BREWPUBLIC’S Beer Lovers 2023 Holiday Gift Guide

It’s that time of year when we are all exposed to the heights of consumerism. To help the imbibing person on your list, we have curated a list of interesting and unique items that are sure to delight a beer aficionado on your list.

For our Beer Lover’s 2023 Holiday Gift Guide we take a look at gifts that’ll make any drinker excited to unwrap a gift! Our gift guide brings together a list that includes cocktails options, including non-alcoholic ones, a great beer book, a beer discount passport, an Oregon Cheese Tasting Kit and much more!

Here’s our list that should satisfy a few meticulous gift recipients on your holiday list this festive season!

MiiR Cocktail Shaker Set & Barware Tool Set
Through the years the Seattle based MiiR drinkware company has continued to be an innovator in its category. Its latest line expansion has come to the cocktail side of the beverage category. Earlier this year, MiiR has launched a Cocktail Shaker Set and Barware Tool Set that’s perfect for mixing up cocktails at home or on the go!

The Cocktail Shaker Set is a way to become a mixologist while keeping the drink properly chilled. This set includes a 20oz Tumbler, Cocktail Shaker Lid, and Press-fit Slide Lid. The built-in jigger in the cap with measure markers for 1oz and 2oz clog-free smooth pours.

An nice addition to the Cocktail Shaker Set is the Barware Tool Set. This 4-piece stainless steel barware set includes a bar spoon, muddler, strainer, double-sided jigger, and arrives in a PCR (post-consumer recycled) cotton fabric tool organizer for easy traveling and storage.

The MiiR Cocktail Shaker Set retails at $39.95, while the MiiR Barware Tool Set retails at $49.95. To purchase either of these sets, visit miir.com/collections/spirits.

Benny Boy Brewing 2022 Pippin Pommeau
Los Angeles’ Benny Boy Brewing does it all as the brewery produces beer, cider and wine. Within this lineup, and on the higher ABV side of things, is the brewery’s Pippin Pommeau. Its take on the classic French aperitif brings forth the spirit of Newtown Pippin apples for one fine sipper that arrives at a bold 19% ABV.

Best served slightly chilled and sipped before or more commonly after dinner, Pippin Pommeau is a sulfite-free, small-batch strong apple elixir that’s made with 100% California Newtown Pippin apples sourced from Five Mile Orchard in Corralitos, California and distilled by The Spirit Guild Los Angeles.

Last year’s Pippin Pommeau was barrel-aged for two years, while the recently released 2023 vintage, Pippin Pommeau Part Deux, has been barrel-aged for three years. The 2022 vintage of Pippin Pommeau that we sampled is full of apple flavor that’s complimented by notes of vanilla, oak and lingering slight smokiness. Pippin Pommeau Part Deux is described as offering a silkier mouthfeel, characterized by its smoother, more mature roundness of flavor, where the expression of the apple shines through with subtle prominence.

Pippin Pommeau is available in 375mL bottles for $35 (2022) and $40 (2023) and can be purchased at bennyboybrewing.com/shippingshop.

The Free Spirits Company
With the holidays approaching, it can be a bit easy to over indulge. One way to keep you going with a sharp mind and little fatigue is to switch your drinking up with some spirit free cocktails.

The Free Spirits Company has recently launched a complete lineup of non-alcoholic spirits. Its lineup includes The Spirit of Bourbon, The Spirit of Gin, The Spirit of Tequila, and The Spirit of Milano. Each flavor is packaged in 750mL bottles and contains less than 0.5% ABV.

The Spirit of Bourbon is a rich, oaky, caramel-kissed alternative to a great Kentucky Bourbon, is made with all natural flavors and functional ingredients to awaken your taste buds, help elevate your mood and recharge your body. It offers an oaky-toffee nose, followed by a velvety-smooth, toasted almond and brown sugar palate.

The Spirit of Gin is a smooth, bright and floral alternative to a London Dry Gin, is made with all natural flavors and functional ingredients to awaken your taste buds, help elevate your mood and recharge your body. It features a fresh nose of juniper, followed by notes of citrus, coriander and cardamom.

The Spirit of Tequila offers the same fiery, bold complexity as traditional tequila that’s crafted with all natural flavors and ingredients for a refreshing experience.

The Spirit of Milano is a curiously complex, vibrant, bittersweet aperitivo with notes of bitter citrus, cinnamon, clove and rhubarb, plus functional ingredients to help elevate your mood and recharge your body.

To purchase bottles from The Free Spirit Company, visit drinkfreespirits.com/.

Original Grain x Stone Brewing Guardians of the Craft Watches
Never be late for happy hour when you’re sporting an Original Grain watch. The renowned watchmaker known for its craftsmanship and commitment to sustainability has partnered with Stone Brewing on a new watch collection, aptly named the “Guardians of the Craft”!

Stone’s iconic Gargoyle is a symbolic guardian for high-quality beer. Now, serving as “Guardians of the Craft” – these collaboration timepieces are the protectors that ward off the evil spirits of cheap beer and bad times.

• The Gargoyle Chronograph 44mm, is forged from the oxidized steel and charred oak wood used in Stone’s brewing process.
• The West Coast Chronograph 44mmbears the branding of Stone’s iconic and trailblazing West Coast IPA.
• The Amber Ale Barrel 46mmproudly displays the Gargoyle behind Amber Tinted Sapphire Crystal.
• Limited-Edition Arrogant Bastard Automatic. Sure to be hated by many, and loved by only a few, the 250 pieces will be sold to the most diehard craft beer aficionados.

