The Best Gifts for the Drink Aficionado

This new bottle from the world’s best-selling Scotch brand is a collaboration with the luxury skiwear brand Perfect Moment and inspired by the “blue hour,” or the moment between sunset and twilight on the slopes when skiing is done and everyone starts socializing. Here, Johnnie Walker chose whiskies sourced from some of Scotland’s highest distilleries and coldest winters, allowing a crisp freshness and richness to come through in the final product. In a fun touch, the bottle comes with a reversible crossbody bag designed by Perfect Moment. 

Flaviar’s boozy advent calendar features 24 sample bottles of both established brown spirits brands and up-and-comers, along with two Glencairn tasting glasses, a tasting booklet and tasting videos for each 50ml sipper. Each purchase comes with a complimentary 12-month Flaviar Black Membership, allowing access to buying full bottles of any whisk(e)y you enjoyed.

An annual release, the 2023 edition made our best bourbons list for the year. This upcoming year’s compendium — available now — features bourbons from eight states ranging from 5 to 15 years old. It’s more of a tropical release; Barrell (which offers the best tasting notes) suggests “a whole host of herbs typical of alpine liqueurs, notably thyme, lemon balm, and peppermint. Juicy notes of Meyer lemon and key lime pie recall the citrusy aroma. The fruit then diverges, adding lychee and grape soda. While initially subdued, the oak gains steam over time, carrying with it allspice and vanilla.” 

Illinois’s innovative FEW Spirits distillery has offered up some of their most interesting whiskeys as collaborations with iconic rock bands. And you can finally pick up all three bottles at once. What you have here are bourbons and wheat whiskeys with unique barrel finishes (ex-rum, ex-tequila) and one, a collab with the Smashing Pumpkins, cut to bottling strength with tea.

Clean your teeth — or add a little whisk(e)y flavor. Available as either a peaty single malt or a bourbon, these infused toothpicks unleash their flavor with a small bite or chew. Consider it a quick fix between or after meals.

Hot take, the best rye whiskey hails from New York. If you like ryes big and bold (and with no corn), check out Fort Hamilton’s single barrel rye, featuring a mashbill of 90% local rye and 10% malted barley. For the holidays, each special edition bottle from this Brooklyn distillery features a hand-painted design by New York City-based artist Ava Bramlett.

Fawn Weaver transformed the American brown spirits industry with the introduction of Uncle Nearest, an award-winning Tennessee whiskey that honored Nearest Green, an enslaved person who helped Jack Daniel learn the art of making whiskey. In her new autobiography, Weaver traces both her own fascinating story and the story behind building a multi-billion dollar spirits conglomerate.

An American rye with a sherry maturation? It’s a remix that works. Hailing from pop superstar Beyoncé and Dr. Bill Lumsden, the acclaimed master distiller known for his work on Scotch brands Glenmorangie and Ardbeg, this unusual take on homegrown whiskey features a rich mouthfeel and notes of caramel, malt, dark red fruits and cloves. And, obviously, the packaging is exquisite. (And yes, they spell whisky without the “e”.)

Take your favorite pours on the road with these sturdy and attractive kits. The bundles here is actually two products — a Neat Glass with a 3oz Flight Bottles, housed them together in a custom EVA travel case; and a set of 4 custom silicone wrapped glass bottles in a custom travel case. 

Forget the smoking jacket — next time you’re out for a drink, put on your sipping jacket. A collaboration between the Scotch producers Aberfeldy and designer Charlie Casely-Hayford, this limited-edition layer is imbued with honeycomb accents that mirror the golden tones and honeyed notes of the distillery’s 12-year-old single malt (which, yes, is included with purchase).

The Portland-based craft distillery celebrates its 20th anniversary with the second edition of this unique single malt. Here, Master Blender Miles Munroe draws the whiskey from a 21-barrel Solera system featuring some of the distillery’s oldest whiskies and rarest cask types. A small amount is drawn each year and another barrel is added to the blend. There’s seemingly an Amburana cask at work here, though that cinnamon note is mild compared to stronger nods to mocha, vanilla, coconut and baked apples.

If the beer enthusiast in your life loves to get adventurous, they’ll be super into a Beer Drop subscription. They choose the types of beers they like, which will be curated into a special delivery of award-winning craft brews every month.

Having a kegerator in your house is a boss move, and this will ensure they never run out of their favorite cold beer.

Sipping a warm beer is the absolute worst, but what’s a person to do if they want to savor and sip slowly? The Brümate Hopsulator Trio will keep that can ice cold, and it even comes with a BevLock lid that converts it into a leak-proof tumbler.

This gorgeous bottle opener doubles as a display piece, perfect for jazzing up the home bar.

