BEST FOOD AND DRINK CHRISTMAS GIFTS
Our Tried and Tested Guide to the Top Foodie Presents of 2024
Tis the season to eat, drink and be merry and we have sniffed out the BEST food and drink Christmas gifts for 2024.
There's something for every budget and flavour of foodie, so stick a napkin down your jumper and dig in to our delicious guide.
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St-Germain X Issy Granger Cocktail Carafe Set
This stunning, limited edition cocktail set is a mic-drop of a Christmas present, for somebody you really love.
The beautiful box has a swish drawer, which pulls out to reveal a wonderfully unique, handblown Issy Granger cocktail carafe, embazoned with dainty glass elderflowers, and inspired by the iconic St-Germain bottle.
There is also a generous, 50cl bottle of dreamy St-Germain elderflower liquer, a bottle of Harvey Nichols Premier Cru Brut Champagne, a matt gold cocktail spoon and St-Germain recipe cards - we heartily recommend their famous Festive Spritz, a refreshing and suitably merry combo of St-Germain, fizz, lemon and soda water.
The only downside is that it's almost too beautiful to use... although we're very glad we did.
Eleanor Bowmer Santa's Serve Platter
'Sleigh' your gifting this Christmas with the gorgeously kitsch Eleanor Bowmer Santa Serve Platter.
Part of the 2024 Fabulously Festive collection, this stonewear serve platter features hand-illustrated moons, stars and a retro Santa design.
It's finished with a golden rim for a Christmas table that will be merry and bright.
It's also available in a matching gravy boat and saucer.
Dexam Nutcracker Cake Stand
It's a shame to put a cake on this stand, because it's pretty enough to eat.
The sturdy ceramic stand is decorated with a beautiful Nutcracker design, featuring ballet dancers, the titular soldier toy, candy canes, Christmas trees and holly.
This is part of Dexam's new Christmas collection, which includes a gaggle of whimsical Nutcracker items, from plates, mugs and jugs to table runners and napkins.
BUY FROM DEXAM £22
Instant Cold Brewer Coffee & Iced Tea Maker
Instant Pot's ingenious Cold Brewer ia a game-changer, making bolder flavoured cold coffees in 20 minutes.
We've been smashing out the cold brews, now we don't have to wait a day for them, thanks to its snazzy FlashExtractTM technology. It also works for loose tea leaves for iced tea, bubble tea, or even chai tea lattes.
You can customise the brew strength and drinks have a more mellow and less acidic taste, which is not watered down with ice cubes. This gift will become their new best friend, trust us.
BUY FROM INSTANTPOT. £79.99
Hokan Bowls
We love these stylish, innovative and sustainable bowls, hard.
The space saving sexpots can be stacked and used to prepare and cook food, as well as serving meals - the lid doubles as a side dish - plus saving and storing nosh.
Available in three sizes and five colours - white, black, lemon, sea green and cobalt blue - they are too pretty to hide away in cupboards.
We've put our Hokans through their paces, via ovens, microwaves, fridges and the hands of baking toddlers - and they are turbo robust and will survive us all.
Perfect gift for a space-saving student keen for a multi-tasking tool or a chef maestro - Nigella swears by them.
BUY FROM HOKAN BOWLS. From £24
Wonderland 12 Cocktails of Christmas
This gift pack of easy but impressive cocktails is guaranteed to put the merry into Christmas.
The 12 cocktails use Brewdog's spirits and are cunningly designed with extra space in the can, for the perfect shake and pour.
The fizzy offerings in the box simply need to be chilled and poured. The treats include perfectly made classics, like the Mojito, Cosmo and Margarita along with some inspired twists on bar favourites, like their wonderfully festive Chocolate Orange Espresso Martini, or the Watermelon Margarita.
No shaking, mixing, or messing up recipes, just perfect, bar-quality cocktails straight from the fridge - a lovely gift which will disappear worryingly quickly, if your recipient is anything like us...
BUY FROM BREWDOG. £40
Hydro-Herb Kits
Pretty: Check. Eco-conscious: Check. Useful: Check. Fun: Check. Clever: Check.
These gorgeous kits are made sustainably, using recycled wine bottles, cut and ground by hand.
Each kit contains an organic, nutrient rich solution - which will last for around two years - to easily grow a range of herbs, including basil, coriander, mint, thyme and tarragon.
Within seven days, our mint was beginning to sprout and by the second month, we were picking leaves for cooking.
The full set of these would look gorgeous in the kitchen and they're the perfect gift for the cook in your life.
All of the parts are either recycled, recyclable or biodegradable and were inspired by its clever founder's desire to eliminate the weekly walk of shame to the bottle bank - we'll drink to that.
