Action Figures & Their Beers – The 2025 Holiday Special!

by Beedo Sookcool
on 2025-12-23, 19:23:35

MASSIVE YULETIDE WASSAILINGS!

I had originally planned to do a couple of Christmas-themed beers that I found during my grocery shopping in the run-up to Christmas and leave it at that, but I just kept finding more and more holiday-themed beers! So here it is – the largest Action Figures & Their Beers Holiday Special yet!

Now, in the past, I would normally break out one of my old Playmobil Santas, but this year, I reckon I’d go with Fresh Monkey Fiction’s “Naughty or Nice Collection” Classic Santa Claus, with the additional Accessory Set’s hooded cape and sack to turn him into a good old-fashioned pre-Coca-Cola-marketing Father Christmas. This is a great 1:12-scale Santa Claus figure. In fact, all of Fresh Monkey Fiction’s Santa, Krampus, Elf, Nutcracker, & Reindeer figures are great toys. They even do a sleigh! But, y’know, limited budgets and all that, so I just ordered two Classic Santas – one to keep as-is, one for a customising project I hope to get to before too long. This is not something I say often or lightly, but I think every toy collector should have at least one of Fresh Monkey Fiction’s Santa Claus figures in their collection, and if you’re really into Christmas, the whole line is full of good stuff. And the sack that’s included in the Accessory Set is great for holding all of his other accessories, too!

Right, let’s get MERRY . . . !

VOCATION BREWERY NAUGHTY & NICE

Vocation Brewery, the same people who brought us the delightful Life & Death IPA, have presented us with this “sweet temptation” chocolate stout. The sideways blurb on the can label reads: “Our classic velvety chocolate stout meets luscious caramel in a harmonious swirl of sweetness, that oozes decadence. A rich, roasted malt base layered with sweet sticky caramel and silky chocolate. A sweet temptation that is impossible to resist.” Very true, because as soon as I saw it on the shelf, I instantly put two in my shopping basket.

This is some GOOOOOOOOD STUFF! It is indeed rich, thick, luscious, and velvety. You can absolutely taste the chocolate and caramel. There’s just the tiniest tinge of burnt in the tail-end of the aftertaste, but c’mon; it’s a stout. Ya gotta expect that to some degree. And, as a result, the burnt combines with the caramel to make a cinder-toffee flavour, and along with the chocolate component, it makes the beer taste like a Cadbury’s Crunchie. A 6.6% ABV brew, it’ll get you a bit merry on an empty stomach if you have one, but it’s not going to lay you out if you’re a seasoned tippler. Seasoned . . . Christmas – you see what I did there? Yeah, I think maybe this one is creeping up on me.

Drink this if you also like: Chocolate stouts, dessert beers, Cadbury’s Crunchies, or any other version of the chocolate & caramel combo.

LYME BAY WINERY CHRISTMAS MEAD

Not a beer, but I’m including it, anyway. Lyme Bay Winery has apparently diversified its meads since I was last home in England (2022), adding some fruit flavours to their selection. But this time, we’re going to focus on their Christmas Mead. In largish letters on the front, it proudly proclaims “with festive spices,” but it’s not flavour-blasted with nutmeg or anything like that. (Several thousand miles away, in a cabin in the woods, Jon Townsend’s ears perk up at the mention of nutmeg.) The spices lend a more subdued herby and spicy note to the flavour. Balanced against the sweetness of the honey, the two aspects mellow each other out, so what you mainly get is just sweetness with subtle versions of the festive flavours. On the whole, it’s sweeter than any other mead of theirs that I’ve tried. And at 10% ABV, it’s also their weakest mead in their line that I’ve ever had. But it’s still excellent!

Drink this if you also like: Mead, honey, festive drinks, or sherry.