These resin coasters are some of the coolest we’ve seen, and each set is handmade and therefore unique. 

Whether they’re on the go or simply enjoying a few in their backyard, this portable, easy-to-carry cooler will keep their cans and bottles ice cold.

This hefty glass is perfect for dark beer enthusiasts, and each one is handmade and crafted to order.

The beer drinker who always wants to be ahead of the curve will love this tool, which is popular in Germany but hasn’t fully caught on in the United States yet. After heating the metal rod, you dip it in your beer, and it reacts with the beer’s sugars, creating a richer, smoother flavor. 

They’ll never have to worry about a can exploding in their freezer again with the Chill-O-Matic, which can take a beer from room temperature to ice-cold in 60 seconds.

For the giftee who’s always drinking the “Champagne of Beers,” this kitschy coupe glass will receive a star spot on their bar cart. 

If they like to drink big fancy beers but don’t always finish the bottle, this stopper will keep things carbonated for three days after opening.

For the beer lover with a sweet tooth, this collection of beer-infused ice cream is a true treat. The bundle of four flavors includes Salted Caramel Blonde Ale, Cookies & Cream Chocolate Stout, Lemon IPA and Coffee Caramel Crunch Stout.

To really make an excellent cocktail, you need to use excellent ingredients. That means fresh juices are your best friend when making everything from a Margarita to a Bloody Mary. Enter Omega’s Effortless cold press juicer, which has a two-liter capacity, can handle large chunks of produce and is a cinch to clean.

The experts at Cocktail Kingdom have a vast library of every drinks book ever written, and they reproduce some of their historical favorites. Penned by Jerry Thomas, How to Mix Drinks: A Bon Vivant’s Companion was the first cocktail book ever written, and this version is a reproduction of the 1862 edition with a new introduction and appendix by David Wondrich. 

Martini hour, and make it extra classy. Big Night designed these beautiful denim napkins in collaboration with Atelier Saucier in Los Angeles, and they’ll give fans of the classic cocktail another good reason to mix them at home.

For those who don’t have the space for a fancy cocktail ice machine, w&p’s silicone ice trays are the best in the biz.

We love a mini Martini, and these elegant glasses, commissioned by Chopin Vodka, are a stunning way to serve the petite drink. All four glasses are slightly different and boast one, two, three or four architectural-like columns.

We’re obsessed with these Martini glasses from Ghia, which were designed in collaboration with Sophie Lou Jacobson. Use them to serve your favorite cocktail or one of Ghia’s delicious non-alcoholic aperitifs.

If you’re a fan of clear ice — and we certainly are — you’ll want a machine that can craft oversized, crystal-clear ice cubes and Collins-shaped ice, just like you see in the finest cocktail bars.

Tipsy Scoop has already mastered the intersection of the world’s two greatest inventions (booze and ice cream). This four-pack capsule takes on the holiday spirit, with liquor-infused flavors including  Santa’s Cookies & Whiskey, Christmas Morning, Mistletoe Martini, and New Year’s Toast.

It’s hard to find a gift that’d please both a cocktail enthusiast and someone sticking to non-alcoholic spirits, but The Pathfinder is a great mixer for either camp. An herbal elixir, this hemp-based liquid (non-THC) offers up the body and depth of a liqueur sans the ABV, and it works incredibly well with both boozy and non-boozy drinks. 

This cult favorite gin brand saves its most unique release for its annual Distiller’s Cut release. There are indeed 47 botanicals in Monkey 47 gin. Its regular ingredients include more traditional offerings like juniper along with lavender, spruce and cloves, providing a springboard for experimentation. But its latest “secret ingredient” is enough to warrant a double-take: capers.

Smoking cocktails is fun in theory, but it involves some bulky equipment. Not here. This simple kit includes hickory smoking chips with the skull smoke top for a traditional Old Fashioned or Negroni, but other chips are available for sweeter or earthier flavors. Each filter lasts about 200-300 times, but you’ll have to bring your own torch.

Choose three different flavors (out of 10) to complete this personalized bitters set, which also includes a handwritten note to your recipient. And these don’t have to be your typical bitters: Creole Orgeat, Candy Cane Syrup and Sweet Potato are just a few of the more interesting options.

Who doesn’t love Fernet? A bartender’s favorite, this popular amaro now comes in a limited-edition music-inspired label featuring various AR experiences dubbed FernetnetworkTV, which has been described as surreal and wacky content starring Fernet’s mascot, Fernando. Not into the wacky? It’s still a cool-looking bottle

I’d honestly suggest anything from Cocktail Kingdom, but if you want a bit of history, this bell is a reproduction of a Prohibition-era relic, originally created to hide a cocktail shaker in plain sight.

