Brewer's Advent Calendar Beers 2016 (24 pack)

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I remember as a kid during Christmas time, we would have those Advent calendars where there were 24 little doors on a box corresponding to the 24 days leading up to Christmas (see Chevy Chase's Christmas Vacation if you don't know what I'm talking about). Each door had a piece of chocolate hiding behind it, and everyday you get to open up a single door and eat the chocolate behind it. Of course I would just cheat and open up all the doors all at once and eat all the chocolates. What's cool is that Costco has an adult version of the Advent calendar for you loyal Christians out there for the holidays with the 2016 Brewer's Advent Calendar. Instead of chocolates, this Advent calendar at Costco has beers. It's basically a 24 pack of imported beers allowing you to sample some fine beers from Germany. Costco has these every year, so if you missed out on last year's Advent Calendar, then be sure to take advantage of this year's version. This will definitely make your holidays that much more festive when you get to drink a different tall boy everyday. Drinking this sure beats drinking a six pack of PBR - instead it'll feel like you're sipping beer from a beer stein in a German beer garden in Bavaria during the winter. It's nice to have a variety of beers especially from Germany where they are known for their brews. Help celebrate Christmas time with this collection of 24 beers featured in the Brewer's Advent Calendar. You better get one of these Beer Advent Calendars, so that you don't miss the start of Advent and can start counting down the days to Christmas. Now who doesn't love alcohol during the holidays, right? I know I do.


Enjoy a diverse collection of beers during Christmas with the Brewer's Advent Calendar
Enjoy a diverse collection of beers during Christmas with the Brewer's Advent Calendar

Here are the specs:

Brewer's Advent Calendar Beers (24 pack) Product Info

Costco Item#: 612833
Costco Price: $59.99
Found at: Costco in Foster City, CA (1001 Metro Center Blvd.)
(price and availability may vary per Costco location)

Costco 612833 - Brewer's Advent Calendar gives you a beer a day during the holidays
Brewer's Advent Calendar gives you a beer a day during the holidays

Brewer's Advent Calendar - a variety pack of 24 German beers
Brewer's Advent Calendar - a variety pack of 24 German beers

Types of German beer featured in Costco's Beer Advent Calendar
Types of German beer featured in Costco's Beer Advent Calendar

The 24 beers in the Brewer's Advent Calendar
The 24 beers in the Brewer's Advent Calendar

Deal for the 2016 Brewer's Advent Calendar Beers at Costco
Deal for the 2016 Brewer's Advent Calendar Beers at Costco

In 2016 the "Reinheitsgebot" celebrates its 500th Anniversary
The Reinheitsgebot is the world's oldest regulation for food. The Bavarian order of 1516 was introduced in part to prevent price competition with bakers for wheat and rye. The restriction of grains to barley was meant to ensure the availability of affordable bread, as wheat and rye were reserved for use by bakers. The text of the 1516 Bavarian law is as follows: "...Furthermore, we wish to emphasize that in future in all cities, markets and in the country, the only ingredients used for the brewing of beer must be Barley, Hops and Water. Whosoever knowingly disregards or transgresses upon this ordinance, shall be punished by the court authorities confiscating such barrels of beer, without fail...". To this day, all beer produced in Germany is complying with these regulations!

In this box, you will find 24 exclusive imported beers from Germany. All beers in this box are produced following the regulations of the "German Purity Law" dating back to the year 1516.

German Beer Styles:

  • Doppelbock: Doppel means double and while these are stronger brews, they are typically not twice the strength. Color is light amber to dark brown. Very full body with a high alcoholic flavor. Lower hop flavor and aroma.
  • Dortmunder/Helles: These two styles are closely related, the former from Dortmund and the latter from Bavaria. The cookie-like or bready maltiness should be very much in evidence in a traditional example
  • Dunkel: They have a medium body. Nutty toasted malty sweetness in aroma and flavor. Lower "noble-type" hop flavor and aroma. In Germany, dark lagers span a wide range of characters from sweet to dry.
  • Dunkelweizen: The dunkel (=dark) Hefeweizen have the same banana and clove notes of their pale cousins but also have earthy, toasty, and chocolatey notes form the dark malts. They are "shoulder season" wheat beers to many drinkers.
  • Hefeweizen: Depending on the style can range from pale and light body to dark brown with fully body. Wheat beer is characterized by its cloudy appearance and its banana and sometimes vanilla aftertaste.
  • Heller Brock: The Heller Bock is primarily a malty beer with little hop character. The color is golden to light brown or amber. They pour with a substantial white head. Typical examples are pale and clear and brewed with lager yeast.
  • India Pale Ale (IPA): The IPA was "invented" in the 18th century in England and was a beer that was shipped to India. A dense malt profile is needed to balance the hops. The bitterness should be lasting. Medium-dry to dry finish.
  • Irish Ale: The red ales of Ireland have a gentle maltiness, caramelly, earthy notes, and a generally retrained hop character. Alcohol is generally at 5% abv or less, though you will find the occasional stronger example.
  • Marzen: Originally this type has been brewed until March and allowed to ferment slowly during the summer months. Since the 1990s, European brewed versions have tended to be golden in color.
  • Pilsner: It refers to pale, hoppy lagers, with a moderate bitterness. Classic German Pilsners tend to be light-to-medium bodied, semisweet to off-dry and hopped with German noble hops.
  • Zwickel: This beer is unfiltered and will be bottled right after fermentation. It has a light hoppy bitterness and a medium malt character. It has a somewhat sweetish, yet full-bodied taste.
  • Smoked: The classic smoked beers hail from Bamberg, Germany. These are made using malt that has been smoked over beechweed. The insistent smokiness may be applied to any lager style. Whiskey malt beers are made using peat-smoked malt.