Using real reclaimed materials from Stone’s brewing process, Original Grain has created a line of watches that don’t just tell time, but tell the story of innovative and revolutionary craft brewing.

The Stone Brewing Watch Collection is available for purchase at originalgrain.com with watches starting at $249 while they’re on sale.

The Complete Beer Course by Joshua M. Bernstein
Originally published ten years ago by author Joshua M. Bernstein, his well-written book, The Complete Beer Course, received an update earlier this year! The new, enhanced version features many of today’s buzz worthy breweries such as Alvarado Street Brewery and WeldWerks Brewing, alongside iconic breweries such as Guinness and Pilsner Urquell.

Throughout the book’s 352 pages, Bernstein leads his readers from the essentials of brewing and properly serving beer to ten chapters on beer styles and ending with the proper way to cellar your beer and pairing it with food. During the chapters that are dedicated to beer styes, he goes in depth covering all of the peripheral beers that relate to the basic style. Plus, each chapter features a brewery spotlight along with a brewery job spotlight that highlights all sorts of occupations in the brewing world.

This book truly lives up to its name, the only thing missing is a diploma upon completion of the book! The Complete Beer Course retails for $35 or less, depending on where you shop, and can be purchased by clicking here.

The Krak’In 2.0
There’s a new way to shotgun a beer with The Krak’In 2.0. This new device requires no sharp object to cut a hole in an aluminum beer can. Yes, it removes the potential injury to one’s lips while allowing a premium shotgunning experience.

Marketed as a personal portable beer bong, The Krak’In 2.0 allows for a smooth and fast flow, works on any size of can, cleaner and safer alternative to regular shotgunning, is portable, and of course, dishwasher safe. All you need to do is hook it, pop the can and chug!

Brought to us by Wild Man Drinking, The Krak’In 2.0 is designed in the USA and can be purchased at $19.99 with steep discounts for ordering in larger quantities. To purchase The Krak’In 2.0, click here.

Torched Beer Candles
Crack open a beer and light up a candle that’s inspired by the tasting notes of various craft beers, Made by Torched Beer Candles, these natural soy wax candles are crafted from custom cut amber colored beer bottles and growlers. Each glass bottle is cut at a 20-degree angle for beautiful viewing. These candles will burn from 60 hours to 200 hours, all based on the bottle size. The 8oz Torched Beer Candles are priced at just under $20 and can be ordered at TorchedProducts.com.

Oregon Cheese Tasting Kits
What pairs nicely with beer? Well cheese certainly does and the Oregon Cheese Guild is offering an Oregon Cheese Tasting Kit for the holidays. Each kit will include 10 unique Oregon cheeses plus Portland Creamery whey caramel, Scharffen Berger Chocolate, and a third accompaniment in a reusable insulated tote.

2023 Cheeses: Don Froylan Chipotle Oaxaca, Face Rock Creamery Face 2 Face, La Mariposa Petit Suisse with Chives, Portland Creamery Orange-Cranberry Chevre, Rogue Creamery Oregon Blue, Tillamook Reserve 10 Year Cheddar, Tillamook Sweet English Cheddar, TMK Dill Garlic Curds, Walla Walla Cheese Co. Halloumi, and Willamette Valley French Prairie. Accompaniments include Portland Creamery’s Whey Caramel, Scharffen Berger Chocolate, and a bonus third goodie.

Each kit costs $95 and they can be picked up on December 19 or 20 at one of four locations statewide. These locations are in Portland, Salem, Jacksonville, and Milton-Freewater. To purchase a kit, click here.

Treefort Music Fest
We can never say enough about the fantastic experiences we have each spring attending the Treefort Music Fest in Boise, Idaho. Now in its 12th year, the Treefort Music Fest will take place from March 20 – 24, 2024 across dozens of venues, including many breweries, all spread across bustling downtown Boise.

But Treefort is not just music, there’s Alefort that takes place over the four of the five days with craft beer, cider and wine. Then there’s Comedyfort that’ll be headlined by  Janeane Garofalo. There’s also Filmfort, Foodfort, Kidfort, Storyfort, Artfort and many more. Yes, plenty to keep you occupied during the five day festival.

However, it is truly the music that brings the masses to Boise. And this year’s lineup is beginning to take shape as the first wave of artists have been announced.

So far headliners include Ty Segall, Neko Case, DRAMA, Channel Tres, Shamir, Dehd and many more. Click here to take a good look at the growing musical lineup that will eventually include nearly 500 bands taking stages all across Boise.

In the coming months, the second and final wave of artists will be revealed. But with each wave of artists, the price of Treefort passes will increase slightly with each announcement.

Treefort passes are currently on-sale and begin at $295 for all five days of live music and so much more! To purchase a ticket, visit treefortmusicfest.com/.

BeerNav
Travel Washington State visiting breweries while receiving some great discounts with BeerNav. This passport and guidebook will take beer seekers to find great deals on pints, taster flights, to-go beer and merchandise at over 80 breweries across the Evergreen State.

BeerNav is more than just a passport that is full of discounts at taprooms as it also helps plan your beercation. Each passport can assist in navigating a route or you can do so on the BeerNav website. It’s a great way to discover new breweries or re-visit ones that you haven’t been to in some time.

At just $44.99 per passport, BeerNav is an affordable way to visit breweries over the next year. To purchase a copy of BeerNav, visit beernav.com/.