When I was a kid I loved those cardboard Advent Calendars where you would open the little numbered doors and there would be a cute Christmasy chocolate in there. Looking back the chocolate was pretty terrible but I loved when it was my turn to open the door. I noticed some “adult” advent calendars pop up lately filled with whiskey, lotions, or beer and it got me thinking. We have so many great breweries and bottle shops in my area why not make my own countdown to Christmas? I didn’t want to go too crazy and do an Advent Calendar, so I decided on the 12 beers before Christmas. A little countdown to the big day with some holiday beers and others that I thought Andrew may like.

I gathered beers when I would go out to run errands and try to find some unique ones that I knew he hadn’t tried. I love going to bottle shops. The aisles of creative labels and different styles of beers can keep me busy for quite some time. I have a bad habit though of buying beer or wine for the label, sometimes it works out and other times not so much. All of the beers for my countdowns have been a hit though!

This was a super easy gift to put together, I just needed some tissue paper, ribbon, labels and beer. The basket was one that we already had in the house, but this time of year there are baskets everywhere! Michaels always has cute ones on sale! You could even use an old cardboard box and put numbered stickers on the bottle caps. I’m sure you have a few amazon boxes hanging around.

I’ve made a couple of print outs to go with the baskets, you can find them here and here. This easy countdown to Christmas will definitely spark a little seasonal joy! If you can, try to shop small and check out local breweries or locally owned bottle shops. They need your support more than ever this year! Some of my favorite local shops are The Bier Cellar, Oak Hill Beverage, Perks Beer and Beverage, and RSVP.

Cheers!