The classic hostess gift is good wine — but you can do better than that. This year, go beyond the bottle and pick out something a little more meaningful for the drink lover — whether that's coffee, tea, wine, beer, or booze. Looking for occasion-specific expert wine recs? Eater Drinks has those covered, too.
Coffee grounds: They go into the trash, right? Not for the guys behind U.K. cold brew company Minor Figures. In effort to reduce waste, founders Jonathan Chiu and Stuart Forsyth repurpose their spent coffee grounds into an exfoliating olive oil-based coffee soap. And for every bar sold, they’ve committed to donating 10 pence to Project Waterfall, an organization that raises money to deliver clean water in coffee-growing regions.
Los Angeles-based sommelier Whitney Adams of online wine-inspired design site Bottle Stock worked with local textile designer Jennifer Parry Dodge of Ermie on this pair of hand-stained linen tie-dye cocktail napkins. Because spills happen.
The KeepCup crew strives to promote reusable coffee vessels, and they’ve found a way to make portable coffee totally chic. The company, in addition to teaming up with excellent third-wave cafes like L.A.’s Go Get Em Tiger for limited edition collaborations, now offers customizable cups. Hit up the KeepCup website to design your own.
Brooklyn-based design firm Fort Standard is behind a series of geometric brass-cast bottle openers that look like mini works of art. Sling one on to your keychain or bedeck a kitchen wall.
From Ippodo, one of Japan’s stalwart tea producers, comes Sayaka-no-mukashi matcha, finely ground tencha green tea leaves from the Uji region, near Kyoto in Japan. Use in the Tea-Cere (below) or whisk with a chasen by hand for a grassy sweet, umami-tinged tea.
Bring liquid courage anywhere, in style. New York design studio Surname crafts timeless pieces, like this six-ounce copper flask that fits snugly into one’s palm and is small enough to stash in a purse. If that’s too much (or not enough), the flask comes in three- and nine-ounce versions, too.
Forget beer goggles and get your favorite whiskey lover these sunglasses made with recycled wood from Maker's Mark bourbon barrels.
Lauded New Orleans chef John Besh and local clothing designer Billy Reid tag-teamed this hip cotton apron. Per Besh, “Every great recipe begins with a great drink,” so tucked into a side corner underneath, find a Sazerac cocktail recipe.
Want to drink like Ben Franklin? This handmade copper beer stein was modeled after the types of drinking vessels our founding fathers used back in the 18th century. It comes with a lifetime guarantee from quality craft manufacturer Jacob Bromwell.
With the proliferation of craft cocktail culture, home bartending is on the rise. And with that come fancy tools for building the perfect drink. Leave it to British furniture and homeware designer Tom Dixon to conceive this swank copper shaker. Tapered ends provide extra grip for vigorous shaking, and the vessel’s top doubles as a two-ounce spirit measurer.
When you can’t taste whiskey, what better way to understand it than by scratching and sniffing? As a follow up to The Essential Scratch & Sniff Guide To Becoming A Wine Expert, wine whiz Richard Betts recently released his whiskey-focused sophomore effort. Gift this and you’re guaranteed a smile.
April Gargiulo of Napa’s Gargulio Vineyards is behind this serum, an entirely natural, organic, nutrient-dense grape seed and hazelnut-based oil with an intoxicating, multi-layered floral scent. Twenty-two “active” botanicals, from jasmine to turmeric, leave skin glowing. This is actually the only face product you need.
Celebrated Chicago tiki den Three Dots and a Dash is known for its super fun, tropical-themed, oftentimes large-format drinking vessels — and for great fruity drinks, too. So it’s about time they came out with branded tiki paraphernalia. There’s a whole slew of options, including Three Dot’s famed seahorse for two.
Ditch the swizzle sticks and go big with gilded beef jerky-garnished holiday cocktails this year. Pioneering small-batch beef jerky operation Three Jerks out in Los Angeles dreamed this one up. The gold jerky comes in a customized lock box, of which only 10 were made.
Matcha can be intimidating, but Sharp’s new Tea-Cere can handle the basics and comes with all sorts of extra bells and whistles. The machine will not only grind tencha into matcha or take pre-ground varieties, but it’ll also prepare hot and cold tea lattes and more.
These pretty little marbles are like whiskey stones but for wine. New York homeware designer Anna Rabinowicz of Anna New York RabLabs joined forces with New Zealand winery Kim Crawford to design stones that quickly chill wine without any unwanted dilution.
You know the drill. By inserting a fine, hollow needle through a cork, the Coravin preservation system enables oenophiles to drink wine without technically "opening" the bottle. This new upgraded model involves a sleeker design and promises faster wine pouring.
2004 World Barista champ Tim Wendelboe has become a leader in producing coffee of the highest quality, while spreading the gospel of “Nordic-style” prep. Although they'd have to fly to Oslo to experience his light tea-esque brews in person, coffee fans can get a selection of his consciously sourced beans delivered. When brewing, Wendelboe recommends 60-70 grams of coffee to 1 litre of water. Adjust grind size to desired extraction.
Moon Juice is a haven for all things juice and smoothies, and this collection of medicinal mushrooms, Chinese herbs, and spices comprises the ultimate pantry collection for any wellness-centered human looking to kick up the health factor in a wide range of drinks.