This year one of my favorite Chicago bottle shops, Bottles and Cans, released a Halloween 6-Pack. My wife teetered on the purchase, as we already spend a lot of money there, and on beer in general. In the end, we decided it might be a fun gimmick, especially during a pandemic, where any bit of new excitement is welcome, and on a Halloween that felt unnatural.

The premise of the Halloween 6-pack was that you wouldn’t know exactly what beers you were getting until you picked it up from the store. B & C did tease a pic with a few of the selections, but the lure was in what you didn’t see. So, I thought it would be fun to write about my six-pack and whether or not it was a trick or a treat?”

Here is my 6-pack:

5 Rabbit Cerveceria’s Vida & Muerte Muertzenbier– “A Märzenbier (Oktoberfest-style) brewed with dulce de leche”

Avery Brewing’s El Gose– “Session Sour Ale With Limes & Sea Salt”

Half Acre’s Original Reaper– “American Stout”

New Holland’s The Poet–  “Oatmeal Stout”

Short Fuse’s Bear-ie White– “Pale Wheat Ale Wints Hints Of Fruit”

Three Floyd’s Zombie Dust  “Undead India Pale Ale”

I’ll be honest, I was looking for a little more darkness in my 6-pack by way of at least one barrel-aged beer. To be frightfully honest, I was hoping for one BA Pumpkin beer. What I got is more of the same: a few sours, a few stouts, an IPA, and a Frankenstein-of-a-Festbier.

I loved the ode to Oktoberfest and The Day of the Dead from 5 Rabbitts. Vida & Muerte Muertzenbier was the sleeper of the 6-pack. It kind of felt like a genuine split between a pumpkin beer and an Oktoberfest. This felt a bit new and exciting, which rarely happens in craft beer anymore.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, we got Zombie Dust, a beer that no longer seems exciting in the age of Hop Butcher and Phase Three. It’s an IPA that initially brought Citra to life, so for that, we thank FFF.

Bear-ie White and El Gose are not bad entries, as they hold down the candy portion with something a little sweet and something a little sour. I do like Half Acre’s Original Reaper, it’s a solid all-around stout for winter, and I haven’t had The Poet in a long while, so that was an interesting entry.

I would rate “Bottles And Cans’ Halloween 6-Pack” a 3.5 out of 5. The variety was good, and the artwork of each beer worked well with the theme. I see this idea as something that could really grow and get better each year. Maybe they even have different pricing tiers for those looking for something a little extra special and spooky.

Next up, the Bottles and Cans Advent Calendar.

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