It’s time to start shopping for holiday gifts, as well as stock your home bar for the holiday parties. We’ve been busy drinking, um, I mean researching, premium spirits for our spirits gift guide and have discovered some great spirits for any occasion.
Rum is a staple in our home bar as we often use in summertime cocktail recipes or in winter enjoy a glass of premium rum on the rocks. Flor de Caña premium to ultra-premium rums are distilled 100% with renewable energy and aged at the base of Nicaragua’s most active volcano, the San Cristobal. Flor de Caña offers a diverse selection of ultra-premium rums including 12, 18 and 25, and 30. The elegant bottle makes Flor de Caña rum a great gift for the rum drinker on your list.
Flor de Caña 12 ($44)
Description: A super-premium rum, full-bodied and with a reddish amber color and aromas of honey and toasted nuts. It has a flavor that evokes vanilla and baked apples. This rum has an aroma of honey and toasted nuts with semisweet flavors that evoke vanilla and baked apples.
Ocean Organic Vodka $29.95
Everything about Ocean Organic Vodka, from the ocean water it’s made with to the beautiful, unique bottle with the Hawaiian Islands embossed on it, is a conversation starter. Ocean organic vodka is the only distillery using ocean water drawn from 3,000 feet below the Kona coast. Using this water gives the vodka a soft, velvety finish. Instead of potatoes, grain or corn, Ocean vodka is made with organic sugar grown on their 80-acre organic farm.
Samuel Maverick Private Reserve Straight Bourbon Whiskey PROOF 90 | ABV 45% | 750ML | $75
Don’t miss out on the limited-edition Samuel Maverick Private Reserve Straight Bourbon Whiskey. Key word is limited, as only seven barrels of the four-year-old reserve bourbon were bottled for this small-batch limited release of Samuel Maverick Private Reserve. The bourbon is a grain-to-glass whiskey produced completely in-house. Private Reserve is distilled in small batches using select Texas-grown corn, rye, and barley and aged on-site. But this is a bourbon that shouldn’t stay hidden in a bank vault but should be shared with friends.
Highland Park Single Malt Scotch Whisky ABV : 43% Volume : 750ml
I’ve been a bourbon and whiskey drinker for several years now, but have recently started trying premium scotch whisky. Highland Park’s 12 year old whisky is a new favorite of mine and will be a regular in my home bar. From the attention to detail on the bottle, to the layered flavor that’s smooth and perfect for sipping with friends. Highland Park Single Malt scotch whisky is a great bottle to gift. If you’re buying for someone special, check out their 18 year old whisky which comes in a beautiful ceramic decanter.
Description: Spicy, well-rounded and brimming with the flavors of sun-kissed Seville oranges and rich fruitcake spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. There’s a rich vein of molten heather honey running through this superb whisky’s waves of fragrant, heather-laden peat smoke
Barr Hill Tom Cat Gin 90 PROOF/ABV 45%
Barr Hill Gin is #1 best-selling American super-premium gin in the U.S. made with local, wild honey in Vermont. But, for those gin drinkers that are looking for a unique gin to enjoy neat, Barr Hill Tom Cat Gin is calling your name. Tom Cat Barr Hill Gin is aged six month in new American Oak barrels, distilled with juniper and honey. I’d say this is the most unique gins I’ve experienced and makes a great gift for gin drinkers or those that like trying new spirits. If you’re looking for a more traditional gin drinker, go with the Barr Hill Gin.
TEREMANA™ SMALL BATCH TEQUILA 40% ALC/VOL
Tequila is a great gift for Texans as we all know margaritas aren’t seasonal here, they are enjoyed year round. And, premium tequila is a bar staple whether for the mixologist or those that enjoy a glass neat. Teremana is small-batch tequila founded by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. Available in three varieties: blanco, reposado and añejo. The ultra-premium tequila is made from fully mature, naturally sweet agave slow roasted in small traditional brick ovens and distilled in handmade copper pot stills in the brand’s own distillery in the highest peaks of Jalisco.
And, from now through the end of the year, Teremana will be donating $1 for every bottle sold to World Central Kitchen, up to $500,000. So when you buy a bottle of Teremana you’re also helping give back.
Mr Black Coffee Liqueur 25%/ABV
Coffee and I are besties, and so discovering Mr Black coffee liqueur piqued my interest. This liqueur is great for sipping or mixing in an espresso martini, white russian or Irish coffee. Oh and it has a little bit of caffeine in it, but a pour is less than a cup of coffee. This coffee liqueur makes a great gift for any coffee lover that is also a drinker.
Description: Made by hand at their distillery and coffee roastery north of Sydney, Australia, this liquor is a bittersweet blend of top-grade Arabica coffees and Australian wheat vodka.
Aberfeldy 12-Year-Old Single Malt Scotch 40% ABV
Aberfeldy has more of a fruity profile with a sweet, smooth light profile vs. some single malts that are smoky. This is a good single malt for a new scotch drinker, perhaps a bourbon drinker that’s exploring scotch.
Description: Aberfeldy 12 is aged in a combination of casks, including ex-sherry and ex-bourbon, some refill and some re-charred. A smooth, sweet dram that features a unique honeyed sweetness paired with notes of spiced vanilla, fudge and pineapple.
Lobos 1707 Tequila
Tequila, premium tequila is always a great gift for anyone with a home bar. From margaritas to sipping on the rocks or a celebratory shot, tequila is the spirit. The Lobos 1707 portfolio is made up of four ultra-premium offerings that are all perfect for sipping neat, or mixing in with a cocktail: Lobos 1707 Joven Tequila, Lobos 1707 Reposado Tequila, and Lobos 1707 Extra Añejo Tequila and Mezcal Artesanal are all made from 100% blue weber agave and espadin, harvested, distilled and bottled in Jalisco, and Oaxaca.
Reposado Description: Bold and robust, with notes of wine, wood, and medium roast cocoa.
