The best winter beers for 2026 are seasonal releases built for cold-weather menus, ranging from malt-forward sippers to hop-driven IPAs that still feel right for the holidays. After autumn flavors fall out of style, these winter seasonals help refresh tap lists and bottle selections and pair naturally with comfort foods. We highlight standout winter beers and the style profiles behind them so you can choose options that match your menu and service pace. Whether you need an approachable crowd-pleaser or a limited, barrel-aged feature for tasting flights, you’ll find reliable winter picks to carry your program through the season.
Seasonal Winter Beers
We've made a list of the most popular winter beers you can stock this season. Consider filling beer growlers so your guests can enjoy their favorite winter beers while staying cozy at home.
1. Scotch Ale (Wee Heavies)
Scotch ales are top-fermenting brews that were originally served in small quantities (thus, the "wee heavy" nickname) for a few schillings in nineteenth-century Scotland. This style is boiled extensively in kettles, which creates toasty caramelization and sweet, full-bodied flavors.
Many Scotch ales also offer higher alcohol by volume, making them perfect for cold winter days. Beer experts, also called cicerones, recommend serving these tasty brews with gamey meats, spicy foods, and creamy desserts.
Give These Scotch Ales a Try:
- Founders Brewing Company: Dirty Bastard (Grand Rapids, MI) 8.5% ABV
- Einstok Beer Company: Icelandic Wee Heavy (Akureyri, Iceland) 8% ABV
- Jeremiah Johnson Brewing Company: Mountain Man Strong Ale (Whitefish, MT) 6.5% ABV
- Oskar Blues Grill & Brew: Old Chub (Lyons, CO) 8% ABV
2. Barleywine
A barleywine is a style of strong ale that's typically characterized by high alcohol content, a bittersweet taste, and a rich mouthfeel. Despite the name, barleywines contain no actual wine. They earned the moniker due to their complexity of flavors.
While American-style barleywines are intensely hopped for a more bitter and hop-forward taste, English varieties tend to offer a more balanced combination of malt and hops. Serve this winter beer style with a charcuterie board of cured meats and creamy cheeses.
Give These Barleywines a Try:
- Sierra Nevada Brewing Company: Bigfoot Barleywine (Chico, CA) 9.6% ABV
- Revolution Brewing: Straight Jacket (Chicago, IL) 15% ABV
- Brasserie Dieu du Ciel: Solstice D'hiver (Montreal, Quebec) 10.2% ABV
- Weyerbacher Brewing Company: Blithering Idiot (Easton, PA) 11.1% ABV
3. Russian Imperial Stout
Often referred to as the king of stouts, Russian imperial stouts were created in the nineteenth century by brewers looking to curry favor with Catherine the Great of Russia. These beers are top-fermenting ales with high alcohol content, moderate carbonation, and toasted, malty flavors.
Most Russian imperial stouts also feature notes of dark fruit and little to no hop character. Try serving these hearty brews alongside oysters, chocolate, and soft cheeses.
Give These Russian Imperial Stouts a Try:
- North Coast Brewing Company: Old Rasputin (Fort Bragg, CA) 9% ABV
- Firestone Walker Brewing Company: Parabola (Paso Robles, CA) 13% ABV
- Sierra Nevada Brewing Company: Narwhal Imperial Stout (Chico, CA) 10.2% ABV
- Bell’s Brewery: Expedition Stout (Comstock, MI) 10.5% ABV
4. Baltic Porter
During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, many Western European brewers began creating strong, robust porters to be shipped across the North Sea to the Baltic regions. These beers were often supplemented by the addition of stale ales, which added an acidic flavor that beer drinkers loved.
Baltic porters are top-fermenting ales that offer a smoky, roasted, malty character with a full-bodied mouthfeel. Consider serving them with barbecued meats, stews, and semi-hard cheeses.
Give These Baltic Porters a Try:
- Jack's Abby Brewing: Barrel-Aged Framinghammer - Mapledoodle (Framingham, MA) 12% ABV
- Tree House Brewing Company: Cozy (Charlton, MA) 9.2% ABV
- Browar Fortuna: Komes Baltic Porter (Miloslaw, Poland) 9% ABV
- Threes Brewing: Voluntary Exile (Brooklyn, NY) 9.2% ABV
5. Doppelbock
Bock beer is a German-style lager with a strong malt flavor. Doppelbock, which essentially means double bock, has even more malt and a fuller body than a standard bock. This beer was originally brewed by a group of monks called the Paulaners, who developed the style with extra malt for nourishment during times of fasting.
You'll notice that many doppelbock beers have the suffix "-ator" in their name, like Troeg's Troegenator. The original doppelbock was named Salvator, and due to its popularity, it became common for other producers to imitate the name by adding the suffix. Enjoy your malty doppelbocks with red meat, pork, and sharp cheeses.
