This Christmas beer started way back in the summer of 2013, when the Hofstetten Brewery got together with Brauerei Shilling to make this special brew.

 

 

That same year, we managed to score two port barrels from NIEPOORT (Vilanova de Gaia, Portugal), one of the most legendary traditional port wine houses in Portugal. This highly-rated port wine was left to age in the barrels for years, developing complexity and maturity. The moment the Niepoort Port was emptied from the barrels, they were expedited to us at Hofstetten. Though initially we were unsure what we would fill them with, the moment we saw how well our Christmas Beer (our 1st Austrian Collaboration Brew) had developed, the decision was clear.

 

 

660 liters of the Christmas Beer were then lagered for over a year in the Niepoort barrels and are now available to you in one of our limited edition bottles.

 

 

The result: A refined, glimmering, red-tinted sour beer. Intense wood notes combine with the fruity aromas of port wine and stone fruits, and the fine carbonation acts as the perfect carrier for the hoppy bitterness. The spices added during the brewing process round out the flavor profile, making for a wonderfully complex drinking experience.

 

This version of our Christmas Beer finishes with a pleasantly balanced acidity on the palate.