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The Spruce Eats / Amelia Manley
There’s plenty of pressure to get the perfect present for Christmas or Hanukkah, leading to panicked purchases that miss the target. Instead, look to the one gift guaranteed to deliver joy and seasonal cheer: beer.
Sure, you could slide a random six-pack beneath the tree, but when you invest in a beer-filled Advent calendar, your recipient will get a gift that keeps giving day after day. You can buy an Advent calendar that comes filled with bottles or cans, or even snag a personalized Advent calendar and fill it with a custom selection of beer.
Here are the best beer Advent calendars to drink festively this holiday season.
GiveThemBeer 2022 Beer Advent Calendar
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Courtesy of GiveThemBeer.com
Beer lovers are sure to enjoy this classic Advent calendar, which includes 12 carefully curated brews from around the country, including the company's top-rated beers from the year. There are a variety of beers including IPAs, stouts, and ales.
The beer collection comes in a festive box with 12 numbered doors, allowing you to discover a new beer each day throughout the holiday season.
Price at time of publish: $79
Shipping Info: Available to pre-order now; shipping begins early November
City Brew Tours 12 Days of Christmas Craft Beer Box
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This Craft Beer Box comes from City Brew Tours, a tourism company that runs events in Cleveland, Philadelphia, New York City, Baltimore, and elsewhere. The Advent-style gift package includes dozen distinct craft beers, running the stylistic gamut from strong Belgian ales to richly luscious stouts and, naturally, hazy IPAs. However, unlike many Advent calendars, which are designed to be opened starting on December 1, this brew-tastic journey takes place during the traditional 12 Days of Christmas, from December 25 to January 5, allowing you to give it as a Christmas gift, if desired.
Each box comes with extra bells and whistles, including candy canes, bottle openers, and surprise brewery swag. Additionally, City Brew Tours includes an interactive component—when you crack each beer during the 12 days of Christmas, you can also join the City Brew Tours team online to discuss the daily selection.
Price at time of publish: $95
Shipping Info: Available for pre-order; shipping begins on November 24
The Bruery 12 Days Collection
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courtesy of fourbrewers.com
Ok, here's another entry that's not technically an advent calendar—though with twelve beers included, it certainly could function as one in a pinch. What it is, more importantly, is a one-of-a-kind collection of beers that will be immensely interesting to the geekiest beer nerd on your gift list. The Bruery, a celebrated brewery based in southern California, began releasing an annual Christmas beer in 2008, and each release corresponded with one verse of the well-known carol "The Twelve Days of Christmas." The series concluded in 2019 with 12 Drummers Drumming, and while more recent entries in this series are easy enough to acquire, the early releases have achieved mythical status for their rarity (with Partridge in a Pear Tree being especially coveted).
Now, obsessive beer fans everywhere will get to enjoy something close to the bucket-list experience of cracking open a bottle of Partridge, and every release since, as The Bruery made the choice in 2019 to recreate all twelve recipes and release them as a single set. Every "12 Days Collection" box includes 375 ml. bottles of 2019-brewed versions of all twelve annual releases, from Partridge to Drummers, all wrapped up in a festive package. O Come All Ye Beer Nerds!
Price at time of publish: $135
Shipping Info: Ready to ship
GiveThemBeer Hard Seltzer Advent Calendar
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Courtesy of GiveThemBeer.com
For the person who likes to lighten things up with a hard seltzer now and then, behold the perfect Advent calendar. It contains 12 curated hard seltzers from the most popular brands in the U.S., including Truly, White Claw, and Vizzy, as well as up-and-coming varieties. Some flavors include berry hibiscus, watermelon chili, lemon, and citrus.
The beverages are packaged in a festive box with numbered doors, and it's a great alternative for anyone who needs a break from beer.
Price at time of publish: $59
Shipping Info: Available to pre-order now; shipping begins in November
The Bruery Barrel-Aged 12 Days Collection
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courtesy of thebruery.com
Talk about foresight: back in 2008, The Bruery not only launched a decade-plus project with the "Twelve Days of Christmas" beers, they also made the decision to bottle a limited version of each release that had been aged in various ex-spirits barrels. Naturally, these hard-to-find companion pieces are especially sought after in the beer enthusiast realm, and bottles of barrel-aged early releases like Partridge have achieved Holy Grail status. But now that rabid beer fan on your shopping list will have the opportunity to try the next best thing, as The Bruery has released a twelve-bottle collection of barrel-aged beers based on the original recipes.
Different spirit barrels are utilized in the aging (bourbon is used for many, but you'll also find beers aged in barrels that used to hold Scotch or Madeira). Please note that these beers clock in at very high ABVs: for example, the 5 Golden Rings featured in this collection, which is a Bourbon barrel-aged Belgian-style golden ale with pineapple and spices, tips the scales at 15.3%. All the more reason to spread your enjoyment of the collection over twelve days, advent calendar-style!
Price at time of publish: $220
Shipping Info: Ready to ship
Beer of the Month Club Craft Beer Club Shipment
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If you’re looking for 12 beers for the 12 days of Christmas, try out a shipment from the Craft Beer Club. We know that it’s not exactly an Advent calendar, but the Craft Beer Club offers plenty of extras to make ordering a no-brainer. For starters, each shipment features four different styles of beers from two different top-notch microbreweries, such as Alewerks, in Virginia, or Atlanta Brewing.
