Joe Sixpack: Holiday cheer with some wintry beer?

ENTERTAIN at home? What could I have been thinking about in last week's column when I shared all those cockamamie tips for celebrating the holidays at home?

Get out of your hole and have some fun. Forget about stocking your fridge for your mooching brother-in-law - pull on your stockings and catch the holiday spirit at one of the many festive beer-drinking events this month.

Tonight

Mad Elf/Happy You Night, 6-9 p.m. at The Grey Lodge Pub (6235 Frankford Ave., Mayfair).

Last year, I ranked Mad Elf the No. 1 holiday beer in my book, "Christmas Beer" (Universe, 2008), partly because it has become such a spectacular local phenomenon. Cases of the spicy, 11 percent alcohol ale sell out quickly every year as beer fans stock up on limited supplies.

Read - and drink - it for yourself tonight. I'll be signing copies and the bar will be pouring drafts.

Tomorrow

Repeal Day at Memphis Taproom (2331 E. Cumberland St., Port Richmond).

Seventy-six years ago, Prohibition ended with ratification of the 21st Amendment - just in time for the holidays. What better way to celebrate the end of the nation's dark age than with one-buck drafts? Enjoy 'em while they're cold, noon-3 p.m.

Cliveden Winter Beer Festival at Cliveden of the National Trust (6401 Germantown Ave., Mt. Airy), 2-5:30 p.m.

Enjoy Christmas beers from more than 20 breweries at this one-of-a-kind historic setting. Tix: $40 ($65 door). Info: www.craftbeerfestivals.com

Philadelphia Winter Beer Festival at Blockley Pour House (38th and Ludlow streets, University City), 5-8 p.m.

An evening sampling of local brews and buffet.

Sixth Anniversary Party at TJ's Restaurant & Drinkery (35 Paoli Plaza, Paoli), noon.

It's not a holiday party, but this excellent suburban beer destination will celebrate its birthday with a dynamite selection of taps, including the new Sierra Nevada/Dogfish collaboration Life & Limb and a firkin of The Bruery's Christmas one-off, Two Turtle Doves.

Dec. 9

Ancient Ales with Prof. Patrick McGovern at Teresa's Next Door (124 N. Wayne Ave. Wayne), 1 p.m.

McGovern, author of "Uncorking the Past: The Quest for Wine, Beer, and Other Alcoholic Beverages" (University of California Press, 2009) will lead a luncheon pairing ancient ales from Dogfish Head.