Thursday, June 11, 2015

It’s the 2015 Ale Sharpton Annual Father’s Day Gift Guide!

Scandal's Olivia Pope hearing what her dad wants from this list. Good luck with that!

It's time to make Dad happy during the one true day he gets all to himself!

What’s up!

As I consistently find out every year during my travels, there are so many great dads out there who do whatever they can to make sure their kids have the best in life. Hence, I have done a lot of research and received numerous pitches to be in this year’s edition, resulting in what I think the best one of them all so far. 
From kickass beer-centric gifts like stainless steel growlers, books, brewing kits mimicking what the President Obama brews in the White House, t-shirts, new brews on the shelves, and club memberships, to travel packages to Miami’s Wynwood Arts District, a hard-cased dopp for toiletries, top-shelf spirits, and numerous other gifts that will make any Dad say, “Hell yes, you actually thought this through!”
So without further ado, pour a beer and sift through these extra dope choices to make your dad, husband, or any man with a kid tap dance!
Oh, and I will be adding some last-minute entries to this list periodically so check back soon!

Happy shoppin’!
Ale

The DrinkTanks™ Growler
If you hate flat beer, this stainless steel growler is the answer!
Through crowdfunding, Nicholas Hilla and his late father made their dream a reality: They delivered an awesome growler that is stainless steel, leakproof, punks traditional screwcaps in terms of carbonation preservation, and boasts that it keeps beer cold for up to 24 hours! To add, if it’s in the fridge, beer stays fresh for about a week! I hate how quick brews go flat in growlers, so this DrinkTanks container could be the answer! Oh yeah, besides being dishwasher safe and BPA free, these state-of-the-art growlers come in 13 different vibrant colors too! More info is here.

Southern Beer Tours’ Baseball Package
This one’s a hit!
After kickin’ it for two hours at the awesome Wild Heaven brewery for six tastings before heading to Turner Field, the day continues with a game to see the Atlanta Braves against the New York Mets (who are actually decent this year!) on Saturday, June 20th at 3:00 pm. This chauffeured package includes a General Admission ticket and a signature, delicious, alcohol-absorbing Chick-Fil-A sandwich for a mere $65! SBT also includes a souvenir glass and gift bag with the tour! Pickup is at the Lindbergh TMac (Taco Mac). Go here for all the info and get your beer tourin’ on!


The BrewTees.com T-Shirt of the Month Club
Step Dad’s t-shirt game up!
Sign Pops up to get a new t-shirt from a microbrewery like Stone, Evil Twin, and Wired to name a few every month thanks to BrewTees.com’s T-Shirt of the Month Club! The designs are pretty slick, it won’t be a piece from the macros, and it’s a gift that keeps on giving! Plus, each t-shirt comes with a lil’ goody. If you have commitment issues to do the monthly program (they give you choices of three months, six months and a year), just go on their site and pick the shirt you want (the prices are hella reasonable at like $20), and then bless Dad’s wardrobe with some t-shirt love. Go here for all the deets and tell ‘em Ale sent ya!

Brew the beers the White House makes!
Create and sip what the POTUS loves thanks to Northern Brewer.
Northern Brewer, one of my favorite  online retail homebrew  supply shops, helps us stay patriotic with homebrew kits that emulate the original brews made by the White House kitchen staff, including President Obama’s faves—the White House Honey Ale and White House Honey Porter. Of course, Northern Brewer has hundreds of other kits, supplies, and accessories, but what better way to celebrate July 4th than with these joints? Here’s the jump to the official website.


The Beer Connoisseur Unique Global Beer Club
Membership has its privileges.
The first beer magazine I have written for, The Beer Connoisseur, just launched The Beer Connoisseur® Club and have a Kickstarter campaign here where you can have your dad’s name recognized for his contribution, support an awesome magazine, and get some cool schwag when he does. I love how they made me the first member with the cool card boasting “Ale Sharpton.” 
They say: All club members receive a magazine subscription and ALL ACCESS website membership that includes an interactive Beer School. A custom membership card generates discounts and incentives with the BC Network Global Partners. The list of partners includes breweries and brewpubs, international breweries, cideries and meaderies, retail and homebrew stores, plus a number of beer-centric products and services. In addition, the club’s director and staff are dedicated to acting as a BC Concierge service for members to help facilitate beer-related travel activities and find hard-to-get event tickets. Members will be invited to exclusive club events and can participate in an online community.

