Happy Halloween! Claws down it is the best holiday of the year for every ghoul and ghost. Why not have fiendish fun while entertaining your guests, living or undead? Whether you need something spooky, scary, or sparkling, 5VINES has dug up the following features from our graveyard of great decisions.

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Spice up your Halloween: Pumpkin Ales for the Season

If you are a “light lager is my definition of beer” person, this may not be for you. For the rest of us, pumpkin beer is a welcome seasonal specialty. The combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and allspice hits the autumnal notes you expect in fall. Not to mention the toasted malts add additional warmth. Like any recipe beer styles will vary, with some beers being more like pumpkin pie, and some more beer-with-spices.

Here, we have covered our bases with Alley Kat Brewing out of Edmonton with a traditional Pumpkin Pie Ale, and Red Hart Brewing from Red Deer, with their Pumpkin Spice Latte stout. Pair With: Chicken pot pie, pork chops, root vegetables, mac and cheese and Reese’s peanut butter cups. Available at our Mahogany & Vic Park locations.

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Unleash your Inner Artist (Responsibly) – Sipping on Absinthe this Halloween

If you want to get weird for Halloween, look no further than “The Green Fairy” or “La Fée Verte.” No other liqueur has as much mythology as absinthe. Especially due to its following among artists, writers, and other creative types with Van Gogh, Rimbaud, Toulouse-Lautrec and Manet to name a few.

Absinthe’s “holy trinity” includes grande wormwood, fennel, and aniseed. Other botanicals can be used for flavouring, but the spirit must have the trinity to be considered absinthe. Beyond those requirements, absinthe is bottled anywhere from 55 – 72% ABV so it’s not to be consumed neat, nor used as a shot. Thus, be prepared to add ice water to your absinthe at a 3:1 ratio. Too bitter? Add more water or you can also add a small amount of sugar.

There’s a definite ritual for drinking absinthe, more than we can cover here, but you can source absinthe spoons, specific glassware and even an absinthe fountain! Before you invest in those, it’s best to start small.

Such as starting with this 200 ml bottle of absinthe from St. George’s Spirits in California. The first legally made absinthe since the USA lifted its ban on absinthe distillation.

St. George’s Absinthe Verte – Pairs great with stormy nights! Available at our West Market location.

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Wine with an eye for trouble: Spooky Sipping with this Pagan-inspired Wine 

This white wine has everything you need in a Halloween wine: An all-seeing eye on the label, a grape varietal named after a pagan god, and the grapes harvested from Conviction Ridge in Kaleden, British Columbia. 

If Bacchus, the wine, not the Greek God, is new to you, think of something halfway between Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling. It’s aromatic, fresh, clean, and compelling. It has both tropical and orchard fruits with some blossoming herbaceous notes. Not to mention a little bit of minerality. Or, put simply think of the Black Market Bacchus the same way you’d think of Sauvignon Blanc.

Pair With: Coconut curry, Tropical fruit-flavoured Halloween candy. Available at our Vic Park, Wildwood and West Market locations.

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Shinas Estate – The Executioner Shiraz

Go figure an Australian red named “The Executioner” would be a big, brawny red. Must be all that axe-swinging. The flagship from Shinas Estate, this hefty red is predominantly Shiraz with some Cabernet Sauvignon and Viognier. Barrel aged for 2 years before being released to the unsuspecting public.

The Executioner has rich aromas of earthiness, dark berries, and cocoa. Coupled with a palate showcasing red fruits, spices and plenty of warmth.

Pair With: Rich, dark meat dishes. Dark chocolate, chocolate-covered fruit. Available at our Vic Park & West Market locations.