Josh Weikert

Fresh and malty with plenty of English hop character, this is a great one to enjoy on those long winter evenings to come.

• Make Your Best
• British Ale
• Strong Ale

Eisbock uses a fractional freezing process to concentrate the beer’s strength, and it does so without requiring your yeast to work overtime. The result is a smooth, rich, and intense lager—perfectly suited to sipping on a cold winter night.

• Make Your Best
• Eisbock
• Bock

This seasonal ale is a bright enough red to match your Santa hat, and it goes well with just about anything on your holiday table.

• Beer Recipe
• Irish Red Ale
• Fruit Beer

Stefan Zehendner at Brauerei Zehendner shares a recipe for this strong, seasonal bock that he releases every December. As with his Maibock, the target is a full-flavored yet addictively drinkable strong lager with deep, bready malt flavor and surprising bitterness, complemented by herbal-minty Perle hop flavors.

• Beer Recipe
• Bock
• Heller Bock

In looking for tips on what makes for a great pale bock, Josh Weikert reaches out to owner-brewer Stefan Zehendner of the highly regarded Brauerei Zehendner, makers of the Mönchsambacher beers.

• Bock
• Heller Bock
• Franconia

Somewhere between hefty doppelbock and pale heller bock, the traditional dunkles bock is like the family’s middle child—it doesn’t get as much attention, but you’ll want it in your fridge year-round.

• Make Your Best
• Bock
• Dunkles Bock

In looking for insights on brewing a great porter in the modern American style, Josh Weikert talks to Cleveland’s Great Lakes about the inner workings of the beloved and enduring Edmund Fitzgerald.

• American Porter
• Porter
• Robust Porter

“Smooth and dangerous” and great for winter sipping, these are some of the most enjoyable beers you’ll ever drink—and they can be surprisingly easy to make if you build a good recipe and adhere to some basic brewing practices.

• Belgian Dark Strong Ale
• Make Your Best
• Homebrewing

We know: It’s time to drink it, not brew it. Yet while you’re hoisting a few at the season’s festivities, it’s never too early to start thinking about your spring brewing schedule...

• Make Your Best
• Oktoberfest
• Amber Lager

This light, easygoing ale is ideal as a spring or summer beer or simply for brightening up your fall or winter.

• Make Your Best
• Golden Ale
• British-Style Ale

Oh, is it that time again? For those who want to take on the classic seasonal, this is a wonderful “first lager” if you’ve never brewed one. (And as for the British malt in a traditional German style … well, we won’t tell if you won’t.)

• Beer Recipe
• Oktoberfest
• Märzen

This is a simple yet remarkably enjoyable style that novice brewers can get right the first time—yet experienced brewers can appreciate it the 100th time and beyond.

• Beer Recipe
• Golden Ale
• British-Style Ale