So many craft beers, so little time…With so many craft breweries, releasing so many beers, we thought it might help to provide a weekly update on all the new beers that are hitting the streets …..So welcome to this week’s “Winter’s Coming” edition of Newbies – your guide to great new craft beer releases!

Hoppy Holidays! Thanksgiving always marks the start of the winter holiday season…. Christmas trees start appearing on cars and holiday beers start showing up at retail…One of our favorites is out there now – Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale. A lot of winter seasonals tend towards the strong and the sweet, Celebration’s different. As far as we know, it’s the only fresh hop holiday ale out there and that alone makes it unique. The 2012 Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale is (at least to our taste) a little rounder at the back end then last year’s and weighs in at 6.8% ABV…We think Sierra Nevada brews up one of the best and most dependable Holiday releases out there – It’s already made its way into the American Craft Beer offices and we’re happy it’s here.

It’s a draft only release but it’s from the DC Brau Boys so we’re interested and you should be too. Washington-based DC Brau Brewing Company has just announced the release of The Rider. It’s a West Coast red brewed using Belgian yeast and Simcoe Hops and it sounds awesome. Look for The Rider to make its debut during DC Brau’s “Growler Hours” around December 1^st and to start hitting capital city taps the following week.

The Deschutes Brewery invites you to look into The Abyss and we suggest we do. It’s the seventh release of The Abyss, which first hit in 2006, and it just keeps getting better and better The Abyss 2012 Reserve is a serious Imperial Stout and it’s the heart and soul of the Deschutes Brewery’s Reserve Series. This Abyss has already won more awards than we can count and is currently available in 22-ounce wax-dipped bottles and draft. The 2012 clocks in at an unapologetic 11% ABV – so be forewarned!

If special releases with long names equate to how good they actually are then Goose Island Beer Company has a smash on its hands. Goose Island Cherry Rye Bourbon County Brand Stout started making its way out into the Greater Chicago market just before Thanksgiving. Its super-limited and appropriately pricey with some are retailers selling it for $ 45 a bottle.

What is it about brewers in Bend, Oregon…how come they’re all so good? One of our favorite Bend-based brewers 10 Barrel Brewing Company just released Pray for Snow Winter Ale last Friday and we can’t wait to get our hands on it! This is the third time they’ve released this winter seasonal and they’re saying that it’s their best ever! Pray for Snow is big and rich with a fruit hop kiss and is available in 6-packs and 22oz bottles as well as draft.

Winners from the 2012 European Beer Star competitions in Nuremberg, Germany were announced last week and Twisted Pine Brewing Company’s celebrated winter seasonal, Northstar Imperial Porter, was awarded a bronze in the Baltic-Style Porter category. This Baltic Porter is big creamy and strong. It’s weighs in at an unforgiving 9.1% ABV and should be hitting the streets around December 7th this year. Look for it on draft and in 22 ounce bombers – this one’s killer and worth chasing down!