‘A Very Vermont Christmas’ Ending Explained: Does Joy Mogul Save Joe’s?

Contains spoilers for ‘A Very Vermont Christmas’

VERMONT, NEW ENGLAND: ‘A Very Vermont Christmas’ premieres July 20, 2024 on Hallmark. The cheerful holiday film follows an enigmatic Joy Keogh (Katie Leclerc) as she tries to save her father’s pub, Mogul Joe’s, after his death. Her last chance to do so is with a Holiday IPA.

The film also features a subplot in which Joy falls in love with Zac Chase (Ryan McPartlin) who works at Scholtz Beer, a distributor for Mogul Joe’s competitor Frosty’s. To make matters worse, Frosty’s is owned by Joy’s ex-boyfriend Greg Harris (John Forest), who has yet to get over the breakup.

Mogul Joe’s Holiday IPA enters a Brew-ski competition hosted by Scholtz Beer, offering them the chance to get the pub back up and running.

Mogul Joe’s Secret Recipe Gets Stolen in ‘A Very Vermont Christmas’

Just when everything seems to be going well for Joy and Zac, Frosty’s releases a holiday IPA called Seasonal Spice from Scholtz Beer that tastes just like their craft beer.

Joy suspects Zac’s involvement, as he is the only one who knows the secret ingredient and also works at Scholtz. Kevin (Ivan Cecil Walks) goes to Frosty’s and even sees Zac trying the IPA. Kevin smuggles the beer to do more research.

The incident drives a wedge between Zac and Joy, as Zac tries his best to prove his innocence and talks to his boss about the stolen ingredient, only to have it ignored for the business benefits.

Zac asks his boss to judge the taste of the two beers and also hands in his resignation.

Greg was the one who stole the recipe in ‘A Very Vermont Christmas’

Joy pulls a clever trick where she tricks Greg into admitting that he was the one who stole the secret recipe. She realizes she was wrong to doubt Zac and asks for forgiveness.

She tries to find Zac to apologize and eventually meets him at the ski race, where she turns up late. She meets Zac and his father and the pair reunite while they wait for the results of the Brew ski race

Once the contest results are in, Scholtz in good faith withdraws his IPA, alleging recipe theft, making Mogul Joe’s IPA the winner of the contest. Joy dedicates the award to her father.

Donations pour in for Mogul’s Joe

While Joy and her mother Mary Keogh (Joanna Herrington) are running out of ideas to save the pub, Kevin has been secretly reaching out to customers who have been to the pub.

Early in the film it becomes clear that Joy’s father treated his customers like family. This is all reflected in a beautiful moment where people from all over the world who have been to the pub make generous donations. With this they are able to save the pub.

The film ends with Zac and Joy’s family coming together and Joy forgiving Greg for all he has done to jeopardize the survival of their pub. The film ends with a message of forgiveness.

‘A Very Vermont Christmas’ premieres on Hallmark on July 20, 2024