After the year we’ve had, an advent calendar stashed with tiny cubes of chocolate simply will not do. No, we deserve to count down the days until Christmas by opening little doors on fun-sized bottles of alcohol.
Alcohol advent calendars, while great for building excitement and spreading Christmas cheer in the month of December, are also a fun way to sample new craft beers, spirits, and wines, usually at a fraction of the cost.
Here are our picks for the best boozy advent calendars in 2020.
Good Pair Days 12 Wines of Christmas, $295 and $465
Good Pair Days is back again with its 12 Wines of Christmas pack. This year, there are three packs on offer: mixed, chillable, and reds. Even better, the brand’s sommelier has curated two boxes in each category with varying price points. Budget-friendly drinkers will love the ‘Great Value’ selection, with 12 wines for $295, while those after something different will no doubt opt for the ‘A Bit Fancy’ selection for $465.
In 2020, Good Pair Days has curated its Christmas boxes with a focus on Australian wine-makers, to support local growers after a challenging year. The boxes allow buyers to sample a range of exclusive drops, but they also provide special recipes, wine pairings, tasting notes, and a couple of surprises. Advent calendars aside, Good Pair Days has an awesome range of personalised gifts you can send to a loved one, or you know, yourself.
Victoria Bitter VB Big Cold Advent Calendar, $52
It’s not exactly an alcohol advent calendar that will surprise you, but it’s still pretty damn exciting. Victoria Bitter has revealed its Big Cold Advent Calendar of 24 VBs, one to be enjoyed every day in the lead-up to Christmas and the holidays. Best kept in the fridge so you can enjoy your stubbie sooner!
Qantas 12 Wines Of Christmas Advent Calendar, $270 or 45,000 points
It’s been a year of pivoting for Qantas. The national carrier has launched a number of creative initiatives to secure revenue in a time of grounded flights, including selling its bar carts, launching a fashion line, and delivering business class pyjamas. Now, it’s launched a boozy advent calendar.
The Qantas 12 Wines Of Christmas Advent Calendar contains 12 bottles of great value wines to be opened over 12 days in the lead-up to Christmas. The pack even includes one bottle of French Champagne with a value of $85.
Aldi 24 Days of Celebration Wine Advent Calendar, $89.99
Budget supermarket Aldi is getting into the spirit of Christmas this year with the 24 Days of Celebration Wine Advent Calendar. The calendar features 24 midi-sized bottles of wine including sparkling, white, red, and rosé, and contains enough wine for two glasses. Best shared with a friend of loved one, the calendar is great value at $89.99.
Gin Loot Advent Calendar, $249
Early bird pricing on the Gin Loot advent calendar means you can snag yours for $249 rather than $279. Inside the special edition box, gin lovers will find 24 30mL bottles of gin from around Australia, France, New Zealand, Sweden, Scotland and Israel. Each of the premium gins comes with tasting notes and fits into a bespoke gift box.
Whisky Loot Advent Calendar, $299 – $439
Cashing in on early bird pricing can save you up to $60 on Whisky Loot’s 2020 advent calendars. The Whisky Loot Advent ($299) contains 24 30mL bottles of whisky, and features 10 Scotch, four Japanese, four American, two Australian, two Irish, plus extras from Canada, India and more.
The Whisky Loot Collectors edition brings 12 6mL bottles of ultra-premium whiskys, that when bottled up in full, average at around $250 a bottle. Open doors on drams from Australia, New Zealand, Japan, France, Taiwan, USA, Ireland and Scotland.
Aldi 12 Nights of Wine Tubes Advent Calendar, $49.99
Aldi’s 12 Nights of Wine Tubes Advent Calendar is the perfect pressie for the wine lover in your life (or yourself). Each day you’ll open the door to a tube of wine that chills quickly to fill one glass. A great opportunity to sample wines from around the world, it’s also great value at $49.99.
Drinks by the Dram Premium Gin Advent Calendar, $127.53
For the gin lovers who delight in sampling new spirits, the Premium Gin Advent Calendar, available from Master of Malt, is a sure-fire winner. Behind the 24 windows of this advent calendar, ‘ginthusiasts’ will find 30ml wax-sealed drams of juniper-based gins, to either be enjoyed solo or in a G&T.
Drinks by the Dram Japanese Whisky Advent Calendar, $300.20
There’s no better gift for a whisky enthusiast. Drinks by the Dram has curated a Japanese Whisky Advent Calendar with 24 different 30ml wax-sealed drams of whisky from a number of Japan’s best makers, including single malts, single grains, blends and more. Pre-order now from Master of Malt.
Gintonica Advent Calendar 2020, $279
Gintonica’s 2020 advent calendar curates 24 Australian-only craft Gins with mini distillery labels. In the lead-up to Christmas, you can open a door on a new gin flavour with tasting notes and serving suggestions included.
