The advent is nearly upon us and we’ve rounded up our five fave booze calendars for 2021. Whisky, wine, beer or rum; take your pick and kick off silly season with your tipple of choice.
1. Virgin Wines Wine Advent Calendar – EDITOR’S PICK
If you like your wine then this is one hell of a way to embark on the festive season. This calendar had us on arrival due to the sheer volume of it. It’s HUGE. Open each door and pour yourself something delectable daily from the 1st of December to the big day itself where a full sized bottle of something celebratory awaits. Choose from red or white wine calendars if you have a penchant, or a mixed wine calendar if you don’t, and prepare to unveil 24 different cherry-picked 350 ml bottles from around the globe. Christmas Eve sends you out with a bang with a full bottle reveal behind the last door. This is the most impressive drinks calendar we have come across and you would be making any wine lover very, very happy if you send them one.
Virgin Wines Gin Advent Calendar (£89.99)
2. 24 Days of Rum
This classy-looking drinks countdown unveils a collection of 24 different rums curated from around the globe, each behind a sleek burgundy door. Fabulous for rum fans wanting to try out something new, premium picks include Pasador De Oro from Guatemala, Naga from Indonesia and Arcanne from Mauritius - plus you get tasting notes on each rum and two little rum glasses for your sipping pleasure. True booze geeks will love the interactive microsite where you can watch videos from the producers, rate each rum, and take part in discussions and Q & As. 24 Days of Rum is a brilliant way to count down to Christmas and improve your rum repertoire all in one go.
VIP Bottles (£79.99)
3. Honest Brew
There’s a fair few beer calendars about this year but Honest Brew caught our eye with their adorable winter illustrations. The company bill themselves as something of a ‘Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium for beer’, stocking over 300 choice craft beers from breweries across Europe and the UK. Supporting indie brewers, some of the collaborative beers appearing behind the daily doors won’t be found anywhere else. Delve into Christmas with everything from hoppy IPAs to silky stouts. Our favourites included Fierce Rhubarb fruit pale ale and a very festive salted caramel stout First World Problems from Rooster Brewing Co.
£69.90 for members and £74.90 for non-members.
4. Stauning Whisky Advent Calendar
Here’s our pick for the whisky fans. Multi award-winning Stauning Whisky has been created by nine friends, all with a passion for whisky, from differing backgrounds. Blending a mix of old and new world methods, their range of spirits are made from local grain and floor-malted in-house at the distillery on the Danish west coast. Stauning is a full-bodied smooth whisky with a fruity and sweet finish. The calendar includes a full bottle of Stauning Rye and a smart gold pen so you can mark off each day of December. Behind each calendar door you’ll find Stauning anecdotes or cocktails recipes. Delightful!
£59.80 and Master of Malt (coming soon)
5. Seven Days of Ginspiration
We liked this calendar as it was a bit quirky and offered something at a lower price point. Seven Yays create week-long advent calendars and birthday gifts. You can tailor your own gift compilations or try one of their ready-made boxes. The Seven Days of Ginspiration features different gin pressies daily from flavour-infused gins, gin playing cards and even a gin & tonic chocolate bar. We loved the bright graphic designs on the box and the little gin-inspired treats behind every door. Our fave ‘ginspo’ by far was being introduced to DJ’s cold infusions, which we’d never seen before. The cocktail cold-infusions can be mixed into a G&T to spice up any aperitif. We tried Orange Osmosis, Passion Star and Summer Equinox. Genius!
Seven Yays, Seven Days of Ginspiration (£36)
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Chatting Food Contributor Jo Aspin
Half American / half (born and bred) Londoner, Jo Aspin is a food writer and established freelance food, drink and lifestyle PR. When she’s not eating her way around London, she’s planning her next trip abroad.
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