It’s getting close to Beer Advent Calendar time again, so while I’ve been working on assembling the (secret…ish) list of this year’s daily Advent picks, I’ve also been making a note of the various press releases hitting my inbox for holiday themed specialty packs—mostly in the format of Advent calendars or “12 Days of Christmas” sets, of course.

So I thought I’d post a roundup of those plus others I’ve seen. ‘Tis the season, and all that.

Almanac Beer Company: Holiday Advent Beer Box

California’s Almanac is offering its Holiday Advent Beer Box, containing 12 cans of beer (all 16 ounces), across three configurations: All Fresh Beer, All Barrel-Aged Sours, and Mixed Pack containing both of the first two. It’s limited to California for shipping, however. Here are details from the press release:

The Almanac Holiday Advent Beer Box lets you surprise friends and family with a new beer from Almanac each day (for 12 days), all packaged inside a fabulously festive Almanac-branded, non-denominational gift box. Available starting in mid-November 2021 at Almanac’s online store (Almanacbeer.com/store), each box is available in one of three configurations: (1) “All Fresh Beer,” including a selection of IPAs, lagers and stouts, (2) “All Barrel-Aged Sours,” including a range of Almanac’s complex and nuanced mixed-fermentation sours, or (3) “Mixed Pack,” a variety of both fresh and barrel-aged sour beers. Each box contains twelve 16 oz. cans and perforated “doors” that allow recipients to open one door each day to reveal a surprise 16 oz. can. Almanac’s Holiday Advent Beer Boxes quickly sold-out in 2020, and these much-anticipated offerings will make the perfect gifts this holiday season for shoppers in California (beer shipments are restricted to residents in California).

Too bad it’s not modeled after the full 24 day Advent calendar. I didn’t see a list of what specific beers are in the box, so it should truly be a surprise each day.

Graham & Fisk’s Wine-in-a-Can: Christmas Canned Wine Advent Calendar

I reviewed the Graham & Fisk’s line of “Mancan” canned wines last year, four varieties of blended wines in 250 milliliter cans, and for the holidays this year the company put together its Christmas Canned Wine Advent Calendar featuring 24 of those wines.

Countdown to the holidays with a can each day – or night – with our super limited edition Wine Christmas Advent Calendar.

Each box is filled with 24 (250ml / 8.4oz) cans of Graham+Fisk’s 100% California wine. Featuring 6 cans of each: Rosé Wine with bubbles, White Wine with bubbles, Red Wine, and White Wine.

I’m assuming the cans are randomized in the box, so you never know which wine you’ll get on any given day.

Clown Shoes: 12 Beers of Christmas

The 12 Beers of Christmas mix pack returns again this year from Clown Shoes of Massachusetts. Not all of the beers are explicitly holiday themed, but at least a few of them are. From the release:

For the second year in a row, Boston-based Clown Shoes Beer is releasing its mix pack of 12 different beers in a range of styles and ABVs – but this year, 7 beers have been added to the mix for the first time. With a selection of past favorites and cans coming out of the Clown Shoes vault, 12 Beers of Christmas is sure to impress craft beer novices and aficionados alike.

The beers in this year’s pack are:

1. Reindeer Games – Bavarian IPA
2. Space Cupcake – IPA
3. The Exorcist – Dry-hopped Stout
4. Lil’ Crispy – Crisp Ale
5. Space Cake – Double IPA
6. The Barista – Breakfast Brown Ale w/ Espresso
7. Mango Farm – IPA w/ Mango
8. Royal Standard – Wee Heavy
9. Galacticake – Double IPA
10. Clementine – White Ale
11. One Man Holiday – Belgian Quad
12. Advent Undead – Imperial Stout w/ Mandarin Orange

No-Li Brewhouse: 25 Days of Christmas Charities

Spokane, Washington’s No-Li is taking a different approach to the holiday countdown, featuring 25 days of charity fundraising through the month of December. Brewpublic has the details as well as the list of charities:

Each day during the first 25 days of December, No-Li will be raising funds to support 25 local charities that bring love and goodness to its community.

“A strong community takes the commitment of each of us to give more than we take,” says Cindy Bryant of No-Li Brewhouse. “These 25 organizations exemplify this idea, reaching into our local neighborhoods to uplift our fellow citizens with respect, dignity and caring,”

Each day, No-Li will donate $1,000 to each charity that’ll total $25,000 during the month of December.

This is such a great idea, I’d love to see more breweries doing something like this each holiday season. I hope that they’re also encouraging customers to donate to those charities each day as well—throw an extra few bucks per beer towards them, and such.