Am I too late for a good christmas ale brew ??

Was reading a thread on christmas ale brew, it seems interesting but I need info...

Why do you guys all start brewing christmas beer in agust or september ??

Is it because it is a long beer to condition ??

There seems to be alot of spices in the beer do they need to sit for a while to develope even better ??

I usualy do 30 days in primary and 30 days in keg at 12 psi before drinking...

Will this method change with christmas brew ??

Thanks

To me, a good Christmas brew will be a dark beer (I think dark beers go better with spices) with a little higher alcohol content than a summer beer. The time to mature a beer increases with the darkness of the grains and the higher alcohol. If you were looking for a porter style with 5% alcohol, the flavors would meld quite well by Christmas but it is quite possible that a very dark stout at 7% alcohol would need until Easter or even later. Both beers would be quite drinkable by Christmas but their peak flavor is what I am looking for.

My wife's favorite Christmas beer is an amber, plenty of time for that. You've still got time to make one as long as it's average gravity! I

Can you guys sugest a long ageing amber all grain brew with alot for toffee and caramel tastes ready and carbed for the 20 th of december