HOGS BACK SURREY FARM BREWERY MISTLETOE AND SWINE

A 4.2% ABV ale, “Mistletoe and Swine is a full-bodied, deep amber ale, with warming hints of sultana, ginger, cinnamon and orange zest, brewed to a mulling recipe for a real Christmas taste and feel.” Well, that’s what the label says, anyway. I dunno if I just got a duff bottle, but I really didn’t get much of any of those flavours. Drunk, cold it’s . . . an ale with a slight generic tang in the aftertaste. Then I got a phone call, forgot about it for an hour, and when I went back to drink the rest of it, it was just below room-temperature, and it tasted a bit fruitier, with a slight suggestion of spice in the flavour. That’s not to say it’s a bad ale; far from it. It’s actually really pleasant and mellow. It’s just not the Christmassy flavour blast that was promised, is all. I’d happily drink it again, but I’d do so without expecting much in the way of festive spices. If there’re any left after the holiday season, I’ll probably pick up a few more.

Drink this if you also like: Real Ales, red ales, amber ales, mildly fruity ales.

ADNAM’S WINTER ALE

From the same brewery that brought us Spindrift, Ghost Ship, and Broadside, this one is exclusive to Marks & Spencer, apparently. It’s another 4.2% ABV “Festive & Fruity” seasonal ale, made “with dark malty grains for a rich fruity depth” The label says to “Serve chilled but not too cold to appreciate all the flavours.” In addition to malted barley, it’s also got malted rye in it. On the back, there’s a blurb that says “About this beer: This easy-drinking ale is brewed specially for the festive season using English ingredients. Double roasted crystal malts and First Gold hops create lovely aromas and flavours of fruitcake and prunes.” Well, it does do that. Also: “The rich fruitiness of this beer goes beautifully with cold meats or strong English cheeses like a traditional cheddar.” And that’s also true.

The problem is, it’s a bit too thin and watery to feel like you’re drinking a Real Ale, and the bitter aftertaste – probably from the rye – is too strong and lingers too long for it to be thoroughly enjoyable. And yes, as it warmed up, the flavour profile and fruitiness of the malts got stronger, but unfortunately, so did the sour aftertaste. I could not finish the bottle, and I will not be buying this again.

Drink this if you also like: Red beers, fruity beers, prunes, bitters, sours.

SALTAIRE BREWERY WHITE CHRISTMAS

Saltaire Brewery Ltd of Shipley, West Yorkshire, made this “refreshing, lightly hopped pale infused with orange peel and coriander seeds for a deliciously festive twist,” according to the nasty, rough-feeling label. So if you don’t like coriander (or cilantro as the Spanish call it), you might not like this beer. But I love coriander, so how does that affect my views on this 4.8% ABV beer?

It’s on the sweet side. And it has a somewhat thin and watery mouthfeel compared to most of the other brews in this review. There is a fruity aspect to its flavour, and a bit of spice, but the coriander isn’t exactly bashing me over the head; it’s just a bit herbaceous. But it is indeed lightly-hopped, and is therefore nicely low-key and smooth, with the fruit aspect just being a quiet little aftertaste that fades to a mouth-watering tingle. It’s a nice little drop, but it’s not lighting my world on fire. If I were offered some at a party, I’d happily drink it, but I don’t think I’ll ever go out of my way to track down any more.

Drink this if you also like: Mellow ales, lightly fruited ales, botanical flavours.

GREENE KING ROCKING RUDOPLH

This is only the second Greene King ale I’ve been able to find and review since Greene King Very Special IPA, thirteen years ago, so I was really looking forward to reviewing this one, since their Very Special IPA was one of the few IPAs I’ve drunk over the years that I thoroughly enjoyed and weren’t face-puckering bile-bombs. (At least, without being aged and mellowed for several months beforehand.) There’s not much to read on the label, but it does say “A full-bodied malted & fruity Christmas ale, with a refreshing bitter finish.” Personally, I don’t think I’d ever call a bitter finish “refreshing,” but we’ll have to see about that . . . .

