Same reason Sooner Jeff only uses the tumbler when I suggest it, a lot of booze in one container.
Just goes with the brewing. I intend to bottle an IPA tomorrow and brew an Xmas ale. Figure I'll be able to give it 4-5 months of bottle conditioning before its time to drink it.
That means I'll be drinking for a while tomorrow. I have some witbier pints in the fridge in case I start earlier. And some IPA pints if I start after lunch. Never hurts to be prepared.
Indeed,Christmas Ale is hard to find down here.
I never made one before. I've done dark Belgian strong ales and dubbels and the sort, so I have the beer recipe side of things down, more or less. But the spices and how they best interact with different types of grains/etc? Yeah, gotta do some more internet research on that.
Worst case scenario is it is terrible and I blame CB.