Deschutes Brewery releasing barrel-aged Jubelale with cherries
It’s hard to believe, but we are only weeks away from winter seasonals like Deschutes Brewery’s fan favorite Jubelale. The Bend, Oregon based brewery has been making this robust but easy drinking winter warmer for over three decades, but this year they are putting a cherry on top.
Jubelale is one of the oldest winter seasonals still being produced today, a bona-fide classic that has been getting Oregonians primed for colder weather for the last 34 years. While these days most winter seasonals tend to be simply stronger West Coast IPA’s the Jubelale has remained a throwback to when the winter called for more malty and darker ales with a bit of heft to them. Many of these real vintage beers like the OG Anchor Christmas Ale sprinkled (or dumped) a boat load of holiday spices, but Jubelale has stayed defiantly spice free since the beginning (though some people swear it has some) it’s flavors of toffee and dusted cocoa come from the malt and hops alone. Fun fact: Jubelale was the first beer ever packaged from Deschutes when brewers hand filled bottles off the taps at the original Bond St. pub in 1988.
Over the years there have been rare alternate variations of Jubelale that were spiced, brewed stronger, and even barrel-aged, so the 2021 addition of Cherries Jubelale is not completely unprecedented. But from my knowledge this is the first time one of those alternate Jubelale’s will be made in large enough quantities to distribute in 4-packs.
Cherries Jubelale is based on the original Jubel alternate which you may have been lucky enough to try under the name Super Jubel in years past. Not only is this sweeter and dessert-inspired inspired rendition injected with cherry, but spiced with vanilla and aged in red wine barrels. The Cherries Jubelale is rich with added alcoholic strength, and barrel-aged complexity over malty decadence.
Cherries Jubelale will drop a little later in the season, arriving ahead of Thanksgiving in early November with 4-packs of 12oz bottles available across the Deschutes distribution footprint in early November. This 10% ABV beer will retail for a bargain price of $11.99 a 4-pack, or $3 a bottle.
Fear not, fans of the original recipe Jubelale, because it remains untouched other than the annual refresh of packaging design. This years artwork created by Stephanie Littlebird Fogel, and for the second time ever available in cans! 12-packs of cans are scheduled for a late September release across the distribution footprint 6.7% ABV | 65 IBUs | 6 pack bottles ($9.50) & 12 pack cans ($18.50), draft