Alileo makes some of our favorite boxed wine, and this tongue-in-cheek play on the Sicilian Testa di Moro is the perfect way to serve it. Simply pop the bag in the crown, pull the nozzle through the mouth and pour. 

These are the most elegant wine glasses we’ve ever used, and they’re perfect for serving both rosé and Champagne.

We put this wine carrier to the test earlier this year, and it’s the best way to protect your precious bottles of booze when in transit. It’s lined with two of the world’s strongest fabrics, has a 100% leakproof closure and even folds compact for easy packing.

Any wino who loves to grill will be ecstatic to receive our collaboration with Vinebox. The tasting includes six different wines — two whites, a rosé and three reds — that are perfect for pairing with our favorite grilled foods of the season.

We love all things Yeti, and this double-walled wine chiller is as functional as it is attractive. We love it for outdoor gatherings, but there’s really no wrong way to use it.

We love Wine Folly for its not-at-all-snooty, cool and easy way of teaching about wine, so this book is one of our all-time favorites on the subject. It covers more than 100 grapes, color-coded by style, a wine region explorer, and food and wine pairing section.

Sabering is the most fun you can have with a bottle of wine. Made In’s Champagne saber is simple to use and will make you look cool as hell when opening bubbles.

Denver & Liley makes our favorite whiskey glasses, expertly designed to let all of a spirit’s aromas and flavors come through. So we were ecstatic when the brand released a wine glass, which delivers one of the most accurate smell and taste profiles on the market.

Of all the wine clubs out there, Helen’s is one of our all-time favorites. Helen Johannesen is the beverage director for all of the Jon & Vinny’s restaurants in LA and has a wine shop in the back of the restaurant. Each shipment in the 4 Dope wine membership includes bottles from exceptional organic and natural wines and comes with Johannesen’s fun personalized descriptions and food pairing suggestions.

Wine racks can be less than attractive, which is why we’re so drawn to this stylish geometrical number from Crate & Barrel.

For the wine lover who loves a fancy bottle but loves to savor what’s inside, Coravin’s Timeless Wine Preservation System lets you pour a glass or two and save the rest for a few weeks or months. This kit comes with everything to get them started.

Two of our favorite brands teamed up for the wine gift of our dreams. Dusen Dusen — known for bright and bold home decor — and Waves Wine (our favorite canned wine with the best artwork ever) have a line of very cool terry cloth goods, including a tote bag, towel and play pack that includes both items, plus a hat and six cans of Waves Wine.

We always swore by a standard wine key until we tried this corkscrew from Rabbit. It opens regular bottles with ease and even works seamlessly on pesky wax-dipped necks.

There’s a good reason this decanter always comes highly recommended by pro sommeliers — it works very well. It looks elegant, too, and the price is very right.

Whether they’re just getting started on their cocktail-making journey or have been experimenting for years, this classic bitters set will be a welcome addition to their home bar.

This Seattle-based designer has crafted some cool drinking glasses that celebrate women in whiskey. The gold-rimmed glasses are engraved with images of the whiskey-making process. Proceeds from the sales of AWAZ go to organizations working to promote women entrepreneurs in developing countries.

Speed Rack is an exhilarating global bartending competition highlighting women and non-binary bartenders in a quick-paced environment. The history and purpose of the competition are certainly a focus in A Quick Drink: The Speed Rack Guide to Winning Cocktails for Any Mood, written by Speed Rack co-founders Lynnette Marrero and Ivy Mix (along with Megan Krigbaum) — but you’re also here for the recipes.

Hailing from the iconic cocktail bar, this is a deck of 52 classic cocktail recipes and another deck of 52 cards to help you come up with brand-new drinks concoctions.

Seedlip Founder Ben Branso is behind this new line of booze-free cocktail bitters, which are also all-natural, vegan, sugar-free and additive-free. Available in two styles (Light and Dark), these bitters are great for both boozy and booze-free tipples. 

Your Manhattan or Old Fashioned (or cocktail of your choice) could use a garnish. Go with a classic — Luxardo cherries have a century-long history and remain a favorite of mixologists. 

A sparkling water maker so nice, it should live front and center on your kitchen counter or bartop. This handsomely minimalist device features a one-click connection, so you won’t be fumbling or twisting your bottle to make fizzy drinks.

The iconic glassware brand offers up cocktail-specific vessels, from Rocks and HIghball glasses to Nick & Nora vessels and Sour coupes.

Throw out that freebie wine opener that always gives you trouble. Instead, use this sommelier-designed, heavy-duty stainless steel bottle key. Available in three colors, the Wine Key has a corkscrew, foil cutter, and crown cap bottle opener.