Cool collection: Beau Brewing’s holiday mix pack shares four beers, recipe cards

For us, the holidays are all about surprises, sharing, suds, family and food. It’s a combination that’s not lost on our Canadian counterparts at Beau’s All Natural Brewing Co. The Vankleek Hill, Ontario-based craft pioneer is celebrating the silly season with a mix pack called “Best of Beau’s” (available in Liquor Control Board of Ontario locations). The 2015 edition of Best of Beau’s features four fan-favorite Beau’s beers as well as a series of four collectible recipe cards paired with each beer in the pack, courtesy of Beau’s resident chef Bruce Wood.

We say thanks up front, Bruce. You’re making our holiday beer drinking and cooking selections exceedingly easy.

The beers included in the 2015 Best of Beau’s mix pack were chosen by online voting back in June. The popular-vote contest allowed fans of the brewery to have their say in what Beau’s beers they wanted to see brewed again. The top four vote-getters were included in this year’s limited-edition holiday sampler. Let’s break it down:

• Oak-aged Matt’s Sleepy Time Belgian-Style Imperial Stout (8 percent) offers up dark chocolate, coffee and vanilla — the Belgian Ale yeast imparts mild banana and spice.
• Fous Alliés Mango Saison (6.1 percent) has tropical fruit aroma and peppery notes. Faintly tart and pleasantly dry, the recipe was co-created with Québec’s Microbrasserie Trou du diable.
• Patio Saison (5.9 percent) is a snappy, crisp golden ale that combines mild pepper-and-clove with the citrusy zest of orange peel, and the mild floral elements of elder flower.
• Screamin’ Beaver Oak-Aged Double IPA (9.9 percent) is an extra-strong, bold IPA that has been dry-hopped and aged on oak staves — expect a luscious interplay of vanilla and citrus flavor.

This is the fourth edition of the Best of Beau’s mix pack, containing four signature 600-milliliter bottles (one of each of the fan-chosen brands). It’s $26 in Canadian funny money.