gifted

my non-exhaustive gift buying guide for the beer geek in all of us:

if your beer lover has a favourite beer:

-check out the private liquor stores for branded glassware gift packs

legacy liquor store in Olympic Village suggests:  Sam Smith’s 3 bottles plus a glass for $20, $88.50 for 6 bottles of Westvleteren plus 2 glasses, $11.95 for 2 tall cans of Tiger and a glass,  Chimay – red, white, and blue caps with a glass $18.85, St. Ambroise Discovery pack – $14.95 2 beers and a glass, Lindemann’s –  $15.95 two beers and a glass

-go online and see if the brewery has swag for sale – tshirts, bottle openers, beer cozies, etc.
Dead Frog has tees, hoodies, hats, cozies, underwear and bottle openers for sale in their on-line shop and at the brewery in Aldergrove.  If  you order online in the next couple of days, there is still time to receive your order before Santa arrives.
Stone Brewing in California will ship you a pub light for $50, plus shipping and handling, but how can you put a price on having branded lights for your home bar?  They also have wallets, dog accessories, soap, candles, towels, you name it, they’ve branded it!

-get them a membership to a beer of the month club – join online and they send you a beer every month via mail
or a membership to a beer tshirt of the monthclub – join online and they send you a beer tshirt every month and best of all if you join right now, 3 months, 6 months or 12 months, the shipping is free!

if you want to shop local this season:

– check out craft sales for handmade beer cozies

– go to the brewery to purchase swag or a growler

wanna get something crazy or interesting, and have a few extra minutes on your hands?

-do what the beer wench suggests and google “beer” or “beer gifts” to see all the wonderful, and sometimes wacky, search results like:

beer and food pairings calendar on etsy for $24
also on etsy, beer soap and bottle openers
(or just visit beergifts.com)

-search the interwebs for wall mounted bottle openers – make sure you never misplace the opener again!
go for branded ones or fancy ones

– go to a craft store and get them scrapbook for their label collection or a decorative box for their coaster collection

is your beer geek a new beer geek? 

–you can’t go wrong with a taster pack from the liquor store
Granville Island, Parallel 49, Okanagan Springs all have taster packs out right now that include a seasonal beer plus their regular offerings
or walk on the wild side with an Innis & Gunn pack of 4 beers including rum cask, pale ale, original whiskey beers for $18

-visit your local u-brew shop and design your own beer by adding hops to a beer kit

or go whole hog and get someone all the basic gear for homebrewing for about $75

 

need a hostess gift?

-take a bottle of fancy schmancy beer!  maybe something to cellar like a barley wine or a sour, or something seasonal to open right away. 
take them a brooklyn brewing local 1, its a belgian style strong pale ale and comes with a cork. now that’s fancy

-get a growler and fill it on your way to the party, fresh beer to drink that night and a lovely growler for them to keep and fill forever more

 

-books!  give the gift of literacy!
So much choice – from the text-book “Tasting Beer” by randy mosher to guides of pacific northwest pub crawls to anecdotal histories of beer to picture books of beer labels, there’s a beer book for everyone!

stocking stuffers:

-you could put a beer in there…

-gift certificates to pubs like biercraft – who will give you a gift card for everyone you buy for someone else ($10 for $50 or $20 for $100)

-key-chain bottle openers

-playing cards

-beer bottle cap tree ornaments

 

 

and the list could go on forever, but i have to go and drink some beer now!

top ten reasons to drink craft beer

endless simmer provides their top ten reasons to drink craft beer

me, i think some of the best top reasons are:



r&b red devil pale ale cask at railway club – look how pretty it is!!!

taster of nine beers at burnside brewing in portland

you can brew your own!

central city iced tea ipa cask at the railway club – omg, do you even know how tasty this is??

look how good the craft beer bottles look in a handknit cozy!

pliny the elder

and what should i again get to drink almost immediately upon my return to vancouver from san francisco?
pliny the elder!

ryan visited russian river and managed to get a bottle back without the airline busting it into a million pieces
and he brought it to an establishment that shall remain nameless for us all to share
ryan is a generous soul!

canada cup of beer

not familiar with the canada cup of beer?

well, its like this.
you go to thunderbird stadium at 1:00 on saturday july 10th
i suggest bringing a backpack containing:  water, pad, pen, wet naps, camera, sunscreen and a protein rich snack
you pay your $25 at the door (or buy advance tix for $20 + $2.85 service charge)
you get your five beer tokens and a lovely little plastic taster glass
do not expect your fingers to fit through the handle of said taster glass
consider bringing a lanyard to keep your taster glass safe when not in use
(alternatively, you could go on friday night from 4-9 for $20 at the door, or get a pass to both days for $30 advance)

enter the stadium
before completing your descent to the field, pause a moment to soak in the vista before you
a sea of tents, all there to feed you beer
it is a thing of beauty, and a joy to behold

if the spinning wheel is there again this year, spin it
you might win an extra beer token
if not, proceed directly to drinking!
when your initial beer tokens run out, buy more
since this is your first visit to the festival, sample beers willy-nilly and have fun

me, i plan to attack the beers a little differently this time around
i want to first try beers new to me
check out everyone’s display and swag
then get stupid drunk on my favourite beers!

oh and take lots of photos of my friends getting schnockered

St. Augustine’s

patron saint of beer, and venue for my birthday bash just past!

located on commercial drive, this spacious beer and sports bar features more than 40 taps – yes more than 40!  most of those 40 are their staple offerings, but they do have a list of seasonal offerings and bottled beer too.

they were very able to accommodate a large group of us (any night but canucks or fight night) and by all accounts the burgers are to die for (my vegetarianism gets in the way of me personally confirming that fact).  monday nights are cask nights, and every night they offer tasters of four beers for $8.

love the direction they are taking their decor (this is a mash tun isn’t it?)

on the downside, service was not as quick as one might have hoped and the bathrooms are not fabulous.  otherwise, you better believe i’m recommending the place!  and going to make it my regular watering hole.

bring on the casks, bring on the good times!