CHRISTMAS 2017: Your guide to the novelty advent calendars of the year

The jury is still out on that but with grown-ups clambering for the likes of beer and gin mystery calendars and with Greggs even getting in on the action with a token based calendar for festive bakes, flavoured lattes and mince pies there is no denying that novelty advent calendars are here to stay.

Here are some of our picks of this year's batch...

Beer advent calendar

If you're a craft beer connoisseur then you can expect to pay through the nose for this. Honest Brew's luxury one is a whopping £114.90 for the freshest limited edition brews. But they also do another one for £64.90 featuring 19 varieties of beer. On the other end of the spectrum good old Morrisons is doing a £30 advent calendar of real ales. This is available in-store only

Gin advent calendar

Morrisons is on to a winner here because the supermarket has also introduced another in-store exclusive, the gin advent calendar. It's £60 and includes some of the gin brands that are made right here at G&J distillery in Birchwood. If you know your juniper from your angelica root you may prefer the more discerning 'ginvent calendar' for £124.95

Cheese advent calendar

This one is said to be a first – a cheese advent calendar. That's right cheese for every day of December until Christmas for just £8 thanks to Asda teaming up with Ilchester. More than 11,000 people signed up to buy a calendar in just four days so it may be a struggle to get it now but you never know

Wine and Prosecco advent calendars

Know your barolo from your beaujolais? Then try Virgin Wine's 24 mini boutique wines which boast a total of 31 awards between them. That's £79.99. Prosecco and sparkling wine more your thing? Try First4Hampers which unfortunately doesn't come cheap at £125

Coffee advent calendar

Pact Coffee's advent calendar features caffeinated treats from around the world to pop into your coffee machine every morning. Among the highlights is Buenos Aires coffee which achieved a perfect score in Colombia’s National Quality Competition.

Greggs advent calendar

Fancy a festive baked treat every day? Of course you do. There are also flavoured lattes and mince pies among different treats every day from December 1 to 24. The downside? You have to go to the store to redeem the coupons that are behind each day of the advent calendar. It's also extremely limited - only 500 calendars have been made and the nearest store to get it from is Deansgate, Manchester or the North John Street Liverpool shop.

Protein bar advent calendar

Believe it or not there's even a protein bar advent calendar this year created by Myprotein. If you do not want to sacrifice your fitness goals even during the month of indulgence  – and have £50 to spare  – then click here. Our 'body is a temple' colleague Aran is going to be all over this.

Beauty advent calendar

It's the party season after all so we can see the sense in this one. There's some relatively cheap options like Make Up Mansion's one for £16. If you want to fork out a bit more for that ultimate Christmas look try Lookfantastic's Beauty in Wonderland which is also beautifully presented

Whisky advent calendar

Fancy a wee little dram to warm you up over winter? If you've got £150 down the back of the sofa and a roaring fire to enjoy this alongside you're onto a winner. It includes everything from Scotch to award-winning Taiwanese whisky and is available at Waitrose among other suppliers.

Lego and Playmobil advent calendar

Our infactuation with those little plastic bricks seems never ending. And if you've got young kids then this is sure to delight and some of them are quite reasonably priced. Many are available at amazon.co.uk and there is a great deal of choice from festive sets to speciality Star Wars collections. Those Danes know what they're doing. Amazon also has a big selection of Playmobil advent calendars too. They're generally themed so between December 1 and 24 you can gradually create things like Christmas on the farm or Treasure Island.

Create your own advent calendar

Want the personal touch this Christmas? Show a loved one you know them well by choosing little gifts for them for each day of advent. Crafter's Companion do a lovely one which is available at John Lewis for £14.99. The Ikea ones, available in Warrington, alternatively are just £7.50 and are really dinky and cute.