From Colorado to Puerto Rico and back: welcoming the return of Winterfest beer and other seasonal brews.

• Author: Dedrick, Jay
• Position: DEDRICK [on beer] - Column

So when does the holiday season arrive, anyway? For me, the season begins when I can order a winter beer at the neighborhood tavern, or pick up a limited-edition six-pack at the liquor store. The season starts in early November, and picks up momentum through December, as breweries roll out some of their best sellers of the year.

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I had my first taste of seasonal beer in the late '80s, when the Coors family decided to begin paekaging and selling what traditionally had only been shared with friends and employees. Winterfest was a creamy, malty, amber ale, a not-too-heavy winter warmer that quickly made a lot of fans in Colorado - the only place where it was first offered.

Over the years, as the craft beer revolution took hold, most every brewery seemed to offer its own version of a winter-only brew. That led to the rise of seasonals, which has become one of the most popular craft-beer segments. In that crowded market, Winterfest's profile dipped, even after getting to the point where it was sold across the country.

One year, Winterfest was sold only in bomber bottles, looking nothing like the six-packs that preceded it. Then, two years ago, Coors' Blue Moon line introduced its own winter beer - and Winterfest was gone. It was absent last year, too, at least around here.

It turns out Coors still was brewing Winterfest in very limited quantities, mainly as a way of protecting the trademark. It showed up on bar taps, but never in stores. One year, Puerto Rico was the only place on the planet where Winterfest was sold.

This year, Winterfest is back where it belongs. It's only available in 12-ounce bottles, and only sold in Colorado. A six-pack runs about $9.

Glenn Knippenberg, president of AC Golden Brewing Co., gets credit for the return. This summer he asked colleagues at MillerCoors what their plans were for the brand. None, he was told - they were going to focus on core brands such as Coors Light and Miller Genuine Draft.

"I asked, 'Would you mind if I did it?' They said, 'Have at it," Knippenberg said. "You wouldn't believe the following there is for Winterfest in Colorado"

It makes sense that AC Golden, a craft-style Coors enterprise whose only other product so far is Herman Joseph's Private Reserve, would recognize beer drinkers' thirst for rare beer in rarefied air. But even the Boston Beer Co., brewer of Samuel Adams, targeted Colorado as its only non-New England market for the rollout of a new line of...