CLEVELAND — Great Lakes Brewing Company tapped its fresh batch of 2019 Christmas Ale today in Ohio City, and the whole holiday crew was there, including Santa Claus, carolers and a DJ.
It’s estimated that a pint of Christmas ale is poured every five seconds for 12 hours straight at the brewery’s annual first pour event. Last year alone, there were 7,533 pints of the mildly sweet ale served on the day the kegs were tapped.
GLBC has been using the same recipe to brew the holiday staple since 1992, which includes over 6,660 pounds each of ginger and cinnamon plus over 2,000 pounds of honey from St. Charles, Michigan, communications direction Adam Ritterspach told 3News’ Stephanie Haney on Thursday.
The adult beverage pairs well with “roast duck, spiced desserts and ugly Christmas sweaters,” according to GLBC.
Guests at the tapping were able to buy as much Christmas Ale as they could drink from the tap, but everyone will have to wait until Friday to purchase bottles and kegs exclusively in the GLBC gift shop. By Monday, bottles and kegs of Christmas Ale will start popping up in stores.
GLBC has partnered with Lyft for the special occasion to help fans of the brew drink responsibly by offering 20 percent off of Lyft rides today between 11:30 A.M. and 11:30 P.M. by using the code 2019ChristmasAle.
Watch all the fun from today’s unofficial start to the holiday season in Cleveland in the video here, and catch the full episode of Lunch Break with Jay Crawford in the player below:
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