Bagels, a 'Blokequet' and Other Beer-Themed Collabs

We love quirky beer collabs and this lot did not disappoint. Here’s a look at some chill campaigns to round out the year.

Miller Lite’s Beercracker

In jaw-dropping news, courtesy of Miller Lite, wooden nutcrackers have expanded their talents to open beer cans or bottles! A follow-up to the brand’s Christmas Tree Keg Stands last year, the Beercracker dons a pilsner foam cape, beer barley boots and hop-leaf buttons. The little guy opens beverages from its mouth (bottle) or removable hat (can).

A few hundred Beercrackers, at $29.95 a piece, sold out. But perhaps Miller Lite will add them to their permanent holiday swag options, like it did for the Beernament.

“When you think about your holiday party, you don’t want to be looking around for a bottle or can opener when it’s time to crack open a fresh beer during the traditional holiday hubbub,” says Anne Pando, senior marketing manager for Miller Lite. “But with the Beercracker, you won’t ever lose track of it because your opener is now proudly on display.”

Miller High Life’s Merry High Light

Miller High Life has previously bestowed upon fans Gingerbread Dive Bars and Beer Leg Lamps during the holiday season. This year, the brand, with help from Phaedon, brings us the Merry High Light. It’s a tiny, glowing tree that smells like your favorite dive bar: tobacco, sweat and poor decisions. There’s even a tree skirt that matches the Girl in the Moon’s striped attire. If miniature isn’t your thing, enter by 12/15 to win a 5-foot tree instead.

Voodoo Ranger’s World’s Strongest Can

Voodoo Ranger is known for its strong IPAs. But strong cans, hm, that’s a new one. The brand, Opinionated and sculptor Scott Foster made a can so strong that it earned the seal of approval from Mitchell Hooper, the World’s Strongest Man. The can weighs 14 pounds is 8.5 inches tall, fortified by half an inch of steel, and contains 19.2 oz of Voodoo Ranger Imperial IPA.

Videos on strongestcanofipa.com illustrate how indestructible the can appears. It absorbs some damage from a hydraulic press and a flamethrower, but remains intact. Via the website, fans can enter to win the can by sharing how they’ll try to destroy it.

“This is one of those projects that was blissfully straightforward,” says Cameron Soane, ACD/art director at Opinionated. “We had a pun. We had a goal for making it a social-first campaign. We just needed to fabricate a seriously scary-strong can.”

Blue Moon Beer x PopUp Bagels

Beer bagels arrive, thanks to Blue Moon and PopUp Bagels. If you’ve tried the brew, you know a pint typically comes with an orange slice on the side. Muse got its mitts on some fresh, hot beer bagels—and we were intrigued by the Valencia cream cheese that came with our order.

The schmear was slightly citrusy and flavorful … kind of like a pint of Blue Moon. The collab sold out faster than you can spell V-a-l-e-n-c-i-a. Lindsey Wesloski, brand manager says, “a bagel made with Blue Moon was the perfect way to align your favorite foods in an elevated way—and to drive Blue Moon relevancy amongst a culinary-forward audience and beyond.”

Yeastie Boys x I Am Hope

Two disheartening facts: Most men receive their first bouquet of flowers at their funeral. THEIR FUNERAL. And New Zealand has one of the highest rates of male suicide in the world.

Yeastie Boys, the best named brewery in New Zealand (and possibly the world) teamed up with VML to create the “Blokequet”—beer brewed with earl grey blue flower—for men to share with their guy friends. Hopefully, a few sips will open a portal to talk about their feelings. The Blokequet is sold at various bars and liquor stores, and it’s even available in a traditional bouquet-style arrangement—but with beer. For every can sold, a donation is made to the I Am Hope foundation.

“The reality is, most men in New Zealand socialize over a beer,” says Mike King, founder of I Am Hope. “That’s when they will really connect and talk with each other, so it’s a really big opportunity for us to start encouraging those kōrero [conversations] to include mental health. And it doesn’t have to be a really serious talk. It can be as simple as asking your mate if they’re OK.”

Craft Sportswear x Billdale Brewery

Swedish running brand Craft Sportswear teamed up with Forsman & Bodenfors and Billdale Brewery to create a beer best suitable for runners—post-run, natch. Aptly named Craft Beer, the lager made its debut after the UTMB race in Chamonix and contains extra B vitamins, minerals and fiber. 10,000 units of Craft beer were produced and distributed for free after events where Craft Sportswear has a presence.

“Craft was launching their most advanced trail running shoe during the UTMB race,” says Karl Risenfors, art director at F&B. “We wanted to create something that would create a bit of extra buzz (no pun intended) around the brand. In the running community, the post-run beer is a well established ritual, so we decided to create the ultimate post-run beer by adding all the vitamins, minerals and nutrition your body needs.”

Kona Big Wave’s ‘Bring the Aloha’

There’s often drama when shooting a curl, and Kona Big Wave wants to dispel this bad rep and bring surfers together. Brand spokesperson and pro-surfer Hunter Jones invited surfers with varying experiences to the Aloha Bench to sit, drink a cold one and talk frankly about what happens in open water. By the end of the 3:30 below, locals, newbies and lifelong surfers are on the same wave…length.