Hogs Back Brewery is getting ready for Christmas! The Tongham brewery is brewing a trio of festive beers, available now from the Brewery Shop and Tap as well as local pubs. For anyone after some festive fun in the brewery, ‘Winter Wonderland’ nights in December offer delicious food, drink and a crowd-pleasing disco.
Newly brewed for this Christmas is Fairy Tale of New Pork, a 4% ABV amber ale available on draught. Brewed with authentic beechwood smoked German malt, English pale and crystal malts, it has flavours of cinder toffee, caramel, biscuit and warm smokiness.
Fairy Tale of New Pork joins two returning seasonal favourites: Mistletoe & Swine, a 4.2% ABV, full-bodied cask ale with subtle hints of sultana, peppery ginger, warm cinnamon and orange zest and Advent Ale, a 4.4% deep chestnut ale with notes of sweet liquorice and rich dark chocolate aftertaste, which is available in bottle as well as on draught – making the perfect stocking filler for a beer lover!
Also back by popular demand is the Hogs Back & Friends Advent Calendar, containing 24 bottles and cans of Hogs Back favourites Tongham TEA and Hogstar lager, as well as beers from brewery ‘friends’ such as Phantom Brewing, Siren and Bristol Beer Factory, and a pint glass. The perfect countdown to Christmas for beer fans, the calendars are available to buy from the brewery until the end of November.
Fun on Tap
The brewery’s Tap has become a destination for great beer, food and regular performances from local bands. From 1 December, it will become a party space every Friday and Saturday night, offering a range of menus – including vegan options – and drinks packages to suit every taste and budget. And with a DJ playing all the hits through til midnight, it’s a great way to celebrate the party season with friends or work colleagues. Book your table and dust off your dancing shoes now!
Other festive events at the Tap include the popular Carol Service with the Friary Brass Band, on Sunday 3 December, and a special family-friendly Charity Quiz on Thursday 21 December. Or just book a Tap table with friends for any night and enjoy a Snorter – a refillable glass flagon containing 31/2 pints of any of Hogs Back’s festive or year-round favourites, fresh from the brewery.
And for designated drivers or those wanting to take a break from drinking, Hogs Back’s Little Swine 0.5% is a full-bodied, flavourful pale ale. Brewed with speciality malts and three hop varieties including Cascade from Hogs Back’s hop garden, Little Swine allows offers all the taste of a full-strength beer, without the alcohol. Available in 330ml bottles from the Tap or Brewery Shop.
Managing director Rupert Thompson said: “The run up to Christmas is always a busy time for us: we’re brewing flat out to meet demand from pubs and customers in our Shop, and at the same time we’re hosting parties and other events in the Tap. There’s always a great atmosphere with many of our regular drinkers popping in to pick up supplies for their celebrations at home, or to meet friends for a drink.
“We’ll have to see what impact the cost-of-living crisis has on Christmas at Hogs Back, but we hope most people will feel that a pint or two of their favourite local beer is a festive treat they can still afford.”
For more details on events at the Hogs Back Tap, visit https://hogsback.co.uk/collections/events. The Brewery Shop will be open for extended hours from December, for details visit: https://hogsback.co.uk/pages/brewery-shop
