January is the start of the new year. While some might be taking the month off and opting for a “dry January,” this isn’t the case at Uproxx. We’re excited to sip the new beers and seasonal releases that January has to offer. It’s a great month to be a beer fan too, as it’s a month with a nice mix of darker beers to warm your bones as well as hoppy, lighter beers to make you forget about the frigid temperatures outside.
In that vein, we want to help you start your beer game on the right foot in 2023. That’s why we’ve decided to make a list of our ten favorite beers to track down this month. Some are bigger name bangers, others are lesser-known brands doing big things. All are delicious and well-suited for January drinking.
Keep reading to see all of our New Year / New You picks.
Ecliptic Parsec
ABV: 6.5%
Average Price: Limited Availability
The Beer:
For those unaware, a parsec is a unit of measurement for galaxies by astronomers. You might remember it from when Han Solo claimed the Millennium Falcon “made the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs.” Ecliptic Parsec is a hazy grapefruit IPA brewed with Cashmere and Citra hops as well as real grapefruit.
Tasting Notes:
Bold aromas of stone fruits, grapefruit, and other citrus fruits greet you before your first sip. This is carried on in the hazy, juicy palate with tart grapefruit paired with other citrus fruits and lightly bitter, herbal hops.
Bottom Line:
This bright juicy, citrus-filled IPA is a great respite from the bold, dark, malty beers of the winter months.
Tröegs Nugget Nectar
ABV: 7.5%
Average Price: $11.99 for a six-pack
The Beer:
It’s that time of year again. Tröegs is once again releasing its wildly popular imperial amber ale called Nugget Nectar. Brewed with ale yeast as well as Munich, Pilsner, and Vienna malts, it gets its hoppy, dank, fruity flavor from the addition of Nugget, Warrior, Tomahawk, Simcoe, and Palisade hops.
Tasting Notes:
The nose is all caramel malts, candied orange peels, and dank, resinous pine. It’s a very inviting beer. The palate continues this trend with caramelized pineapple, sweet malts, citrus peels, and more dank, herbal, earthy pine at the finish. A slight kick of hop bitterness greets you at the end.
Bottom Line:
There’s a reason people eagerly await this beer each winter. It’s a sweet, malty beer with a wintry explosion of hops.
Flying Dog Cream Team
ABV: 9.5%
Average Price: $16.99 for a six-pack
The Beer:
Do you enjoy dipping your favorite cookies into a big glass of milk? Well, the folks at Flying Dog do as well. That’s why they created this cookies and cream milk stout to taste exactly that way. They did this by brewing it with oats, chocolate malts, and roasted barley as well as lactose and chocolate.
Tasting Notes:
This beer is chocolate through and through. The nose begins with sweet milk chocolate but moves into some roasted malt and dried fruit aromas well. The palate adds to this with lactose sweetness, chocolate fudge, raisins, and lightly roasted malts. It’s creamy, sweet, and very indulgent.
Bottom Line:
The brewers at Flying Dog attempted to make a beer that tasted like milk and cookies in beer form and that’s precisely what they did.
Firestone Walker Wookey Jack
ABV: 8.3%
Average Price: $12 for a four-pack
The Beer:
This popular black rye IPA is brewed with Pale malt, malted rye, Cara-rye, Midnight wheat, and de-bittered black malt. It gets its hop aroma and flavor from the addition of Amarillo and Citra hops. It’s known for its mix of rye, roasted malts, and hops.
Tasting Notes:
This doesn’t smell at all like an IPA and that’s to be expected. There are a ton of roasted malts up front along with some dried fruits and coffee. The palate begins with more roasted malts, caramel, fresh, resinous pine, and just a hint of rye spice at the very end.
Bottom Line:
If you’re an IPA fan looking for something dark and a little spicier for the winter months, you have to try Firestone Walker Wookey Jack. You’ll be glad you did.
Shiner Trail Ale
ABV: 6%
Average Price: $10.99 for a six-pack
The Beer:
When we go hiking or camping, we like to bring trail mix. You know, that nut, dried fruit, and candy-filled treat. The brewers at Shiner decided to take this iconic hiking snack and turn it into a beer. Originally only available in its Bonfire Brewski variety pack, this beer brewed with nuts, dried fruit, and chocolate is available on its own.