Give These Doppelbocks a Try:
- Augustiner-Brau: Maximator (Munchen, Germany) 7.5% ABV
- Klosterbrauerei Andechs: Doppelbock Dunkel (Andechs, Germany) 7.1% ABV
- Bell's Brewery: Consecrator (Kalamazoo, MI) 8% ABV
- Troegs Brewing Company: Troegenator (Hershey, PA) 8.2% ABV
6. Barrel-Aged Beer
Barrel-aged beers are aged in wooden barrels to impart unique flavors to the finished product. Any style of beer can be barrel-aged, but the approach is best suited to beers with strong flavors that are complemented by notes of hickory, oak, or applewood. The use of whiskey barrels or brandy barrels adds a boozy flavor and hints of caramel, vanilla, and bourbon.
Entice customers to your bar over the winter months by offering a selection of complex barrel-aged beers paired with smoked foods, oysters, or a pan-seared steak. Choose a rich, chocolate cake to serve with barrel-aged stouts or a hunk of sharp cheese to complement a barrel-aged barleywine.
Give These Barrel-Aged Beers a Try:
- Boulevard Brewing Company: Bourbon Barrel Quad (Kansas City, MO) 12.2% ABV
- Dark Horse Brewing Company: Plead The 5th - Bourbon Barrel-Aged (Marshall, MI) 11% ABV
- Great Divide Brewing Company: Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout (Denver, CO) 9.5% ABV
- New Holland Brewing Company: Dragon's Milk Bourbon Barrel-Aged Stout (Holland, MI) 11% ABV
7. Winter Warmer
Winter warmers are top-fermenting ales that offer plenty of malty, sweet flavors alongside a balanced hop character. Many winter warmers are blended with spices, which give the style its trademark warmth.
Traditionally, English strong ales and spiced Wassail beers fall under the umbrella of winter warmers, so be sure to keep plenty of these brews on hand during the winter months. Consider serving them with poultry, baked goods, and seasonal winter fruits.
Give These Winter Warmers a Try:
- Samuel Smith Old Brewery: Winter Welcome Ale (Tadcaster, England) 6% ABV
- Woodstock Inn Brewery: Wassail Ale (North Woodstock, NH) 8% ABV
- Deschutes Brewery: Jubelale (Bend, OR) 6.7% ABV
- Great Lakes Brewing Company: Christmas Ale (Cleveland, OH) 7.5% ABV
8. Winter IPA
Winter IPAs are hop-forward seasonal ales that balance bright hop aroma with a sturdier malt backbone built to hold up in colder weather. Compared to a standard IPA, this style often leans slightly stronger and more full-bodied, with pine, citrus peel, and evergreen notes.
A winter IPA is an easy bridge between fall seasonals and heavier winter stouts, giving hop-focused guests a clear cold-weather option without pushing the ABV too high for casual rounds. They pair especially well with rich, salty foods like wings, fried appetizers, burgers, and aged cheeses, because hop bitterness cuts fat and keeps the palate moving.
Give These Winter IPAs a Try:
- Sierra Nevada Brewing Company: Celebration IPA (Chico, CA) 6.8% ABV
- Hopworks Brewery: Abominable Winter Ale (Portland, OR) 7.3% ABV
- Ninkasi Brewing Company: Sleigh’r Winter Ale (Eugene, OR) 7.2% ABV
- Bell’s Brewery: Hopslam Ale (Double IPA) (Comstock, MI) 10% ABV
9. Non-Alcoholic Winter Beer
Non-alcoholic winter beers are zero- or near-zero ABV brews that deliver the malt depth, spice notes, and roasty character guests look for in cold weather, without the alcohol. Adding a few non-alcoholic winter options helps you serve designated drivers and lunch crowds without forcing them into soda or water and keeps the experience seasonal and food-forward for customers. Lean into styles such as spiced amber ales, holiday blends, and creamy dark stouts and bundle them alongside winter comfort-food specials for maximum upsell potential.
Give These Non-Alcoholic Winter Beers a Try:
- Athletic Brewing Company: Winter Wonder (Milford, CT) <0.5% ABV
- Guinness: Guinness 0 Non-Alcoholic Beer (Dublin, Ireland) 0% ABV
- Clausthaler: Santa Clausthaler Holiday Brew (Frankfurt/Main, Germany) <0.5% ABV
A strong winter beer program provides a reason to feature new pairings, build festive tasting flights, and keep regulars engaged through the cold months. Use the style profiles in this guide to balance an approachable option with one or two bold, higher-ABV pours, then match each pick to the right glassware so taste, presentation, and aroma stay consistent. With the right mix on draft and in bottles, winter beers can turn a slow season into a steady run of add-on sales and repeat visits.