Craft Beer Club ships the package, free of charge, to all 48 states in the continental U.S., and the gift box includes a newsletter that lets you dig deeper into each beer and discover proper food pairings. Additionally, there’s no need to commit to a monthly membership, and your first shipment will include a few fun bonus gifts.
Price at time of publish: $47.95
Shipping Info: Ready to ship in 1 to 2 days
StagDesign Personalised Oak Advent Calendar for Drinks
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Courtesy of Etsy
Can't find a beer Advent calendar that includes your favorite brands? Then make your own with this cool reusable Advent calendar for drinks. The tree-shaped calendar stands up on its wooden base, and it can hold 24 bottles of beer (or even small bottles of wine, if you want to switch it up).
The whole structure is quick and easy to assemble, and you can even opt to have the star personalized with your name for no added cost.
Price at time of publish: $78.87
Shipping Info: Ready to ship in 3 to 6 business days from the UK
BrewDog Craft Beer Advent Calendar 2022
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Courtesy of BrewDog
If you're a fan of BrewDog beverages, this advent calendar is packed with the best the brand has to offer. It includes 24 unique 12-ounce cans, including a variety of flavorful beers, and you'll even get to try several exclusive seasonal flavors. The selection contains IPAs, stouts, lagers, pilsners, ales, and even kölsch. As an added bonus, shipping is free.
Price at time of publish: $89.99
Shipping Info: Available for pre-order; shipping begins in November
City Brew Tours Hoppy Hanukkah Craft Beer Box
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For the beer buff who celebrates the festival of lights, you’ll want to buy this box that’s good for eight fun nights of drinking aromatic New England IPAs, chocolaty stouts, and other winter-friendly ales. The City Brew Tours team sources the beers from across the country, complementing the selections with extra goodies such as bottle openers, brewery merchandise, and other Hanukkah-themed surprises.
While simultaneously lighting the Hanukkah candles and drinking eight nights of unique beer is a blast, City Brew Tours sweetens the gift box with an educational component. Every night during Hanukkah, the company’s beer experts lead a live stream on social media that revolves around that day’s beer selection. Here’s a question you can ask them: What beers go best with traditional Jewish foods such as kugel, slowly braised brisket, and latkes?
Price at time of publish: $75
Shipping Info: Available for pre-order; shipping begins around November 27
Our top pick for a beer advent calendar is the GiveThemBeer Beer Advent Calendar, which includes a great selection of brews. However, if you want to pick your own beers and display them in a countdown stand, you can't go wrong with the Beer Christmas Countdown Snowman.
What to Look for in a Beer Advent Calendar
Selection
Some beer Advent calendars include a little bit of everything, from stouts to IPAs—some even include cider or hard seltzer—while others focus on just one type of beer. If you only like certain styles of beers, it's often helpful to take a peek at what's included in the Advent calendar to ensure it has selections you'll enjoy drinking.
Availability
Advent calendars are a hot commodity during the holiday season, and they often sell out well before December rolls around. If you're planning to get a beer Advent calendar, be sure to check when the company stops taking pre-orders (typically sometime in November), and purchase it ASAP to ensure you get the one you want.
Shipping
Not all states allow alcohol delivery, so you'll want to check your state's laws if you plan to purchase a beer Advent calendar online. Additionally, most shipping companies require someone over the age of 21 to be home to accept the delivery, so you'll want to plan accordingly on the day your Advent calendar is scheduled to arrive.
FAQs
What is a beer Advent calendar?
Advent calendars are designed to celebrate the days leading up to Christmas, and they typically contain a small gift to open on every day in December. Most Advent calendars contain 24 or 25 gifts, but there are also some designed to be opened on the 12 days of Christmas, which span from December 25 to January 5.
Instead of small presents, a beer Advent calendar contains a drink for each day leading up to December 25, and it's a fun activity to enjoy with family and friends, no matter what holiday you celebrate.
Who sells beer Advent calendars?
If you're shopping online, there are a many places where you can purchase a beer Advent calendar, including retailers like GiveThemBeer.com or your favorite brewery. Grocery stores like Costco and Aldi are also known for selling beer Advent calendars in-store.
How do I make a beer Advent calendar?
Can't find a beer Advent calendar that you like? You can always make one of your own and fill it with all your favorite beverages. Etsy offers a variety of reusable Advent calendar boxes and stands designed to hold beer bottles, and you can outfit it with any beer you choose, whether it's all one type or a fun variety pack.
Why Trust The Spruce Eats?
Joshua M. Bernstein, the author of this piece, knows beer. He's penned five books on the subject, as well as articles for The New York Times, Wine Enthusiast, Men’s Journal, and Imbibe.
This article was updated by Camryn Rabideau, who's been writing about Advent calendars for The Spruce Eats for several years. While looking for beer Advent calendars to include in this list, she considered their contents, price point, shipping options, and overall ratings to find the best option for every type of beer lover.
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