Instead of another pair of socks for my birthday, this year my lovely wife gave me a subscription to something called Beer Cartel.

It’s a simple formula, you pay them money, they send you a mystery case of different beers each month that someone – who presumably knows more about beer than me – has chosen. No need to fill in preferences, connect with Facebook or deliberate any further.

You get the odd dud every once in a while, but it’s a great way of discovering some lovely drops you’d probably overlook otherwise. This month I got a deliciously warming alcoholic ginger beer from James Squire called Ginger Chops, a Sam Adams Noble Pils and a couple of new Aussie lagers called Arvo.

In a world obsessed with infinite choice, it’s easy to forget that sometimes it’s more fun to just let someone else choose for you. Check it out at beercartel.com.au