BUY FROM HYDRO-HERB. £25
Puerto De Indias Strawberry Gin
Puerto De Indias are the OG, who invented strawberry gin and launched a whole new category.
What's more, it's the only pink gin made with distilled strawberries. Fun Fact: It was created by a happy mistake when two Sevillian brothers macerated locally grown strawberries in alcohol - the fruit, alcohol and hot Seville summer led to the beginning of the flavoured gin revolution.
It's a beautiful bottle to gift and a wonderfully different present for a gin-lover, with wonderful berry aromas and flavours, alongside fresh notes of citrus and juniper.
Leone Nutcracker Chocolates & Jellies
We're all over the beautiful hat box tin that these festive goodies come in.
Regardless of the contents, it's a gorgeous looking prezzie.
Luckily, the prettily wrapped fruit jellies and chocolate ingots inside are delicious.
A generous assortment of excellent Italian confestionary in a sexy, Christmas gift box. It's a yes from us.
Height of Arrows Gin
This award-winning new Scottish gin is a must for the Christmas lists of true, gin aficionados.
All of it's flavour comes from one botanical ingredient - juniper. They add sea salt to add depth and beeswax for its uniquely silky texture.
We loved its clean and fresh flavours of fresh pine, zingy citrus and balanced spice.
It makes the perfect G&T and its complex flavours also make it a wonderful basis for a wonderful Martini, Gibson or Negroni cocktail.
BODUM 1.5l Bean Set Cold Brew Coffee Maker
Stone cold coffee for a stone cold legend - the perfect gift.
These stylish cold coffee brewers come in a range of colours and use a snazzy French press system for smooth, naturally sweet iced coffees.
Less acidic and bitter than coffee brewed the natural way, these cunning carafes have two lids - one to preserve taste and aroma, while brewing in the fridge, and a plunger lid.
It was easy to use, made a delicious cuppa and easy to clean in the dishwasher, after use. We’ll drink to that.
BUY FROM BODUM. £39.90
The Happy Pear 20
The twin Flynn brothers are back, with a brand new, plant-based recipe book this Christmas.
It’s a gorgeous selection of more than 100 healthy, delicious recipes, powered by veg from the bestselling pair’s 20 years at their Happy Pear Cafe and brand, with a community of 2 million fans.
And it’s the perfect gift for the foodie in your life, to kickstart the new year with healthy, planet-kind meals which are also delicious.
The stylish book reimagines David and Stephen’s old classics and favourites, with some funny and insightful stories and lessons learnt during their two decades in the food industry.
BUY FROM AMAZON. £18.55
Italicus Rosolio dI Bergamotto
This premium Italian apéritif is wonderfully versatile, perfect for winter cocktails, vegan and comes in a beautiful bottle, ticking all the boxes for gifting tipple-lovers.
It has a refeshing citrus flavour, with delicate bergamot orange and floral notes. And we loved it in a Spritz, topped with bubbly and salty green olives.
It also makes a fabulous Margarita twist, served with tonic and grapefruit soda.
It's an impressive looking gift, with design nods to ancient Roman columns, while its base is shaped like a Bergamot fruit, and the marbled cap is inspired by Northern Italian gothic architecture.
BUY FROM WAITROSE. £31.50
Microplane Black Sheep Truffle Shaver
This is a sexy and versatile gift for the foodie in your life with an eye for design-led kitchenware.
The shaver comes in a classy gift box with seven blades and a robust stainless-steel handle, frame and blade, coated with a scratch-resistant matt black PVD.
We were amazed by how sharp the blades were - it's like cutting air and that's down to whizzy technology pioneered by Microplane more than 50 years ago.
The blades and teeth cut effortlessly, without ripping or tearing and releasing the natural aroma of ingredients.
It can be used on anyhting, from hard cheese, truffle and veg, to chocolate, nuts, ginger and coconut.
BUY FROM BOROUGH KITCHEN £49.95
Blue Sardine Knife Block
Scale up your recipient's kitchen style with this fin-tastic sardine knife block.
The chic and quirky holder has a retro style based on a giant tin of sardines in olvie oil.
Cunningly, the plastic straw design means multiple knives of any size can be slid into it, without being hampered by a set number of pesky slots.
We squeezed five knives into it and it's a gorgeous way to add some personality and colour to the kitchen counter.
BUY FROM SOUS CHEF £25.99
Fever-Tree Christmas Crackers
There isn't a nail-clipper or dodgy joke in sight in this cracker of a present.
