Winter is coming, and Flying Dog Brewery has announced the release of the latest addition to its lineup of seasonal beers — Freezin’ Season Winter Ale. Freezin’ Season, the perfect wintertime belly warmer, replaces K-9, Flying Dog’s previous winter seasonal.
Born Winter, 2021. Flying Dog’s brewers have done it again, creating a unique winter ale that derives its rich fruity flavors from the English Ale yeast strain used. With an aroma reminiscent of baked cherry pie and dark fruit flavors on top of a malty backbone, and an ABV of 7.4%, Freezin’ Season is like a warm hug in a bottle after a cold day of embarrassing near-slips on black ice.
However, it was banned in North Carolina. The Freezin’ Season label features art from the world-renowned illustrator Ralph Steadman, as do all Flying Dog’s labels. This time it’s a cartoon figure warming its bones around a campfire. Bewilderingly, at the end of July, Flying Dog was notified that the North Carolina ABC Commission blocked the sale of Freezin’ Season because the ABC Commission thought it was in “bad taste”. Not surprisingly, Flying Dog, defiantly opposed to both censorship and authoritarians, and a resolute defender of free expression and immediately filed a lawsuit against the North Carolina ABC Commission for what it considered to be a blatant violation of its 1st Amendment rights. Shortly thereafter, the ABC Commission, for the first time ever, reversed its decision and approved Freezin’ Season for sale in North Carolina.
Good Beer, No Censorship. While the Flying Dog controversy in North Carolina centers on Ralph Steadman art on a beer label, Flying Dog’s lawsuit is about defending the First Amendment against bureaucrats who want to censor whatever they personally dislike based on whim and personal preference. “Though Freezin’ Season is now legal in North Carolina, the lawsuit will continue until North Carolina strikes the allegedly unconstitutional law from its books. This should come as good news for North Carolina beer lovers who have been deprived of more than 200 beers over the years because the ABC Commission has made it illegal for breweries to sell those beers in the state”, said Flying Dog CMO Ben Savage.
“While you’re sitting next to a roaring campfire savoring a Freezin’ Season Winter Ale, rest assured that the spirited team at Flying Dog will continue to fight back against censorship and to defend the 1st Amendment”, said Flying Dog CEO Jim Caruso.
Freezin’ Season Winter Ale will be sold in 6-packs of 12 oz. bottles and will start appearing on shelves by mid-October in all states where Flying Dog is available. Consumers are encouraged to visit the brewery’s Beer Finder to locate inventory near them: flyingdog.com/beer-finder.
