Bauhaus Brew Labs – Žižkov (5.3% ABV)

Dark beer is the expectation with most winter seasonal beers, so we kick off this list with a light-bodied Czech-style dark lager from Bauhaus Brew Labs. While it’s black in color, like a stout, the beer itself is very smooth and soft on the tongue – almost creamy at times. First impressions lean toward a mix of bitter coffee-like roasted malt and semi-sweet chocolate, and the beer settles into a more chocolate-forward profile as you finish your pint. It’s dark in color, light in body, and offers a balanced blend of bitter and sweet. If that isn’t a Minneapolis winter, what is?

Bauhaus Brew Labs opened in 2014 in Northeast Minneapolis. They are known for their jovial, community-focused taproom and beer garden. Beer-wise, Bauhaus draws inspiration from German tradition and modern American craft with a broad appeal. They also serve housemade nonalcoholic beers, hard seltzers, and THC beverages. Žižkov Dark is available on draft (side pull) at the brewery and can also be found in select llquor stores and bars.

Utepils Brewing Co. – Quadriga (10.1% ABV)

Utepils’ take on the Belgian-style quad is fizzy, herbal, sweet, and hearty all in one. It is rich and bready, carefully balancing notes of multigrain bread with cardamom, candied sugar and citrus. Additional tasting notes include toffee, fruitcake, and faint caramel. While many quadrupels are defined by sweetness, Quadriga features a hearty malt base with spice and herbal flavors that set a winter-appropriate tone before it finishes with a goodnight note of candied citrus and caramel along with a wisp of cardamom and nutmeg. As it warms, the carbonation draws less attention on your tongue, replaced by the sweet and spice profile.

It is available at the Bryn-Mawr neighborhood brewery, a short hike or cross country ski from Theodore Wirth Park. The brewery also pours a sessionable Czech-style black lager called Loonar Eclipse that suits the season, with 1848 Altbier offering another unique option.

Town Hall Brewing - Elves Elixir (8.3% ABV)

Another big, bold beer with a surprisingly smooth body. This is a roast-forward Baltic porter that’s almost silky in mouthfeel, partnered with a malty flavors of coffee and chocolate with delicate cherry and red fruit dancing in the background. At standard serving temperature it begins big and malty, with more cocoa sweetness and roasted caramel coming forward as it warms toward room temperature if you choose to treat the 8.3% ABV porter as a sipping beer.

Town Hall Brewery has been a cornerstone of the local beer scene since 1997 and features a full restaurant and bar (with a wide selection of whiskies also). While Town Hall runs several pubs in town, the main brewery location offers the widest selection of beers, including the hearty but sessionable Hope & King Scotch Ale and a rotating menu of barrel aged beers that are among the best in the city.

Pryes Brewing Co. – Barrel Aged Lost Moon (12.4% ABV)

Lost Moon is an annual bourbon barrel-aged stout, a big boozy beer and winter warmer. Lost Moon offers a mellow, creamy body and big flavors of cherry, plum, and dark fruits. You’ll also pick up on a blend of chocolate, coffee, and roasty malt flavors with a discernable alcohol presence. It starts with the strong fruit flavors, merges with a smooth milk chocolate, then gives a blend of everything at the finish, along with a notable bourbon kiss at the finish.

Pryes is located along the Mississippi River near downtown and features an in-house pizza kitchen and a feather bowling lane with a multi-level restaurant meets warehouse atmosphere. The Idyll Forest sour series offers a wine-like twist and, for those who want a complex, unique winter beer with less alcohol, Peace Offering coffee stout is another winner and Blood Orange Miraculum offers a fruity alternative that still fits the season

Fair State Brewing Cooperative – Mister Falcon (7.3% ABV)

Winter beers don’t need to be dark. Mister Falcon is a hazy IPA collaboration with Barrel Theory (located in Saint Paul), showcasing three different hop varieties, and brewed with malted oats to give a thick and satisfying heavy, yet fizzy, body. It’s a very aromatic beer that gives off orange juice, melon, tropical fruit and citrus tones. The beer itself is big and flavorful, at 7.3% ABV. Initial flavors include pineapple and tropical fruit, developing into a dank finish with a hint of bitterness. While there is a big dose of the tropics, it’s a fitting winter beer with classic citrus and pine undertones that set the mood.

Fair State recently closed their Northeast taproom due to an ownership change. The brewery is currently production only, with Mister Falcon and other lagers, sour ales, IPAs, and stouts available on draft or in cans at area liquor stores, bars, and restaurants. Mister Falcon is sold in 6-packs and in the limited Hoppy Duo Pack.

Keep building your flight of winter beer...

With all the styles of beer to try, the winter is no time to hibernate. Additional beers that are perfect for the season include Breffix at Modist, Snownami at Northbound Smokehouse, plus Moon Dancer oatmeal stout at Indeed Brewing, Blood Orange Pilsner brewed by Finnegans (now found in the Fulton Taproom), or try a Winterize lager of Outlook Good Oatmeal Brown NA Surly.