Although we celebrate holidays throughout the year, we reserve the term "holiday season" for that belt-busting period between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day when we channel the time and energy normally given to work into the rewarding pursuits of eating and drinking with family and friends. And with Hanukkah just ending, the next milestone on this year’s calendar is Christmas Eve. For beer lovers, this is a prime opportunity to enjoy the dark and hearty ales that traditionally mark this occasion.

As San Francisco’s Belgian Beer month winds down, it’s a good time to consider a growing trend: The small but increasing number of brewers who are flipping the old adage about how it takes a lot of beer to make a great wine. These inventive brewmasters are using wine (in the form of fresh juice or crushed grapes) to make great beers, which are mostly Saisons. The resulting genre-busting, lightly hopped, beer-wine hybrids are yet another delicious foray into the ever expanding world of craft beer.

The roasted meats and seasonal root vegetables that traditionally cover fall tables are best enjoyed with beers that are also tied to the season. Pilsners and other summertime lagers are replaced with maltier, richer and more complex brews as the days get shorter. And while pumpkin ales are popular this time of year, several other beer styles complement the foods of the season just as well.

The first Oktoberfest was held 1810 as public celebration for a royal Bavarian wedding. In the ensuing two hundred years it has morphed into what’s been called the largest secular celebration on Earth. Its growing popularity has been fueled by pork, potato pancakes, the chicken dance, and lots of beer. As with other holidays, we Bay area residents put our own spin on the festivities.