15 food & drink Advent calendars launching for Christmas 2021

Happi

Vegan startup Happi, which launched with a range of oat milk chocolate bars and buttons at the start of the year before moving into oat drinks, is marking its first Christmas with an Advent calendar (rsp: £7.50). Containing 24 ethically sourced oat milk chocolate pieces, the calendar went on sale on the brand’s website in September.

Smith & Sinclair

Featuring flavours such as Raspberry Collins, Pineapple Bellini and Bourbon Old Fashioned, this adults-only calendar from Smith & Sinclair contains a boozy, cocktail-inspired gummy sweet for every day of Advent (rsp: £49.99). It can be purchased online from Smith & Sinclair and Chocolates Direct.

Nomo

Free-from confectioner Nomo is showcasing its popular caramel drops in this ‘premium’ calendar, which will be available in selected vegan stores and online (rsp: £10). The calendar features a foil-wrapped, caramel-filled chocolate drop behind each door, as well as a caramel chocolate bar for Christmas Day.

Flying Goose 

Hot sauce lovers can spice up their Advent with this 12 Days of Sriracha calendar, which has been created by Flying Goose in collaboration with online cooking store Sous Chef (rsp: £39.99). Behind each door, consumers will find a different 250ml bottle of sriracha, in flavours such as wasabi, green chilli, tikka and yuzu. 

PlayIn Choc

Parents can keep their little ones entertained in the run-up to Christmas with PlayIn Choc’s plastic-free, allergen-free, ethical chocolate Advent calendars. Made up of either 12 or 24 drawers (rsp: £27.50-£55) the calendars offer a mini chocolate, puzzle toy and fun fact card for each day of Advent. Available from the PlayIn Choc website.

Grenade

This year’s Advent offering from Grenade is a ‘supply drop’ of 24 Carb Killa protein bars. The selection features flavours such as Birthday Cake, Cookies & Cream, Dark Chocolate Mint, Gingerbread and Jaffa Quake. It is available exclusively from the Grenade website (rsp: £50).

Hotel Chocolat 

Luxury chocolatier Hotel Chocolat is catering for dairy-free customers this Christmas with its Vegan Nutmilk calendar (rsp: £12.50). The product features 24 figures made from creamy, 45% cocoa chocolate, which uses nuts in its recipe instead of milk.

Lindt 

Aleady a staple confectionery during the festive season, the Lindt Teddy now has its own Advent calendar (rsp: £6). The product features Lindor truffles alongside a selection of “cute and iconic” teddies: some made from milk chocolate, some with a creamy white chocolate filling and some with truffle centres.

Carluccio’s

Instead of focusing purely on chocolate, restaurant and deli chain Carluccio’s is going down the luxury goods route for its 2021 calendar. Each drawer contains an “impeccably sourced” Italian product, from treats like bottled cocktails and biscuits to cupboard staples such as olive oil and pesto (rsp: £79.95).

Tony’s Chocolonely

To ensure their Advent treats are ethically sourced, consumers should look no further than this offering from Tony’s Chocolonely. As well as 24 ‘Tiny Tonys’ in a range of flavours, the brand’s debut Countdown Calendar contains a fun fact or festive task for each day of Advent. It is also free from palm oil and plastic packaging. It can be purchased from Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Ocado, Booths, Oxfam and John Lewis (rsp: £12).

Tiptree

All aboard! Tiptree is driving into Christmas with this London bus Advent calendar, which is based on the 1967 Routemaster double decker it uses as a mobile tea room and cocktail bar. The calendar contains 24 mini jars of Tiptree’s most popular preserves, including marmalades and jams in flavours such as raspberry, blackcurrant and morello cherry. The calendar is available from the brand’s website and independents from this month (rsp: £29.99).

Hip

Consumers wanting an Advent calendar on the virtuous side may be tempted by this debut offering from plant-based chocolate brand Hip. It contains 24 squares of sustainably sourced oat milk chocolate, blended with British sea salt and caramel. The plastic-free calendar is available from Hip’s website from October (rsp: £10).

Pip & Nut

Startup Pip & Nut is offering its first advent calendar this year, which it says is “the perfect present for nut butter and chocolate lovers”. The calendar features 24 individually wrapped vegan nut butter cups, in dark chocolate peanut and dark chocolate almond flavours. The calendar lands on the brand’s website on 8 October before coming to Selfridges, Planet Organic and Whole Foods Market from 12 November (rsp: £20).

Friexenet & Divine Chocolate

Friexenet is promising “a sparkling countdown to Christmas” with its new Advent calendars, which are available in 12 (rsp: £75) and 24-day versions (rsp: £90). The latter sees the wine maker partner with ethical chocolate brand Divine. Each of the 24 drawers in the calendar holds either a miniature bottle of bubbly – including prosecco, sparkling rosé and cava – or a bar of Divine chocolate in milk, dark, milk orange and white variants.

Kinder Bueno

Kinder’s popular wafer bar is getting its very own calendar this year. First launched in September, the calendar contains a mixture of classic, white and dark mini Kinder Buenos, with a full-size classic bar behind door 24 (rsp: £7).