Undoing Tradition with an Untraditional Holiday Beer

Holiday beers are often associated with heavily spiced, full-bodied ales. While these beers are delicious on a cold winter night, they have become somewhat expected during the holiday season. Not the case this year at Karl Strauss Brewing Company. Every year, a different Karl Strauss brewer is given the opportunity to brew Karl’s Holiday beer–and every year the brewers continue to push the envelope of what a holiday beer can be.

This year, Adam Carbonell was chosen to brew Karl’s Holiday beer. Adam knew that he wanted to do something a little different and very unexpected. Instead of choosing exotic spices, Adam chose to spice his beer with a mix of hops and Rye malt. Adam crafted a recipe for his Rye IPA–a robust, distinctively spicy, and aromatic brew.

Using large amounts of Rye malt and Honey malt, Karl’s Holiday beer has a deep amber hue and a full body. Coming in at 6.8% ABV and over 85 IBU’s, this beer’s unique hop flavor and aroma come from a blend of over 30 pounds of Mt. Ranier, Glacier, Chinook, and Centennial hops. Adam was the first to taste this year’s batch of Karl’s Holiday Beer. The verdict? “I was stoked on it. It’s a very drinkable beer and you can really taste the Rye.” says Adam.

Karl’s Holiday beer is an opportunity for our brewers to showcase their creativity and push the limits on interpreting classic styles. As palates begin to shift, and craft beer continues to evolve, our brewers are actively seeking out new ways to grow with the industry. Adam’s Rye IPA is just another signal of change here at Karl Strauss–watch out, because we are trying new things and this beer is just a taste of what is to come in 2008