It’s got a good, thick, heavy, feeling (but lighter than that of a stout), like a proper Real Ale should have. It’s definitely malty, with a suggestion of fruit and spice. It’s as if you took the smell of Christmas pudding, and made it a flavour. And that “bitter finish” barely shows up. You get a slightly bitter aftertaste that lingers for a few seconds, then fades to mouth-watering. That’s it. It’s not colossally flavour-blasted; it’s just a really nice ale with subtle flavours. At 4.2% ABV (the third brew of such potency in this review), you’re not going to get smashed on one of these, even on an empty stomach, but it’ll make for a decent session ale. If there are any more left after Christmas, I’ll probably buy a few more. This’d go really well with a cheese plate, I’m thinking.

Drink this if you also like: Real Ales, session ales, fruity ales, red ales.

JIDDLER’S TIPPLE SWISS ROLL STOUT

I’m throwing this in with the Christmas brews for two reasons: 1) its holiday release timing, and 2) a Yule log is basically just an oversized Swiss Roll with chocolate cream inside instead of vanilla.

The appalling sandpaper-like label on this 5.1% ABV offering from Jiddler’s Tipple says that this beer contains water, malted barley, wheat, oats, glycerin, yeast, hops, chocolate, and vanilla. “Indulge in the rich, velvety embrace of our luxurious Swiss Roll Stout. It takes all the joy of the classic chocolate dessert and rolls it into a luxuriously smooth and comforting beer. You’ll be greeted by a warming aroma of roasted malt and dark chocolate, followed by sweet vanilla and caramel. There are notes of sponge cake and fluffy pastry, all wrapped up with a smooth, creamy finish. It has just the right amount of sweetness, and a swirl of nostalgia in every sip. Cheers!” It also says: “Custard serving not included.” Heh. And finally, a mission statement: “At Jiddler’s Tipple, we make inclusive, delicious, and eco-friendly beer. Our beers are vegan, gluten-free, made with 40% solar power and carbon negative. They are also wrapped in vintage shirt patterns do they look as good as they taste!”

This stuff is very nice, indeed. It’s not completely chocolate-flavoured; the usual burnt tinge of stouts gives this one a bit of a coffee-like taste component, which is not unpleasant. Otherwise, it’s smooth and chocolatey with a vanilla note, as one would hope from something that’s supposed to taste like a Swiss Roll. Didn’t really notice much in the way of caramel, sponge cake, and fluffy pastry, to be honest. But I’d absolutely drink it again, which is why I bought several cans of it.

Drink this if you also like: Stouts, chocolate stouts, dessert stouts, milk stouts, coffee stouts.

VAULT CITY GINGERBREAD LATTE

This whopping 11% ABV Imperial Stout by Vault City Brewing in Edinburgh took me by surprise. I haven’t touched on this brewery before, because they tout themselves as a company that does fruit-forward sours and goses and NONE of that appeals to me in the slightest. But then I saw this stuff in the supermarket, and had to try it. And upon visiting their website, it looks like they also do an impressive array of dessert stouts, including this seasonal offering, so if I can’t find any of those in the local shops, I may have to start stocking an online shopping cart!

“Velvety. Spiced. Indulgent. A smooth, full-bodied stout fit for the season featuring chocolate malt, oats, and creamy vanilla for a luscious velvety mouthfeel. Additions of brown sugar creates delicate sweetness while subtle coffee notes meld with cosy, warming spices of cinnamon and ginger rounding out each sip.” Sounded fantastic!

And it is. Oh, boy, is it ever! This is in the Southern Tier . . . um . . . tier . . . of dessert stout. The flavours are complex, and while they all work extremely well together, you can still pick them out individually over the course of a mouthful. This is one of those beers where if I gave myself free rein to wax rhapsodic to the scope I feel this product deserves, you’d think they were paying me six figures to do so. But they aren’t paying me at all. It’s just that good, and it deserves all the exposure it can get. Highest recommendation!

Drink this if you also like: Dessert stouts, coffee stouts, chocolate stouts, gingerbread, smooth stouts, excellence in brewing.

So here it is: Merry Christmas, everybody – and if you don’t celebrate it for whatever reason, have a great couple of days, anyway!