Gift Giving Tips from the Pros

’Tis the season to make with the beer-giving. I asked a few local luminaries for recommendations to thrill the hops enthusiasts on your list — and what they would like to unwrap on December 25. Start shopping now (some of these suggestions will require a bit of effort) and then get sipping on Ho-Ho-Ho Day; chances are your giftee will be glad to share their new brews — win-win!

Mark Hellendrung | Owner of Narragansett Beer

Beer makes a great gift, especially beers that I can’t get around here. Last year I got some Rhinegeist from a friend in Cincinnati, NoDa from Charlotte, and Karbach from Houston — all really great beers that came with great stories. So if you’re packing up and heading out for the holidays, I say bring some great local flavor with you. Obviously ’Gansett has the Big Mamie, Re-Animator, Autocrat Coffee Milk Stout, and award-winning Lager out right now, but there’s also a growing list of really good beers from some of the other RI breweries, like Revival’s Juliett Imperial Stout and Foolproof’s Peanut Butter Raincloud.

Sean Robinson | Craft beer manager at C&C Distributing

You can’t go wrong with either a big Russian Imperial stout, barleywine or a sour as the perfect holiday present for a beer geek. And there are lots of great gift packs on the market this year. The Stone Bastard box is always a nice gift, with 22-ounce bottles of Arrogant Bastard, Oaked Arrogant Bastard, Double Bastard and Depth-Charged Double Bastard (made with espresso beans). And the Weihenstephaner box makes a fantastic gift, with several German styles in 16.9-ounce bottles, plus a sharp logoed glass.

Brian Oakley | Chief operations manager of Julians & Pizza J

For someone who is new to craft beer but excited about it, a mixed six-pack is a great gift. Make sure to load it up with very different styles: a Belgian, like a saison or a tripel; something German, like a doppelbock or a clean Kölsch; at least one sour ale, like a Rodenbach, Brasserie des Franches-Montagnes or, if you can get it, a Cantillon; two Americans, one hop-forward like a Ballast Point Grapefruit Sculpin and one dark, like a Founders Breakfast Stout; and you should always include something local, like a Revival White Electric Stout. If I’m shopping for a craft beer veteran, it’s a safe bet to go with a Firestone Walker Parabola or a vintage bottle like a St. Bernardus Abt 12 or a Brasserie des Franches-Montagnes Abbaye De Saint Bon-Chien. If you were shopping for me, a large-format bottle to share with friends would make me happy, but if you want extra credit, I would gladly accept a Cantillon or a Lawson’s bottle.

Shaun Daniels | Sales rep at Craft Beer Guild of Rhode Island

I love love love getting beers that are not available in the market or neighboring states. Anytime I have out of town guests coming to Christmas/Chanukah/Kwanzaa/Festivus, I ask them to bring me beers. It doesn’t matter if it’s a bigger brewery like Bell’s, Deschutes or  Russian River, or a small brewery like 7 Devils — if I can’t get it in the market, I want it. I’m also a fan of food-centric beer gifts, be it a book about food-and-beer pairing or products made with beer. I especially love cheese made with beer or beer cookbooks. Unibroue has a cheese serving set I started causally mentioning to my wife on a recent trip to Chambly (and weekly since).

Bonus beer news: Long Live Beerworks, which will be the first craft beer brewery in Providence, is this close to opening its doors. Brewmaster Armando DeDona hopes to share his first beers with you at 425 West Fountain St a few days before Christmas. Check their Facebook page for updates.

For more beer news, go to my blog, bottlescansclaphands.wordpress.com, and follow me @BottlesCansRI.