OCTOBER 21, 2000: Charlotte, NC-- Leaves are turning... a slight chill is coming in the air... morning mist lays over the yard. The Fall is a time to slow down a bit and absorb the beauty of mother nature doing her thing! Fall is also the time that I find myself wanting to experiment with more flavorful beers that take advantage of Fall harvests. It's also the perfect time to brew my winter warmers to cozy up with in the dead of a frosty winter. Traditionally, beer saved for drinking during the depths of winter had to be prepared during the fall months. A good fall harvest season would prompt a brewer to take advantage of a bountiful harvest by increasing the malt bill for his beer. The results: a much higher alcohol level in the finished product, surely to keep you warmer.

One of the most distinctive aspects of a Fall Brew or Winter Warmer is the practice of using herbs and spices. This practice was quite common prior to the 1500s, when hops became widely accepted as a flavoring agent. Foods to be stored for the winter months often were heavily spiced or seasoned as a preservative measure. Spices were commonly added to beer at the time, and the beverage was then referred to as gruit. Also herbs and spices were used as forms of medication of the time, their use in a drink was thought of as a healthy restorative. Naturally, brewers who were already accustomed to using spices and herbs in the preservation of their beer would choose to prepare a  special holiday version for the winter celebrations.

So how do we get started with our Fall Brews and Winter Wamers? Well, start by formulating a recipe that uses an ample amount of malt to get a higher starting gravity. Depending on the alcohol level you want, try to get an original gravity of at least 1.065 deg. If spices, herbs, fruits, or other flavoring additives will be used in the recipe (as they should), consider staying primarily with pale malts or light malt extract to prevent strong malt flavors from dominating the finished beer.

Additional fermentables in the form of adjunct sugar such as Belgian candi, brown sugar, molasses, and honey, are perfect for Winter Wamers as they can boost the gravity and the alcohol content of the finished beer while contributing aromas and characters found in traditional holiday cakes, cookies, and other desserts. 

In additional to the standard holiday related spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, vanilla, etc...), you may want to try your hand at a little Spruce essence. Note, when I say a little, I mean a little. Spruce essence is extremely powerfull and can over power your brew to the point of being undrinkable. Here's a good basis for a Spruce Beer. Modify to your own desire. If you want to get historical, check out Ben's recipe further down this page..

Basic Spruce:

• 10 lbs. dark malt extract
• 0.5 oz. Chinook hops for 60 min.
• 1 oz. Centennial hops for 30 min.
• 1 oz. Kent Goldings hops for 15 min.
• Wyeast 1056 (American ale) yeast or 14 g Doric dry ale yeast
• 1 to 2 oz. spruce essence (be carefull!)
• 2/3 cup corn sugar for priming
  
  

Benjamin Franklin's Spruce Beer

Translated from the french while he was stationed in France.

A Way of making Beer with essence of Spruce

For a Cask containing 80 bottles, take one pot of Essence and 13 Pounds of Molases. - or the same amount of unrefined Loaf Sugar; mix them well together in 20 pints of hot Water: Stir together until they make a Foam, then pour it into the Cask you will then fill with Water: add a Pint of good Yeast, stir it well together and let it stand 2 or 3 Days to ferment, after which close the Cask, and after a few days it will be ready to be put into Bottles, that must be tightly corked. Leave them 10 or 12 Days in a cool Cellar, after which the Beer will be good to drink.


As Fall begins to colour our landscape, let's not forget the noble Pumpkin. Here's a link to our Jack-O-Lantern ale which we published last fall. Click here to read it.

Enjoy this wonderful time of the year!