Once again, I got Brady a beer advent calendar as an early Christmas gift that kept on giving! This year, I found him a Saskatchewan craft beer advent calendar, which was a significant step up from the boxes over the past years.
It held different brands, different sizes, and a variety of types and flavours. It was a FUN one, and Brady says, with a good handful of 5/5 beers, it was a really good advent calendar!!
Onto the details, feelings, and ratings of each brew!
1. Cosmic Celebration IPA – Pile O’Bones Brewing Co. – Strong Beer – 6% – An excellent kickoff to the Beersmas season. A hoppy, citrusy IPA to really make a Dad happy and look forward to the beers to come. 1 outta 1 would recommend. That’s me. 😉 – 5/5
2. IPA – Black Bridge Brewery – Strong Beer – 6.5% – A much hoppier IPA than yesterday but still very welcome in my opinion. Bold and flavourful, this beer would go well with something like a big steak or a greasy burger. It’s one I’ve had before and I would have it again. – 4/5
3. Session IPA – Nokomis Craft Ales – Beer – 4.5% – Another solid IPA to kick off the festivities. A good middle ground between the fruity delight that was day one and the happy happiness of the day two. Good flavour, good beer, good times. – 4/5
4. Key Lime Pie – Rebellion Brewing Co. – Beer – 5% – This one’ll kick you in the tonsils. Liiiiiiiiimmmmeeee. And an indescribable aftertaste. Definitely one to try… once. I’ve never had key lime pie so… 🤷♂️ – 2/5.
5. Milk Stout – Black Bridge Brewery – Beer – 5.3% – Don’t let this one scare you like it scared me, it’s flavourful and sweet. Carmelly and rich, it’s a powerful beer that would go well with somethin’ greasy. A mans beer. Drink with pride! – 3/5
6. Raspberry Wheat Ale – Pile O’Bones Brewing Co. – Beer – 5% – Light and refreshing with a hint of raspy fruitiness, this beer is a pleasing, summertime beverage. Also for Christmas. This is definitely a girly beer and I am here for it, beard and all! – 4/5
7. Wheat Burst – Black Bridge Brewer – Beer – 5% – Another excellent brew thrown in the mix today, but I’m partial to the frothy, hoppy beers. The hops are strong with this one, and I love it! So full of flavour and punch! This was a fantastic addition! Good job Black Bridge Brewery! – 5/5
8. Pseudo Lager – Black Bridge Brewery – Beer – 5% – Sessionable, it’s printed right on the can and totally accurate. This is a beer that is unremarkable enough to drink lots of and not be upset. Its beer. – 2/5.
9. Bunny hug – Rebellion Brewing Co. – Malty German Amber – 4.8% – This is a very smooth beer. A little sweet, a little frothy, this is a beer you could drink all day. Mild in flavour but definitely not lacking, I’d drink this one again. – 3/5
10. Black IPA – Rebellion Brewing Co. – Strong Beer – 6.5% – This IPA is almost too IPA. It’s a very strong flavour, very bitter. I’m a lover of IPAs but this is a little on the heavy side. It’s good but I’d definitely only drink one per sitting. – 3/5
11. Modern IPA – Nokomis Craft Ales – Strong Beer – 6.5% – This was another light, citrusy delight of an IPA. Pretty much on par with day 1. I could’ve downed this in a minute or two, I had to hold myself back. It was delicious! I’d buy a case of this in a heart beat. – 5/5
12. Brown Ale – Nokomis Craft Ales – Beer – 5.5% – ‘Tis a beer of stature and fortitude, a beer to drink with friends and not be belittled or looked down upon. With good flavour and nothing weird about it, it’s a solid beer that won’t let you down. – 3.5/5
13. Hibiscus Lime Gose – Pile O’ Bones Brewing Co. – Beer – 4.5% – This is an incredibly light and fruity beverage. Not sure if you could even call it a beer, to me it was more like fruit punch but dang it was good! I would drink this again. Hopefully on a beach in 30°C heat. 😎 – 4/5
14. Pale Ale – Nokomis Craft Ales – Beer – 5.5% – This was really solid beer for me. Nothing to write home about but also nothing to shake your fist at. Sorry for the cliches. I quite enjoyed the ale today. Definitely one I’d buy again. – 3.5/5
15. Cold Brew Americano Stout – Pile O’ Bones Brewing Co. – Strong Beer – 6.5% – I’ll be honest, I was nervous for this one. Stouts always make me nervous, but I paired it with breakfast for supper, and it came through alright! Definitely has a strong coffee taste, I kinda went back and forth thinking I was drink coffee or I was drinking beer. But I think I was a fan in the end. Worth a try for sure! – 3/5
16. American Brown Ale – Black Bridge Brewery- Beer – 5% – It could be that this beer was just very well paired with my supper of… popcorn… but it was very smooth. An excellent mix of butter and sweet and smooth and brown. I would definitely drink this one again! – 4/5
17. Prairie Pils – Pile O’ Bones Brewing Co. – Beer – 5% – Pilsner… why? Who chooses to drink these? This is the epitome of carbonated pee in a can. No shade on the company who made it, but… gross. Pilsner. Gross. – 1/5
18. Buckle Up – Rebellion Brewing Co. – Beer – 4.2% – This one definitely lived up to its name, so smooth, so easy to drink. This is one you could drink a couple of and not realize it. Perhaps… sessionable. Solid beer. – 3.5/5
19. He Can’t Even Have Just One – Black Bridge Brewery – Strong Beer – 8% – … it’s true. He can’t. What an excellent beer! It’s called a ‘Double NEIPA’ which I had never heard of before but I will be seeking out again. It stands for New England India Pale Ale and my friends the republic of New England India definitely got this one right. A big win for me! Wow! – 5.5/5
20. Dry Hopped Kettle Sour – Nokomis Craft Ales – Beer – 4.5% – I love me a good sour, and this was a good sour! Very fruity and light, this was a beer I could drink on a hot day at the beach! It even comes in a pink can, girly yet manish at the same time! I’d buy a case o’ that! – 4/5
21. Classic IPA – Nokomis Craft Ales – Strong Beer – 6.5% – This was a very average IPA. Perhaps below average. Very bitter with nothing to distract you from it, ‘twas mediocre at best. – 2/5
22. White IPA – Pile O’ Bones Brewing Co. – Beer – 5% – This was another excellent IPA in a long line of excellent IPAs this year. Very light and fruity, I’d definitely drink this one again. An absolute must win! I loved this one! – 5/5
23. Cats Got The Cream – Rebellion Brewing Co. – Beer – 5.5% – This beer was a little odd. A desert beer of sorts. I had it with a supper of chicken spaghetti and it did not pair well. It went ok with the cookies at the end though. Meh. – 2.5/5
24. Amber Ale – Rebellion Brewing Co. – Beer – 5% – I feel pretty meh about amber beers, and this one fits the bill. It’s mostly ok and I drank the whole thing but I wouldn’t drink another. Nothing stood out to me except the lingering after taste. I wish that this beer advent calendar had ended on something better than this. Meh… again. – 2.5/5
It was definitely too bad to end on such a “meh” beer, but Brady has reassured me he really enjoyed this round of beer, and I have witnessed it to be true!
Through doing these beer advent calendars each year, Brady has learned that he really likes IPAs, and really likes the hoppy flavor. Me, not so much, but I love the sours! Who would’ve thought??
Its been fun! And it’ll be fun again next year, too!! T-11 months!
Anyone else rock the beer advent??