    The Beers in this Box are:

  • Alpenkonig (Marzen): Copper in color with a taste of toasted bread and light bitterness.
  • Alpkonig (Kellerbier): Bright golden, honey and malt aroma, easy drinking.
  • Altbayrisch Dunkel (Dunkelweizen): Almost black color, mild aroma of chocolate and dark fruits.
  • Bierkutscher Edel Pils (Pilsner): Bright yellow with a sweet nose and crisp and bitter aftertaste.
  • Bonifatius (Dark Bock): Chestnut brown, creamy head, notes of dried fruits and spicy alcohol.
  • Burgerbau Alpenstoff (Dortmunder): Nice sweetness and light bitter with a sweet malt taste.
  • Eaglebrau Weizenbier (Dunkelweizen): Dark with a white head. Great notes of bananabread and toffee.
  • Edel Bayer Urtyp Hell (Helles): Golden color, notes of citrus and hay with a crispy, refreshing taste.
  • Egerer Winterfestbier (Marzen): Mild marzipan, touch of banana, medium sweetness with light hoppy finish.
  • Grandl Lager (Dortmunder): Malty nose, refreshing on the taste with moderate bitterness.
  • Herrnbrau Jubilaumssud (Dunkel): This beer is specially brewerd only this year for the 500th Anniversary of the German Purity Law - a special treat for this great occasion!
  • Herrnbrau Tradition (Marzen): Golden yellow. Malty with a touch of graininess and citrus fruit.
  • Kloster Urstoff (Dunkelweizen): An amber color with a tan head. Caramel notes and a nutty taste.
  • Kress Bayrisch Zwickel (Zwickel): Hazy amber, nutty and roasted sweetness, clean and easy drinking.
  • Lowen Urtyp Hell (Dortmunder): Pale yellow, sweet with great wheat notes and fine citrus notes.
  • Memminber Gold (Marzen): Nice malty aroma, refreshing attitude and aftertaste.
  • Osser Gold (Dortmunder): Yellow color, nice grain and malt aromas with a well paired hoppyness.
  • Publiner (Irish Ale): Reddish color, grainy nose paired with sweet caramel and vanilla notes.
  • Rieder India Pale Ale (IPA): Malty, fruity and great hop bitterness with some nice peppery hints.
  • Schloss Weisse 1516 (Hefeweizen): Golden color, great aromas of fruit and fresh bread aftertaste.
  • Wittmann Urhell (Pilsner): Hazy yellow. Notes of cornbread and grains with a good hop flavor.
      Key Features:
    • 24 exclusive imported German Beers
    • Open a beer a day (December 1st to 24th)
    • Each window contains one 16.9 oz. can of Premium Imported German Beer
    • The Brewer's Advent Calendar is a product of Kalea GmbH, Germany
    • Imported

  • 4 comments:

    Charlie Street, PI (Investigations, Cheap Whiskey and Late Nights) said...

    I got this at Costco, PLEASE STOP putting one year old beer in this product. Surely you can give us beer that is a bit fresher??? The cans all say the beer was produced in Jan. 2016 and it's now Dec. 2016. Most of this beer is good and I love the German advent beer concept, but a few of these brews taste a little old. Well yeah, one year can be an issue for some beers. Please fix this for next year.

    ExecMemberMike said...

    Hello @Charlie, ya I agree. The least they can do is put fresh beer in the 2016 Brewer's Advent Calendar even though I'm sure most people wouldn't notice. Hopefully, we don't see Jan. 2017 beers in the 2017 Brewer's Advent Calendar for next year.

    Anonymous said...

    Agree with the above comments. This is a lot to pay for year-old beer. Also, I wouldn't mind a bit more diversity. This is a pretty neutral selection by my taste. I think they're playing it a bit too safe. There were a few days when I struggled to distinguish one day's beer from my memory of the previous, and I had to go look in my can bin to prove to myself that I hadn't just opened a dupe. A well-planned-out calendar would leave no question. The selection would be broader, and the order would be chosen to ensure that, from one day to the next, there would be no doubt that you'd tasted something new. (I'm also sure that, in the case of this 2016 calendar, the oldness of the brews exacerbated their similarities.)

    Happy New Year!
    -Aaron

    ExecMemberMike said...

    Hello @Aaron, my guess is that the neutral selection of beers was chosen to appeal to most people. Of course they run the risk of many of the beers in this collection tasting the same. You're right that beers would tend to lose a little bit of its flavor over time which would probably make the similar flavors of the beers in the calendar more noticeable. I hope the 2017 Advent Beer Calendar will be different. Thanks though for sharing your thoughts on the 2016 Advent Beer Calendar and Happy New Year to you as well!

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