Beerista: Break out the bubbly – no wait, please don’t

Why do people drink fizzy stuff on special occasions? Somebody, somewhere seems to have decreed a sort of social edict that says without popping the cork of a bottle of Champagne or Cava or Prosecco, it’s not really a celebration.

So the minute any whisper of an announcement or good news goes around, the mandatory Champagne flutes come out for speeches and well wishes, even if everyone is perfectly happy sipping away on some other fine beverage.

I know I’m being a bit of a grouch, but if I never drink another glass of fizzy white wine in my life I think I’d be okay. Really okay.

But that’s not saying I don’t like bottles of bubbly – of the beer kind, of course – or having something special for this time of the year. So here’s a few alternatives to the usual Christmas fizz.

Matured

Deus is a beer brewed in Flanders and matured in the Champagne region of France. It comes in 750ml bottles and is a little pricey (about €22). It's crisp, dry and fruity (think peaches, white grapes) and has a kind of balanced complexity that builds as you drink though not in an intense way, even at 11.5 per cent.

This being a beer column and all, I thought I’d throw in a cider – but for the best of reasons. I recently tried Cockagee, which is made in Meath and has won many awards, and reckon it deserves special occasion status.

It’s delicate, gently carbonated and will work with canapes, fish starters or a cheese plate. Like the Deus, you can serve in Champagne flutes.

8 Degrees’ 6.4 per cent Fearless Farmhouse Ale was aged in Burgundy chardonnay oak barrels. Made with a distinctive, fruity saison yeast, it’s lightly citrus, dry and with many vinous characteristics.

Serve it in stemmed glasses with Christmas dinner and all its flavours will stand up to – but not overpower – turkey, cranberries, Brussels sprouts, the works.

@ITbeerista beerista@irishtimes.com