It’s a little bit late in the year for new years resolutions but i’ve got some great intentions to do some wonderful things with these pages here, and to kickstart this, i’m going to post a list of some suggestions for festive presents for people, but these don’t just have to be for Christmas, they could be a gift for any occasion.
2020 has been a strange year, due to Covid 19 our lives have changed, whether or not this is permanent will remain to be seen, but one green shoot of hope i’ve seen is there seems to be a very conscious effort to support local based businesses rather than large multinational conglomerates. There is no denying we will ultimately end up spending some money in these places, but if we choose to spend more locally it is simply money that stays in the local economy.
I’m a fan of twitter threads as being a good source of information, so people can reply with their suggestions, but the gifts below are some of the more stand out ideas i’ve seen.
Yellowbelly Beer Pack & Card Game
Ever the innovators, Wexford’s own Yellowbelly have designed a card game, in a gift pack with four of their beers, for the princely sum of €24.00. This would make a great stocking filler, and the game is a great way to kill the time. You can get them here, hurry though as this is a limited edition with only 100 packs available.
Beer Merch and Clothing
Many of the breweries have online stores now that sell their own merchandise, so start with seeking out your favourite brewery. However, there are a couple more bespoke and smaller folk like Irish Craft Tees and Craftgeek.co. On the brewery side, Kinnegar and Hope have some great merch available.
Trying something new
As a craft beer drinker, I’m always seeking out new things to try, so in the spirit of trying new things don’t limit yourself to Beer based presents this Christmas, there are some wonderful other great beverages being made here in Ireland. Here are just a few of the many on offer that I think would make a good gift.
I remember being at an event in the Irish Embassy in London a few years ago, and trying Kinsale Mead for the first time. They’ve got some lovely gift packs on their website plus vouchers for future guided online tastings. Check them out here
Fancy trying some ciders? Well you’d not go wrong with Legacy Cider’s gift packs, featuring a mulled Cider. Which is a treat and lovely alternative to mulled wine.
Gift packs, Beer Advent Calendars & Hampers
Nearly all the online stores now do a beer advent calendar, so you can choose from Craft Beers Delivered, The Beer Club, Martins Fairview and they’ll ship a box of beers to you to enjoy over December.
Brewery wise, The White Hag and Rascals have both put together some great beer boxes for the festive gift. If you’re a hot sauce lover, make sure to check out Brennans beer and chilli sauce set. I couldn’t forget my local brewery, who have two great options available, Hoppy Christmas, and Jingle Bru – I can attest to the new pint glasses, they are brilliant! Speaking of glassware don’t forget Wicklow Legends O’Brother Brewing have a wonderful range of branded glasses on their webshop
Make no mistake there will be a lot of packs available too in your local independent off licence that sells good beer.
I know this isn’t an exhaustive list, but It should provide some inspiration for you, failing all of that, if you go into an off licence, the staff there will be more than happy to help you put together a bespoke personally selected gift.
Irish Beer Snob 