More ideas to make your favourite beer aficionado happy this holiday season, or to add to your own wish list.
6) Beer & Barbecue – Even though December is not exactly one of the more outdoor grill-friendly seasons of the year, the steamy days of summer will be back before you know it, and with them, the urge, nay, the primal need to cook slabs of red meat over an open flame. So consider giving Lucy Saunders’ great new book, “Grilling With Beer,” to the ‘cue and brew enthusiast in your life.
From the Smoked Ale Mustard Sauce on page 30 to the Stout Spiced Brats on page 200, The Beer Cook’s ode to the grill will have you or your significant grilling other salivating all the way to spring. And you can get your copy direct from the author!
7) Beer Dinner – Nothing says “I care” like the offer of a delicious, homemade meal. So open up MS Publisher and whip off a nice coupon for a beautiful beer dinner at home, redeemable in the new year. Don’t sweat the cooking stuff, as there are more than a few ‘cooking with beer’ websites on the ‘net – including the above-mentioned Lucy Saunders’ beercook.com, the Food & Beer forum at ratebeer.com, the website of beer importer Vanberg & Dewulf and even my own World of Beer – and you don’t have to be an expert chef to pull it all together. Match some quality beers to the dishes and you’re on your way!
Quality Beer Paraphernalia – You know how some cork dorks go nuts over corkscrews and carafes and such? Well, plenty of beer aficionados enjoy bringing a little style to their home bar with quality accessories such as openers, bar towels and beautiful beer glasses. Note: Remember to think “quality,” and leave the Simpsons talking openers and freezable beer mugs on the shelf.
9) Stuffed Yeast – Yep, this season, wrap up a plush, squeezable yeast cell for the homebrewer on your list, courtesy of the wacky folk at GIANTmicrobes. It sounds weird, true enough, but they’re actually kind of cute. Check ‘em out for yourself.
10) A Year of Beer – Beer of the Month clubs are legal in only some parts, but beer information is acceptable everywhere. So consider giving a subscription to a beer publication like All About Beer, Ale Street News or The Celebrator, or for the more adventuresome drinker, the beer and whisk(e)y journal, The Malt Advocate. (Confession: I write for all four of these mags, which explains in part why I prefer them. But really, they are quite good!)
