Critics’ rating: 4.5 / 5.0

4.5

Hallmark is excelling this year with their original Christmas in July content.

There’s nothing better during the holidays than visiting a local pub where you feel at home.

A Very Vermont Christmas took viewers to Maple Glen, Vermont, and made them feel like they were part of the Mogul Joe family.

While this film featured the typical Hallmark holiday romance we’ve come to expect, it also delved deeper into themes of grief and community.

Hallmark has been breaking away from typical tropes lately and dabbling in more meaningful messages. A Very Vermont Christmas felt nostalgic, and it helped that both Katie Leclerc and Ryan McPartlin have appeared in Hallmark films before.

Why was Mogul Joe’s so important?

Mogul Joe’s has always made its customers feel like family, which is evident from the beginning. The dollar bills on the walls add charm and tell stories of where their customers have been.

Many local restaurants tell stories about their customers through their decor. A local restaurant near me hangs signed wooden wine bottles on the wall, similar to those signed dollar bills.

These restaurants strive to build relationships with their customers so that they become friends. Mogul Joe’s used to host Christmas festivities in the pub and collect gifts for needy children.

Since the owner and Joy’s father, Joe, passed away a year ago, the pub has struggled financially and it has been difficult for Joy and her mother, Mary (Joanna Herrington), to get into the Christmas spirit.

Related: Falling Like Snowflakes Shows An Old Romance The Path To Finding Each Other

Joy’s ex-boyfriend Greg (John Forest) took advantage of their downfall and boasted he could buy the pub to help out. He then told them he was organising a Brew-Ski competition. Mary thought that could be their Christmas miracle to help them get ahead.

Their biggest problem was that Mogul Joe’s specialized in authentic craft beer from Germany and Austria. Joy didn’t normally brew beer from Vermont. She had a challenge.

Joy and Zac hit it off right away

Joy (Leclerc) and Zac (Ryan McPartlin) had an adorable encounter. While she was clearing her head on the slopes, he bumped into her because he couldn’t ski. She couldn’t resist teasing him and gave him a beginners skiing lesson.

To her dismay, Joy discovered that Zac was a Stoltz beer distributor for Frosty’s with Greg. Surprisingly, she didn’t brush him off and had him come over to Mogul Joe’s for a beer.

Joy and Zac turned it into an entertaining game, starting with him identifying the flavors in her beers while blindfolded. Because he won, she owed him more ski lessons.

After a few lessons on the slopes, he called her the “Queen of Diamonds.” Although they started out cute and flirty, they were both open about their relationships with their fathers. Joy wanted to keep Mogul Joe’s going because her father made everyone feel at home.

Zac got involved with Hoppy Holiday because he helped create it and named it. It was their beer.

They were so cute that Zac gave Joy lots of diamond gifts. They relaxed by the fire or went skiing.

Related: Hallmark+ Launching This Fall: Everything We Know So Far

Everything seemed perfect until Scholtz Beer demanded that someone from their company win the Brew-Ski contest, and Greg’s jealousy reared its ugly head.

When Joy was betrayed, she struggled with who she could trust

Since Geg had already betrayed Joy and stolen some of Mogul Joe’s recipes, it was natural for her to assume that Zac had sold her Hoppy Holiday IPA to the highest bidder.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Zac cared about Joy and protecting his reputation by doing the moral thing, while everyone at Stoltz Beer only cared about whether one of their beers won.

At first I wondered about Kevin’s (Ivan Cecil Walks) loyalty, as he accidentally spilled the secret ingredient when Greg was around and never confessed when Joy got angry and thought Zac was responsible.

However, Kevin proved his loyalty and usefulness when he went undercover to sample the Seasons of Spice at Frosty’s, even smuggling a few in an insulated coffee mug so Joy could compare their competitors.

Hallmark is known for staging mysteries, so it was funny that Joy used her detective skills to catch Greg and find out that he stole her beer recipe.

Greg was one of those exes who felt terrible that Joy had moved on without him and now found the love of her life again.

Joy realized how wrong she had been and tried to wait all day for Zac to apologize.

Related: Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story Marries Tyler Hynes, Hallmark and the Kansas City Chiefs!

This film focuses on morality and forgiveness

The core of “A Very Vermont Christmas” was about doing the right thing and forgiveness.

Zac challenged his boss, Bob, to compare Hoppy Holiday to the counterfeit Seasons of Spice and make the right decision or he would be fired.

Bob generally cared about money, but he also had an ethical side and he didn’t want Zac to give away all the details.

Despite winning the Brew-Ski competition, Joy still refused to work with Scholtz, hoping that selling the holiday IPA alone would boost their sales.

Their customers supported them because Kevin reached out to them and many sent a donation with their annual Christmas cards.

This shows that if you treat your customers like family, they will also help you when you need help.

All in all, the film was charming and the perfect opportunity to enjoy a spicy beer and snacks.

Now over to you, Hallmarkies. Did you like “A Very Very Vermont Christmas”?

Do you have a local pub that treats its customers like family, like Mogul Joe’s does? What’s your favorite IPA for the holidays?

Did you like the connection between Katie Leclerc and Ryan McPartlin? Would you like to see them in another movie together?

We’d love to hear what you think. Let us know in the comments.