn Oktoberfest is another good Oktoberfest from a renowned American brewery.

English Bitters and English Pale Ales will satisfy those looking for a somewhat more hoppy option, and also tend to complement the traditional Christmas dishes well.

• Samuel Smith’s Winter Welcome Ale is a great winter seasonal that fits the bill. Although it’s technically classified as a Winter Warmer, it drinks a lot like an English Pale Ale, and would work well with your Christmas dinner.
• Fuller’s London Pride is an excellent, widely available English Pale Ale.
• Rogue Younger’s Special Bitter is a good US-made version of an English Bitter, as is
• Goose Island Honker’s Ale.

Finally, I’ve separated ham out from the rest of the meats above because it’s often prepared as a much sweeter dish, and thus calls for a little different pairing approach. The Oktobefests will still pair nicely with ham, although the hoppier beers might not be as compatible. Instead you can try an Irish Stout (Guinness, duh), a Belgian Tripel (I like La Fin Du Monde and Chimay White) or a Belgian Strong Golden Ale (Duvel is the standard for the style).

Dessert

Dessert is a great opportunity to feature some bigger beers, and all of the beers listed here can be enjoyed either by pairing them with something or on their own as digestifs. Most desserts, including apple pie, pecan pie, cheesecake, fruit tarts, and cookies will all be nicely complemented by a big sweet and full bodied Imperial Stout:

• Founders Breakfast Stout is an American Imperial Stout that features intense coffee/espresso flavors.
• North Coast Old Rasputin is a Russian Imperial Stout with prominent chocolate and hoppy flavors.

If pumpkin pie is on the menu a spiced seasonal is a good match. Although it’s a broad category and not all are spiced, a good option here is a Winter Warmer:

• Great Lakes Christmas Ale is world renowned as one of the best Christmas Ales out there, and while it may not be available to everyone, you should try it if you can get it. This is my personal favorite around the holidays, and what I will be sipping after Christmas dinner.
• Sam Adams Old Fezziwig  is another option for a spiced winter beer if you can’t get Great Lakes.

I’ve done my best to make this as comprehensive as possible while keeping it relatively brief. If you have more specific questions feel free to drop a comment below and I’ll do my best to get back to you. I relied heavily on The Brewmaster’s Table by Garrett Oliver to help with this article, and I would strongly suggest it to anyone interested in craft beer, and especially in pairing beer with food.

Merry Christmas!

Dave Stokley is the author of the beer review blog Behind The Brews, where his goal is to tell you more about the beer and the people who brew it than you ever wanted to know. He has been a craft beer fanatic since his first sip of Great Lakes Dortmunder Gold, a hophead since his epiphany with Bell’s Two Hearted Ale, and an avid homebrewer since his wife bought him his first homebrew kit (her biggest regret in life).

Over the past few days I’ve had a few posts in my 12 days of Christmas series that the following video could have fit ntot. Yes I could have added it to my Christmas beer commercials post yesterday, but I thought it was so good it needed its own day on the blog.

On the second day of Christmas I showed you the Bowen Beer Bottle Band and what they did with some Christmas tunes.

Today I give you a commercial from Grolsch that combines a beer bottle orchestra and a bottle Christmas tree. It’s a very cool commercial, enjoy.

During the holidays if you have time to flip on the TV you will most certainly be bombarded with Christmas & winter themed commercials. While many of these are beer commercials, very few if any are from craft breweries.

Below are a few craft beer Christmas and winter commercials, as well as a few from the big guys, just because they are well done.

Enjoy.

Flying Dog (I don’t think this aired anywhere, but still good)

Widmer Brothers

Stella Arois

Guiness

Heineken

Miller

Bud Light (still a funny commercial)

One thing I like about country music is they don’t hold back singing about beer, even on Christmas.

I came across this song from country singer Sunny Sweeney called “One More Christmas Beer” and it definitely puts me in the mood for the holidays.

Click here to listen to it.

Here are the lyrics to follow along with.

It’s that time of year
When we all get together
And afterwards we wonder why
Cause the later it gets
The drunker we are
Someone always ends up in a fight

Well you’d think that a family
Could try to get along
At least this one day here
But the fact is we cant
We never will
So pass me one more Christmas beer.

If you cant beat em, join em
Get drunk and annoy em
Im usually the one who tries to hold it together,
But someone smoked up all my Christmas cheer
We dont know any better
Same thing, different year
God bless the family, cant wait til its over
Pass me one more Christmas beer

Scottys got JB down in a head-lock
Mike just got decked in the hall
Over somethin bout NASCAR and who had the fast car
And who put Junior into that wall

Well grandmas b*tchin
About paintin the kitchen
Its a good thing my grandpa aint here
Ive tried to stay sober but this party aint over
So pass me one more Christmas beer

If you cant beat em, join em
Get drunk and annoy em
Im usually the one who tries to hold it together,
But someone smoked up all my Christmas cheer
We dont know any better
Same thing, different year
God bless the family, cant wait til its over
Pass me one more Christmas beer

We dont know any better
Same thing, different year
Hallelujah and Happy {hic} Holidays
Pass me one more Christmas beer

What better way to decorate your Christmas tree than with beer Christmas ornaments. With most trees decorated with traditional ornaments and lights, why not stand out a little.

I searched around and there are some cool bottle and can lights to go along with your ornaments on the perfect beer drinkers tree, but unfortunately they are generally made with the macro beer brands, so not a lot of representation from craft beers.

However I’m sure you could be creative and make some truly amazing (or tacky) Christmas trees.

Christmas Mug of Beer Ornament	Glass of Beer Ornament	Acrylic Beer Stein Ornament
3 Beer With Cup Set	Beer On Ice Ornament	Bud Light Christmas Ornament
Great Catch Ornament	Santa In A Beer Keg Ornament	Hofbrauhaus Beer Keg Ornament
Beer With Cap Ornaments	Beer With Pretzels Ornament	Beer Mug and Keg Ornaments
Beer Mistletoe Ornament	I Love Beer Ornament	Glass 6 Pack Ornament
Mug Lights Set	Budweiser Light Set	Duff Beer Light Set

If you’re looking for even more, check out Amazons selection of Beer Christmas Ornaments.