Beer and Christmas dinner may not be the classic duo you’d expect, but the variety of flavours and styles in craft beer makes it a fantastic choice for every part of your holiday meal. From refreshing starters to hearty mains and rich desserts, there's a perfect beer to complement every Christmas dish, bringing out its flavours and adding a unique touch to your festive table. So if you’re ready to try something new this year, let’s dive into the best beers to serve with your Christmas feast!
1. Appetisers: Light and Effervescent Beers to Start the Celebration
Kick off the holiday feast with some refreshing, palate-cleansing beers that will whet your guests’ appetites without stealing the spotlight from lighter bites.
- Seafood dishes: Pilsner
For delicate seafood starters, try a pilsner. This style is crisp, light, and slightly hoppy, which complements the briny, fresh flavours of shrimp cocktail or smoked salmon. Pilsner brings a refreshing finish that resets your palate after each bite. Warsteiner Premium Fresh Pilsner has a light biscuity flavour with herbal, citrusy notes, a great choice to pair with seafood dishes. Nirvana Pilsner is another pick that might tailor your needs!
- Charcuterie Board: Belgian Blonde
Belgian Blondes offers mild fruity sweetness, a hint of honey, and subtle spice. This beer’s approachable profile pairs well with both mild and sharp cheeses, and its crisp finish cuts through fattier elements on the board, keeping every bite fresh. Chouffe is a spectacular Belgian Blonde, dominated by sweet, fruity notes with a hint of spice. Biere Dies Amis has a lovely, harmonious blend of hop bitterness and malt sweetness. These two are an ideal fit for pairing with a charcuterie!
- Cheese Boards: Wheat Beer (Hefeweizen)
A wheat beer or hefeweizen has just the right amount of sweetness and fruitiness to work with a variety of cheeses. Its creamy, slightly effervescent texture pairs beautifully with soft cheeses like Brie, while the beer’s slight clove and banana notes complement stronger cheeses such as aged cheddar. Hiddenseer offers flavours of fruit, with a light clove spice, and mild citrus zest – these flavour counterparts complement the savouriness of cheeses. Nirvana Hefeweizen has a similar flavour profile but has fresh bread notes.
2. Main Course: Rich, Robust Beers to Enhance the Hearty Holiday Dishes
Christmas mains like roast turkey, ham, or lamb call for beers with a bit more body and depth to bring out their rich, savoury flavours.
- Roast Turkey or Chicken: Amber Ale
Amber ale, with its warm, malty flavour and subtle caramel notes, is perfect for turkey or chicken. Its balanced malt sweetness complements the savoury notes of the roast while its light hops refresh the palate. This pairing also works well with classic holiday sides like stuffing and roasted vegetables. Harvey's Sussex Best is an amber ale with a delightful medley of caramel and toasted maltiness – exactly what you want in an amber ale to pair with your poultry dishes.
- Prime Rib or Beef Tenderloin: Porter or Stout
For a bold main dish like prime rib, a robust porter is an excellent match. The dark, roasted flavours of a porter mimic the char and depth of beef, with hints of coffee and chocolate that add complexity to each bite. Its smooth mouthfeel also makes each sip rich and satisfying, without overwhelming the flavours. Ollenaut Smoked Porter and Big Drop Galactic Stout will captivate your senses with the combination of roasted coffee, notes of rich chocolate, and a milky texture. These will enhance the flavour profile of the red meats.
- Roast Lamb: Brown Ale
Brown ale has nutty, roasted malt flavours with a touch of caramel sweetness. The subtle bitterness in a Brown Ale adds a nice contrast to the meat’s natural fat, making each bite satisfying. Samuel Smith's Brown Ale is the only ale you should have with your lamb! The symphony of caramel and coffee flavours of the ale complement the heartiness of the lamb.
- Glazed Ham: Old Ale
Brings a warm, caramel malt character with just a touch of sweetness, making it a perfect companion for ham’s glaze. Its gentle maltiness enhances the ham’s flavours, and the light hop bitterness provides balance, keeping the pairing from feeling overly sweet. Harvey's Old Ale has a flavour profile of dark fruits, caramel, with subtle spice notes. This perfectly pairs with the sweetness of the glaze and the succulent, savoury ham.
3. Holiday Sides: Beer That Makes Every Bite Shine
From creamy potatoes to earthy roasted vegetables, holiday side dishes deserve their own thoughtful beer pairings to bring out their unique flavours.
- Mashed Potatoes and Gravy: English Pale Ale
An English Pale Ale is an ideal pairing for mashed potatoes. The beer’s mild bitterness balances the creaminess of the potatoes, while its slightly nutty malt profile complements the savoury gravy, making for a rich and balanced combination. We've got St Peter's Without Original and St Peter's Without Gold – both have hints of caramel, malt, with a subtle bitter hops. The malty profile complements the gravy and the creaminess of the mash potatoes.
- Cranberry Sauce and Sweet Potatoes: Fruit beer
Fruity beers like cherry or raspberry ales are a natural choice for sweet-tart dishes like cranberry sauce and sweet potatoes. The fruitiness of these beers echoes the flavours in the food, while their tart acidity balances the sweetness. There is no other reason to not choose Kasteel Cherry Belgian Beer to pair with these foods. It is faintly sweet, with a cherry forward notes with a delicate hint of elderflower – it is a solid pick to pair with your side dish of cranberry sauce or sweet potatoes.
- Roasted Root Vegetables: Lager
Lagers typically have a light to medium malt character, with subtle bready, toasty, or even slightly caramel notes. These malty flavours complement the natural sweetness and caramelised edges of roasted root vegetables like carrots, parsnips, and sweet potatoes, enhancing their flavours without overshadowing them. The maltiness from the Athletic Brewing lager and Nirvana Bavarian Helles lager are an ideal match and the answer you're looking for when pairing with your vegetables.
4. Desserts: Sweet, Dark Brews to Cap Off the Feast
- Chocolate Desserts: Chocolate Porter or Stout
Chocolate desserts like yule logs or truffles are perfect with an imperial stout or chocolate porter. Imperial stouts offer dark, roasted flavours with notes of coffee and cocoa that enhance chocolate’s richness, while chocolate porters add a hint of sweetness to balance each bite. These beers make dessert feel like a cosy, decadent treat. Amundsen Xmas S'mores Stout and Drop Bear Bonfire Stout are the unbeatable choices to pair with your chocolate dessert. Both have strong flavours of dark chocolate that are the key factors when pairing with your dessert.
- Apple Pie or Mince Pie: Apple Cider
For pies with warm, spiced flavours, a cider works wonderfully. Cider’s crisp apple taste complements apple pie and mince pie beautifully. It's a refreshing contrast to the richness of the pastry and filling. Rattler Zero Cyder and Maison Sassy Cidre are two of Dry Drinker's personal favourites. They have strong apple flavours that are perfect when pairing with your apple pie or mince pie. They capture the tastes and components traditional ciders, just minus the alcohol.
Tips for Choosing Holiday Beers
- Think Seasonal: Many breweries release seasonal beers during the holidays, like winter warmers and spiced ales, which are made to match the richness and warmth of holiday food.
- Consider Variety: Offering a range of beers, from light and crisp to dark and malty, allows you to pair each course with the right brew and lets guests enjoy a tasting experience.
- Go Bold with Dessert: Sweet, rich desserts need beers with intense flavours to avoid being overpowered. Don’t shy away from stronger brews for these pairings!
