Celebrate the festive season and tuck into treats all through December with these food and drink advent calendars. <\/p>\n
\n Food and drink can be a major source of delight throughout the holiday season \u2013 whether it\u2019s a sweet treat stowed in a handbag or a meal shared with loved ones.
\n Advent calendars are one method of prolonging this food-found joy. Setting aside a moment every day for play makes the season feel very merry.\n <\/p>\n
There is, of course, plenty of chocolate to go around. Beyond this, local labels are also experimenting with tiny jars of jam, mini wine bottles and collections of tea. <\/p>\n
Now is the time to make your pre-orders, so you can forget about the incoming treat and be pleasantly surprised on December 1. <\/p>\n
House Of Chocolate, $40 <\/p>\n
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Best for: Chocolate fans who want a daily delight. <\/p>\n
There are six flavours to enjoy within this calendar, including hazelnut, rainbow sprinkles and \u201cgold\u201d hokey pokey chocolate. With 24 doors, there is some repetition, which means you\u2019ll get to sample your favourites more than once. The dome-shaped treats seem to resemble baubles for a little extra festivity. <\/p>\n
T2 Cabinet Of Curiosity, $55<\/p>\n
Best for: Tea fiends who want to expand their palette. <\/p>\n
A morning brew is an important ritual for many. For those who prefer a cup of tea, this calendar will delight. Within the finely decorated walls, there are 24 tea bags, including black tea, green tea, rooibos, fruit and herbal. There are weird and wonderful flavours to trial (strawberries and cream, sticky date) alongside staples (chai, Earl Grey and peppermint).<\/p>\n
Le Marche Francais Cheesy Advent Calendar, $164 <\/p>\n
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Best for: Cheeseboard enthusiasts who enjoy a surprise.<\/p>\n
Wellington-based cheesemongers at Le Marche Francais have curated boxes of French and European cheeses for those who prefer savoury treats. The box has a mix of blue, hard and soft cheeses created from cow, sheep and ewe milks. The most passionate turophiles will enjoy the addition of tasting notes emailed every morning for each of the 24 cheeses. <\/p>\n
Bennetts Chocolate Advent Calendar, $26 <\/p>\n
Best for: Someone after an unfussy chocolate treat. <\/p>\n
This 24-door calendar is tinged with nostalgia, with smooth, milk chocolate embossed with cheery Christmas characters. Bennetts, based in Mangawhai, has been making its treats for almost 30 years so it knows what makes an excellent bite. If you\u2019re after a little more extravagance, consider its feijoa marshmallows<\/a> or opt for a box of 25 chocolates<\/a> designed to suit any season. <\/p>\n Good George Advent Calendar, $125 <\/p>\n Best for: Making merry throughout the festive season. <\/p>\n You\u2019ll have to make room in the fridge for this celebratory package. It houses 24 cans from Good George, including lemonades, ciders and, of course, beers. There are a few wildcard brews you might expect from the collection, including doris plum and strawberry daiquiri ciders, so the countdown will be best suited to those with an adventurous palate. <\/p>\n Honest Chocolat Advent Calendar, $92<\/p>\n Best for: Plant-based and gluten-free chocolate lovers who enjoy unexpected flavour combinations. <\/p>\n This cheery calendar by Honest Chocolat, which first opened in Matakana and now has a store in Commercial Bay, has 24 doors that open to pretty, mystery chocolates, with colourful patterns and sweet shapes (all different flavours). If you are curious about the flavours there is a key on the back of the box. However, if you have a matching calendar with a loved one, it can be fun to guess the flavours before confirming. The offerings are tinged with fruit, coffee and caramel. Treats that contain the latter are particularly good \u2013 the caramel is a moreish combination of sweet, salty and chewy. <\/p>\n Colestown London Scene Advent Calendar, $78 <\/p>\n Best for: English ex-pats after a taste of home. <\/p>\n Snowy-laden pine, cossetting coats and low winter skies \u2013 it\u2019s not the scenery of a Christmas set in Aotearoa, but such symbols are frequently referenced in our imagination of the season. Those who consider this a nostalgic setting will enjoy the sweet imagery as much as the 24 chocolates inside. There are pieces with biscoff, pistachio, candy cane and caramel marshmallow. <\/p>\n Pepper & Me 12 Days Of Christmas Advent Calendar, $170 <\/p>\n Best for: Foodies who love to pack their pantry. <\/p>\n This box, celebrating 12 days of Christmas, is full of seasonings to delight a budding chef. The range at Cherie Metcalfe\u2019s Pepper & Me features salts, sauces, drink mixes and more \u2013 any of which could be included inside this mystery box. Among the haul, there are 12 food items, 50 recipes and a few bonus treats. The advent calendar can also be shipped to Australia for loved ones missing a taste of New Zealand. <\/p>\n Laithwaites Wine Advent Calendar, $180 <\/p>\n Best for: Shared holiday tipples. <\/p>\n There are 23 mini bottles of wine stocked within this advent calendar, along with a full-sized one of Prosecco to pop on Christmas Eve. The rest of the collection includes 187ml bottles of white and red wines, which will be ideal for last-minute holiday season gifts and busy party seasons. <\/p>\n Devonport Chocolates Advent Calendar, $109 <\/p>\n Best for: Those who want a range of white, milk and dark chocolate. <\/p>\n This collection from Devonport Chocolates boasts 24 treats, including solid chocolates and others with filled centres. There are sweet, seasonal touches to these treats \u2013 think one stamped with a flowering p\u014dhutukawa and another embossed with a pair of cherries. <\/p>\n Bonne Maman Adventure Advent Calendar, $83<\/p>\n Best for: Topping toast through the festive season. <\/p>\n If chocolate is too sweet a treat, this collection will suit. There are 24 limited-edition jars tucked into this calendar, from wild blueberry jam to caramel vanilla and maple-tinged spread. These are slightly more long-lasting, so you can pop them in the fridge to enjoy beyond the end-of-year festivities. <\/p>\n Tony\u2019s Chocolonely Advent Calendar, $37 <\/p>\n Best for: Moral merriment. <\/p>\n There is a mix of chocolate and milk caramel sea salt treats encased behind these snowy windows. Tony\u2019s Chocolonely deals in Fairtrade chocolate. These little bites are wrapped in festive colours too (the whole package is also plastic-free), and if you\u2019d prefer to save some for the big day, they can be suspended as ornaments from your Christmas tree. <\/p>\n Cocoa Wilds Chocolate Box, $95<\/p>\n Best for: Chocolate lovers who don\u2019t like surprises. <\/p>\n While the jolly design of an advent calendar can bolster seasonal spirits, you can also repurpose treats designed to suit any occasion. There are 24 assorted chocolates in this box by O\u2019Connell St chocolatiers Cocoa Wilds \u2013 tuck into flavours of wild strawberry, vanilla ganache and K\u014dkako espresso among many others. <\/p>\n Homemade <\/p>\n Best for: Brilliant bakers and high-energy hobbyists. <\/p>\n More to savour<\/p>\n New chefs, trends \u2013 and a Wellington restaurant review<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Celebrate the festive season and tuck into treats all through December with these food and drink advent calendars.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":121171,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[19838,75617,8039,177,7500,36979,156,75618,564,2082,296,18927,111,139,69,6926,81903,223,24359,1961,210,31090,85251,102],"class_list":["post-121170","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-19838","tag-advent","tag-calendars","tag-celebrate","tag-december","tag-drink","tag-entertainment","tag-festive","tag-food","tag-for","tag-into","tag-lovers","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-season","tag-tastiest","tag-the","tag-these","tag-this","tag-through","tag-treats","tag-tuck","tag-with"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121170","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=121170"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121170\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/121171"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=121170"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=121170"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=121170"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/p>\n
Advent Calendars, Food & Drink.<\/p>\n
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The Pepper & Me advent calendar from Cherie Metcalfe, pictured here with her cookbook, includes a recipe magazine. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n
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Pistachio and chocolate shards. Photo \/ Babiche Martens<\/p>\n