Let’s raise a glass to beer. No other drink is a great leveler and social lubricant all in one. And did you know that scientists also think we have beer to thank for the more interesting features of human civilization? As the New York Times recently put it, beer inhibits all those “shut up and keep your head down” survival instincts that helped us evade saber tooth tigers but weren’t so good for, say, having fun—and allows things like “exploration, artistic expression, romance, inventiveness and experimentation” to bloom. So, the next time you reach for a cold one, you’re really making a little contribution to the history of humankind. If you have a beer lover in your life, here are some gifts that should make them, er, hoppy.
Drink
Broaden their beer horizons with a three-month subscription for Amazing Clubs’ Beer of the Month Club ($107.85). The gift includes a dozen bottles of America’s finest micro-brews and free shipping within the contiguous 48 states.
Pair
Fact: beer is good; beer with snacks is better. Provide just the right salty or sweet accompaniment (landjager salame, anyone?) with this “Best With Beer Set” from Cherry Moon Farms ($69.99).
Make
Watch the magic happen with the Mini Monster Bookshelf Brewery ($47.95), a one-gallon, all-grain kit that’s small enough to fit on your bookshelf and transparent so you can peer into the mysteries of fermentation. Three weeks from grain to glass.
Serve
This eight-piece glass set ($59) means your beer fan will have exactly the right glass for the kind of beer that he’s enjoying. You can’t stick a lager in a glass that’s meant for a stout! Jeez, what kind of animal are you?
Cheers! Ready for even more gift ideas for beer lovers?
Lavonne Leong lives with her husband and daughters in Honolulu, where she writes about arts, education, science, families, and yes, shopping. She’s the editor-at-large for San Francisco-based Red Bridge Press, and her first children’s book, Up in the Hawaiian Sky, was published in 2013.