Tasting Notes:
Caramel malts, dark chocolate, dried fruit, and slightly nutty aromas abound on this beer’s nose. Drinking it only adds to this with more sweet malts, bitter chocolate, candied nuts, and dried fruit. The finish is dry and slightly salty in the best way possible.
Bottom Line:
A lot of brewers try to make a beer taste like a certain dessert or snack and don’t really do it justice. This beer literally tastes like a trail mix magically turned into a beer.
Montauk Palm Tree Winter
ABV: 6.9%
Average Price: Limited Availability
The Beer:
Montauk doesn’t care that it’s winter. This is why the popular brewery is launching a beer called Montauk Palm Tree Winter this month. This 6.9% ABV tropical IPA is brewed with 2-row malts and oats as well as Strata and Mosaic hops.
Tasting Notes:
A mix of tropical fruits, citrus, and herbal, earthy pine greet you before your first sip. Drinking it takes you far away from the winter wind to a tropical paradise filled with pineapple, grapefruit, tangerines, and slightly bitter, herbal, floral pine.
Bottom Line:
This tropical IPA is like taking a winter vacation to an island paradise with every sip. Seek it out if you can find it.
Lord Hobo Atomic Insomniac
ABV: 7.5%
Average Price: Limited Availability
The Beer:
This 7.5% ABV coffee milk stout is perfectly suited for these cold winter days January has to offer. This coffee and chocolate-filled stout gets much of its flavor from the addition of locally sourced real cold brew coffee from Atomic Coffee Roasters. Lactose gives it a creamy, memorable mouthfeel.
Tasting Notes:
Roasted malts, chocolate fudge, and freshly brewed coffee are big aromas on the nose. Sipping it only adds to this. It’s sublimely warming and loaded with sweet malts, roasted grains, caramel, dark chocolate, and bold, more potent coffee.
Bottom Line:
Chocolate, coffee, and roasted malts all together in one delicious beer. What’s not to love?
Great Lakes Conway’s Irish Ale
ABV: 6.3%
Average Price: $10.99 for a six-pack
The Beer:
This popular Irish ale drops to eager beer fans every January. Named for one of Great Lake’s founders’ grandfathers, this award-winning Irish ale is brewed with 2-row and Crystal 77 malts as well as Mt. Hood, Northern Brewer, and Willamette hops.
Tasting Notes:
Caramel, toasted malts, and yeast are prevalent on the nose. They’re simple but very inviting. The palate is filled with more toffee, toasted malts, cereal grains, and floral, earthy, herbal hops. It’s well-balanced between malts and hops.
Bottom Line:
This sweet, lightly hoppy beer is smooth, easy to drink, and great for a relaxing winter evening.
Switchback Dooley’s Belated Porter
ABV: 5.7%
Average Price: Limited Availability
The Beer:
This popular porter from the brewers at Vermont’s Switchback is known for being unfiltered and for its natural carbonation. Named for the first employee ever hired at Switchback, Dooley’s Belated Porter is brewed with roasted and caramelized malts as well as flaked barley and Simcoe hops. It’s being released in 16-ounce cans for the first time this month.
Tasting Notes:
Before your first sip, you’re treated to aromas of dark chocolate, roasted malts, caramel, and dried fruits. Drinking it reveals vanilla beans, candied nuts, bitter chocolate, roasted malts, and more dried fruits. It’s a nice mix of bitter chocolate and candied sweetness.
Bottom Line:
January is a great month to enjoy a sweet, robust porter. We suggest continuing this trend by grabbing a four-pack of these 16-ounce cans.
Wild Leap SouthDown
ABV: 9%
Average Price: Limited Availability
The Beer:
Carrying on the tradition that brewers either drop a very dark, malty beer or a fruity, piney IPA during the dark winter months, Wild Leap Southdown Double IPA is a Pina Colada-inspired beer. It’s brewed with “coconut and citrus-forward” hops as well as toasted coconut in the mash and finished with lime and pineapple puree.
Tasting Notes:
The nose is a mix of toasted coconut, grapefruit, orange, pineapple, and gentle, earthy pine. The flavor is highlighted by tangerine, grapefruit, freshly baked bread, toasted coconut, pineapple, and a slightly bitter, floral, piney finish.
Bottom Line:
Beers that taste like other things seem to be hot in January. This Pina Colada-inspired IPA tastes exactly as it intends, and you don’t even need a blender to make it.
