Sleigh'R Winter Ale

Review Date 12/3/2025 By John Staradumsky

  Style: Altbier   Brewery: Ninkasi   Country: USA   State: Oregon   $ Per OZ: $.17   ABV: 7.2%

Back in February of 2023, I bought a bottle of Ninkasi Sleigh’R Winter Ale from Craftshack. It was kind of a late offering from them, what with Christmas being over and all, but that was OK. I had never had it, I love Christmas ales, and so I bought one. I did not hold on to it long, drinking it on March 6^th of that year.

As I always do, I took tasting notes on the beer but never fleshed them out into a review for this illustrious website. As I was searching for a photo of a beer I drank in March of 2023 (Saranac Adirondack Lager if you must know), I noticed pictures of Ninkasi Sleigh’R in the same folder, checked my website for a review, found none there, and so here I am.

Ninkasi says:

Dive headfirst into the deep, dark allure of Ninkasi Sleigh’r Winter Ale. With a robust 7.2% ABV, experience a symphony of rich malty notes, countered by hints of seasonal spices and a subtle hoppy bitterness. This is not your grandma’s winter brew – it’s an audacious embrace of winter’s chill, crafted for those who relish the cold. Can you handle the flavor avalanche?

Ninkasi Sleigh’R Winter Ale has 60 IBUs. I paid $4.99 for my bottle from Craftshack. As I type, Total Wine sells it for $11.99 a six-pack in Vancouver, Washington. Not a bad price at all. Stylistically, I peg this as an altbier, albeit a very strong one.

Ninkasi Sleigh’R Winter Ale pours to a dark brown color with a thick creamy tan head and a nose of sweet chocolaty malts. Taking a sip, the beer is luscious with dark nutty malt. There are hints of chocolate and toffee, toasty hazelnut, and roast. The beer finishes with a drying grassy bitterness and roasted malt.

Ninkasi Sleigh’R Winter Ale is a malt lovers delight, and a beer I would certainly drink again.

Glad I tried it?  T

Would I rebuy it??