Circa 39’s ‘Would You Wynwood?’ package
Send Dad to Miami!
Let Pops bask in the sun, get his people-watching on, and indulge in Wynwood Arts District’s stunning art! I did a post on Wynwood here because it is an amazing section in Miami that continues to be adorned by murals painted by world-renowned artists. 
Hip boutique hotel Circa 39 based on the celebrated “Wunder Mile” along Miami Beach (also known as Mid-Beach) has an awesome package called “Would You Wynwood?” starting at just $219/night, 10 percent off best available rates, plus one full-day bike rental in Wynwood andget this—a Wynwood Brewing Company tour and tasting! Oh, and let’s not forget the daily breakfast and a complimentary craft cocktail at the WunderBar located on the property. (And don’t worry, they have local selections from the brewery as well.)
By the way, the representatives noted that the Wynwood Art Walk takes place the second Saturday of every month, which I have done and it is totally worth the brief exercise. So plan accordingly because Dad will dig it!

The Grommet presents: Tooletries
Dopp it the hard way!
I love The Grommet site because it sifts through the thousands of product submissions by start-up companies and entrepreneurs, and only three percent get selected. I visit it often to see what’s new. Besides the growler, I travel a lot and thought the Tooletries—a hard-case dopp kit—was a cool accessory any traveling dad would appreciate. Always sweating how your luggage is handled during flights, clippers, electric razors, cologne bottles and other breakable items are held down by removable silicone netting, plus there’s waterproof neoprene lining for extra security.
Check out the details here and bag...I mean...case this!

Uncle John’s Beer-Topia
Book it.
The increasingly popular Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader series has been entertaining us while on the flushing throne for more than 25 years with books full of time-killing fun facts on various subjects. Now it’s beer’s turn with the Uncle John’s Beer-Topia: A Heady Brew & Beer Miscellany. Here’s what they list this page-turner packs:
• The histories and origins of all the different styles of beers
• Interesting (and weird) beer flavors
• The science of beer, and how it’s made
• Crazy beer-related news stories
• Beer terminology
• Funny microbrew names
• Drinking games
 Instead of the typical rolled newspaper under his arm, Al Bundy would love this as a Father’s Day gift!

Hip Sips...

Unibroue Éphémère Pear
Gettin’ fruity widdit.
It’s a new addition to the Éphémère beer series from one of the best breweries in the world, Unibroue. I did the Cranberry here. Now it’s the Pear’s turn cased in 750 ml cork and cage bottles, and on tap at various bars and restaurants across the country. Refreshing, fruity, and delicious. Sip this with a pinky up in a tulip glass or flute for extra class! More click here for more the full description.

Red Hare Gangway IPA aged in Jose Cuervo Tradicional Tequila Barrels
Get Red Hare’s first bottled beer!
Marietta, Georgia-based brewery Red Hare is putting their first bottled beer on the shelves (they have solely been cans in the past), so this is seriously a collector’s item. Luckily, the beer in it is awesome as well! It’s the 22-ounce, Jose Cuervo Tradicional Tequila barrel-aged Gangway IPA (6.2% ABV) that’s only available in Metro Atlanta and Savannah, Georgia. To make it even more special, Red Hare is only one of three breweries throughout the US that was selected in Jose Cuervo’s Cask Ale barrel swap program.

DeLeón’s Reposado
An exotic trip to Mexico without Dad leaving the house!
Speaking of tequila, hook Dad up with a little DeLeón’s oak-aged Reposado made from 100 percent Highland agave. I even through a recipe in there for ya courtesy of the distillery, the DeLeón Old Fashioned, which “…takes the standards of the Old Fashioned category to the next level,” they boast. Get it at any package store with class.


DeLeón Old Fashioned
1 ½ oz DeLeón Reposado
¼ oz Mezcal
1 bar spoon agave nectar
2 dashes of angostura bitters
Stir all ingredients in a mixing glass over clean cubed and cracked ice until thoroughly chilled.  Strain into a rocks glass over a single, clean, large format rock.  Garnish with an orange peel.

Boom!

Ale
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