Beer belt
I’m sure we’ve all experienced this cold-one conundrum: you’ve packed 12 bottles into a cooler, another half-dozen into a knapsack and you’re already sucking back the two cans you’re carrying in the holsters of that novelty baseball cap, but you’re still short six beer-stashing spots! Introducing the beer belt, a plastic cincher that promises to pick up the ale-toting slack. $18.95, Rolo, 24 Bellair, 416-920-0100, rolostore.com.
Clone Brews
A bible for DIY brewers looking to replicate the flavour of their favourite pale ale and hearty stout, Clone Brews by Tess and Mark Szamatulski features 200 recipes inspired by some of the world’s most popular beers. The updated second edition also includes food pairing advice, tips on creating your own mash and instructions on how to deduce the formulas for pilsners and porters not included in the book. $24, Good Egg, 267 Augusta, 416-593-4663, goodegg.ca.
Ritzenhoff Seidel beer mug
Skip the souvenir steins with their sculpted ceramic bodies and thumb-levered lids in favour of Ritzenhoff’s slightly less kitschy collection of Seidel beer mugs. Each designer glass holds a half-litre of your favourite ale and comes with a set of four designer coasters. Beer mug by Israel Guevara ($52, Studio Brillantine, 1518 Queen West, 416-536-6521, studiobrillantine.com).
Working Class Studio coasters
If there’s any etiquette involved in beer-drinking, it’s use a coaster, and these are the cardboard bar top protectors we think you should employ. Created by Working Class Studio, a company that brings the design work of Savannah College of Art students to market, they feature tipsy squiggle and swirl graphics. $12/set of 20, Ma Zone, 63 Jarvis, 416-868-0330, ma-zone.com.
BUILT six-pack tote
Wine shoppers have endless options for reusable bags to carry home their haul of pinots and cabs, but none of them stack up to BUILT’s new six-pack tote. Made specifically for beer, the neoprene bag stashes a half-dozen 12-to 20-ounce cans or bottles and keeps them cool for up to four hours. It’s also machine washable, just in case you’re a messy drunk. $25. builtny.com.