Each luxury cracker contains a miniature, quality spirit and the perfect mixer for a festive tipple.
With their elegant design, they make the perfect, grown-up tree gift.
Options include Rhubarb and Raspberry Gin and Tonic, Vodka Blood Orange Spritz, Tequila Mexican Lime Spritz and Rum and Ginger Beer.
There are also non-alcoholic options and if you want to add some luxury Christmas spirit to the Christmas table, you can even buy boxes of four Perfectly Paired Gin Crackers, in assorted flavours.
Joe & Seph's Gourmet Popcorn & Truffles
This dangerously addictive, handmade gourmet popcorn has won 100 Great Taste awards.
The family business has launched a giant, star-shaped gift box for Christmas, filled with their greatest hits, from Salted Caramel Popcorn - our personal favourite - and Chocolate Yule Log to Caramel and White Chocolate.
Their rich and boozy Espresso Martini caramel truffles are pure, Christmas gorgeousness.
Made with fresh double cream, blended with 5% coffee liqueur and vodka, plus a shot of espresso in a velvety Belgian chocolate shell, they are pure heaven.
BUY FROM JOE & SEPH'S. Espresso Martini Truffles £12.99. Very Merry Popcorn Selection £8
Banhoek Chilli Oil
This is the perfect gift for the foodie in your life to spice up everything, from pizza and pasta to salads.
This premium chilli oil enhances the natural flavours of your dish, without overpowering.
It's gained a massive following in South Africa - it's made in the beautiful Banhoek Valley, in the heart of the Cape Winelands.
And now it's making waves over here - we loved it in hearty soups and ended up adding it to stews and zingy potato salds - you can even make spicy lime and chilli cheesecake with it.
BUY FROM AMAZON. £9.50
Angel's Dare Cocktails Gift Box
Bring the bar to your cocktail-loving friend, with this delicious gift box.
Few can muster the energy to whip up he perfect Martini, when weighted down with turkey, sprouts and stilton.
Step forward, Angel's Dare, which has made these pretty presents, containing a Cheeky Wee Kiss, Maverick Martini, Secret Orchard and their non-alcoholic mocktail, La Bonnie Vita.
Their mixology chief is Michael Crozier, a heavyweight in Scottish hospitality, and this is clear from the first, second and third sips - hic.
And as the cocktail names suggest, they are proud of their Scottish heritage.
Magibles Christmas Cracker
Christmas can suck, with allergies - step forward Magibles, which has made a cracker of a gift to make sure they can also feast and be merry.
They can be popped in the tree, around the dinner table or in a stocking and are filled with four packs of gluten, dairy and nut free goodies.
There's one M*LK Chocolate, a HazelNOT and two Salted Caramels - our personal favourite.
BUY FROM MAGIBLES. £10.99. GET A 10% DISCOUNT WITH THE CODE TIMEWELLSPENT10
Tracklemeats Christmas Collection
Wiltshire condiment Kings Tracklemeats are a staple of Christmas feasts.
And they've launched this shiny, new Christmas gift box, featuring their moreish Christmas Spice Chutney - Christmas in a jar - and our personal favourite, the Cranberry, Port and Orange Sauce, which cuts through rich meats like turkey and goose with its tingling tartness
There is also a delicious Caramelised Onion Marmalade and Spiced Honey Mustard - all made with the highest quality, natural ingredients, handmade in small batches.
Ding and very much, dong.
BUY FROM WAITROSE. £13
Lily O'Brien's Christmas Desserts Collection
Chocolates are the LAW at Christmas, and this selection transforms the best festive desserts into dreamy chocs.
Each box contains 24 chocolates including; Berry Eton Mess, Dark Orange, Triple Chocolate Shot, Spiced Latte, Hazelnut Torte, Crème Brûlée, Banoffee, Raspberry Infusion and Lemon Posset.
Our favourites were the Spiced Latte, which blends double roasted arabica bean coffee with spice and white chocolate, and the Banofee Pie - chocolate and crispies with banana infused caramel in milk and white chocolate topped with toffee pieces.
Cavi-Art Vegan Caviar
Looking for a luxe stocking filler for your fancy, vegan friend?
Check out Cavi-Art Vegan Caviar. We love seafood and caviar is a special treat, but we were amazed by this cheaper and sustainable seaweed alternative.
It looks the part and has the same pleasing pop and delicious, salty flavour.
And it is an incredibly close substitute to lumpfish roe, cod roe or salmon roe to pop on your blini and surprise your friends.
BUY FROM SOUS CHEF. £3.99
We have been gifted samples in order to provide honest and accurate tried and tested reviews. But we never feature anything we don't recommend
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