Every year, when meteorologists start public panics about snowstorms, the Saranac 12 Beers of Winter seasonal variety pack hits stores. Drinking the 12 Beers of Winter is like reading 12 articles that are all the same length and tangentially related to your 10 a.m. class on Monday: they all kind of run into each other and you can’t tell them apart. This is a solid pack, but I wouldn’t make it your drinking priority.

The Black Bear Bock is a traditional bock-style strong lager. This is the least bitter of the trio of medium-to-dark winter brews. The Bock’s amber color is paired with a medium body and sweet taste. The sweet is tempered by a subtle bitterness that makes for a very pleasant brew. At 6 percent alcohol by volume, it’s nothing to sneeze at.

The Red India Pale Ale is my favorite kind of beer because its name lends itself to making horrible puns. A Red IPA should be called an Irish Pale Ale — but using “Irish” and “pale” in the same sentence is redundant. This brew is the Ron Weasley of the bunch: half-heartedly bitter and has a crush on Hermione. The Red IPA is also about 6 percent alcohol by volume, which is surprising, seeing as you never expect something without a soul to pack a punch.

The Big Moose Ale is the Sasquatch of pale ales: difficult to define and impossible to photograph clearly. This beer has a lot of the hallmarks of a pale ale with a little holiday spirit. The dark flavors and hoppy palette combine for a nice twist on the pale ale style that can get ignored in the flood of winter ales that inundate your local beer establishment every winter. The Big Moose Ale has big flavor but doesn’t feel the need to overcompensate with extra booze, and is only 5.3 percent alcohol by volume.

The 4059’ Porter, named after the altitude of Porter Mountain’s peak, is a robust porter style. This is the sassy fat sidekick of this variety pack. The body is full and very heavy, with more hops than the Bock, as well as some chocolate undertones. This brew is only 5.2 percent alcohol by volume. Creationists don’t like this Porter because it is the transitional form between the Bock and Chocolate Lager, which doesn’t jive with their hallowed seven-day brewery creation story.

The Chocolate Lager was a pleasant surprise because I was expecting to bite into a fermented candy bar, but instead turned out to be a perfectly drinkable beer. I traded the other one in the pack to my friend for priority on the waiver wire in our Fantasy Curling League. The Chocolate Lager is slightly boozier than the Porter with 6 percent alcohol by volume. This is a tasty beer, but I would prefer to try my friend’s than have a whole bottle to myself.

The Belgian Pale Ale was a nice change of pace from the heavy bodies and dark colors that characterize winter beers. While significantly lighter than the others, it has a fat behind like the rest of the crew. My roommate, who only drinks Belgian Whites, compared this beer unfavorably to Hoegaarden. He prefers the lighter body but appreciated the additional flavor that came with it. I recommend this beer as a palette cleanser in between the darker beers.