Christmas Whiskey Gift Sets

By Richard Thomas

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are behind us, so now even sensible people can stick their heads up and start looking around for Christmas gifts. With whiskey never having been more popular, it’s a good bet you have a relative, close friend or significant other who wouldn’t mind getting some whiskey for the Holidays.

The problem with shopping for someone else’s whiskey is what bottle to buy, and if you don’t both know whiskey and know the other person’s tastes, the choices available nowadays are mind-boggling. One route that bypasses a confusing stroll through the aisles of your local upscale liquor store is to go with a gift set, and there are now a few choice options to go with.

Master of Malt Whisky Advent Calendar
The best known whisky gift set around is now almost a Christmastime fixture after five years in the running, the Whisky Advent Calendar from online retailer Master of Malt. Following the advent calendar theme, this box set has 24 perforated windows. Behind each window is a 30 ml sample from their Drinks By The Dram program.

Master of Malt says this year’s 24 wax-sealed dram bottles include a “rare 50-year-old Scotch, an award-winning Japanese whisky and the World’s Best Blended Whisky (World Whiskies Awards 2014).” I’ve looked the full list over, and in the spirit of avoiding spoilers what I will say is that it’s Scotch-centric while delving into the larger world of whiskey, and every whiskey fan will find at least a few new items, unfamiliar and surprising.

The only downside to the advent calendar is the cost: £150 ($225). It offers good value for the money, but is a hefty price tag all the same.

Oak and Salt Bourbon Barrel Bundle
Another way to go with the whole whiskey gift idea is to go down a staple path at The Whiskey Reviewer, cooking with whiskey, and get a bundle of whiskified food products. Oak and Salt has just such a basket, anchored with a favorite of ours, the Bluegrass Soy Sauce from Bourbon Barrel Foods. Not only is it made in ex-bourbon barrels, but it still counts as the only craft soy sauce made in America today.

The rest of the package includes a gourmet example of that perennial favorite, bourbon maple syrup; hot sauce and sorghum syrup aged in bourbon barrels; and bourbon barrel-smoked salt. Each item comes from a different company, so the recipient will become familiar with a range of people making quality condiments. The price is nice too, at $75.

Flaviar Tasting Boxes

What Flaviar does is something like taking the “Book of the Month Club” concept and putting a spirited spin on it. Instead of a gift card, buy your whiskey fan a Flaviar membership. The company delivers a sampler box of three shot-sized (50 ml) vials of either whiskey, rum or gin every month. You can specify what goes over in the first month, and memberships run from two months (€44) to twelve months (€242), and members can pause to skip the gin and rum months if they wish.

Flaviar’s selections for these boxes are what make them truly special, as they display insight in the choices they make. If the theme is single malts or bourbon, the parcel won’t be a trio of randomly thrown together options, but instead show real thought behind each of the choices.