Probably the most loved drink of recent years, and there are no end of options when it comes to gin flavours, tonics, garnish, gift sets and gin cocktails. Most seasoned gin lovers know their preferences I think, but it’s still quite overwhelming. I did a gin tasting a while ago and was shocked at how much difference in flavour there could be based on what fruit you put in it. So if you’re looking for gifts for gin lovers that are a bit more than just the bottle this Christmas hopefully this will give you some ideas.

Disclaimer: This post contains some affiliate links. I have also previously worked with some of the brands mentioned but none have asked or paid to be included in this post.

The Lakes Distillery Pink Grapefruit Set

This gin is honestly amazing I tried it when I went to the Lakes Distillery Bistro in September, and my mum came away with a bottle of it too. This pink grapefruit gift set includes a bottle of the gin and two branded glasses, and it’s exclusive to Harvey Nichols for £49.50.

The Lakes Distillery Crackers & Gift Sets

Fenwick’s food hall are selling smaller gift sets of the Lakes Distillery gin, that include three miniature bottles of the original gin, the pink grapefruit and the elderflower. All are really nice, we got a bottle of the Elderflower when we were at the Distillery and we went through it so quickly it’s very refreshing. If you’re not sure if you’ll like them this mini set is a good one to start with at £15.

In the food hall you can also pick up the Lakes Distillery crackers, either individually for £5.99, or sets of four for £20, a Christmas essential for all gin lovers.

Lakes Distillery products can also be found on their website, including gift vouchers which would also make a great gift, especially as they can also be used in the Bistro – the food was amazing, and all sorts of other products.

Opihr Gin – from distant lands

I was recently gifted a bottle of Opihr Gin and the extra ingredients needed to make one of their recommended cocktails, and it was delicious. Opihr is a London dry gin, ‘firmly rooted in the Ancient Spice Route, inspired by the adventurous spirit of the merchants travelling thousands of miles to trade exotic spices and botanicals from distant lands.’

For this reason the slightly spicy taste to it, makes it a perfect winter gin for this Christmas. The one I got was the Arabian edition, and I used it to make a spiced daiquiri. They have suggested cocktails on their website so you can get some inspiration on how to make something a bit different as well as just using it for a straightforward G&T.

I would definitely buy it myself, and I’ve also got my eye on the European aromatic beers bottle. See all the information on Opihr gin on their website, including stockists.

Create a gin flight

This idea comes from a gin flight I had at Barn on the Bay, a wedding venue that turned into a bar before the second lockdown, where you could book a table and they served food and drinks from their wedding suppliers. One of the options on the menu was a gin flight for £15, which included three different gins, three matching tonics, and three slices of garnish to go with them.

It was really nice and this is where I discovered Poetic License fireside gin, another amazing winter gin that I then went and bought a bottle of myself. It’s available in M&S and Fenwick’s food hall but it’s a couple of quid cheaper on Amazon here.

So if you’re spending Christmas with gin lovers and want to either impress them with your hosting skills, or want to create a unique personalised present for them then a gin flight is a great choice, especially if you use the miniature bottles that are everywhere at the moment. All you need to know is their favourite gins to include.

Gin Tasting Experience

I mentioned before that I once did a gin masterclass, and I was so surprised how much I enjoyed it and how much I learned from it. For example I really don’t like Hendricks gin, I hate cucumber and assumed cucumber was just the flavour of it, but the mixologist talked me through how to use garnish differently, and that there are often misconceptions that you have to use certain garnish with certain gins.

With a couple of blackberries and a single measure Hendrick’s doesn’t taste like cucumber at all. Mind blown.

So I really would recommend doing one if we ever emerge from these bloody restrictions and events like that can be hosted again. The one I did was at The Botanist in Newcastle – more details on the Botanist website here, or you can read my post from back then here. You could buy gift cards to be used for it in future in the meantime if they aren’t currently hosting them.

Other places that offer virtual gin tasting include:

Manchester Gin

Cotswold Gin Distillery

The Little Gin Company

A Set of Gin Glasses 

Most people have a set of gin glasses from the likes of Ikea and Asda, including me, but Christmas might be a time to buy someone (or yourself!) a set of fancy glasses. I love these peacock feather ones from John Lewis, but looks like you can only buy individually, or this set of two with gold detail from Oliver Bonas.

These stag Audley glasses are a bit different from Next but I really like them, they have quite a big range on site so have a browse.

I know novelty gin glasses can be a bit of a thing at Christmas but I’m just not a fan. I’m all for novelty mugs but I think a decent gin and tonic should be served in a decent gin glass.

The Secret Herb Garden Tours & Old Curiosity Gin

The Secret Herb Garden is exactly what it sounds, a herb garden up in the Midlothian that I visit as part of a press trip to the region earlier this year. It was so interesting and I’m still really enjoying three of the bottles of their gin that I came away with. The tour I did was a bit different as it included the process of actually picking the herbs and drying them, before they’re diffused as part of the process.

Once Covid restrictions allow you will also be able to do a tasting as part of it too. Just an hour drive from Newcastle it really is something gin lovers would enjoy as part of a trip to Scotland or en route to/from Edinburgh. You could book one, or just buy a sample of their gin from the Old Curiosity site here. My favourite was the Pink elderflower and jasmine, but I’ve just seen they have a Christmas flavour which sounds one I’d like to try.

Gindulgent Diffusing Kit

For anyone who might like to get creative with gin diffusing, Oliver Bonas have a gin diffusing kit for just £10. That’s a good secret Santa present actually isn’t it? It comes with four different infusions in a cut box.

Gin Cocktail Book

There are so many of these about and in the past I’ve made the mistake of buying ones that are just far too complicated, so go for simple. I judged a book by it’s cover and got one of the prettiest, that turned out to be how to forage for your own fruit for gin cocktails. Why waste precious time doing that when you can buy it and get on with drinking it?

So do your research and go for simple, easy recipes that can be done at home without a degree in mixology. Some of the ones that stand out to me are Gin World 2020 for £7.90, Gin o’clock for about £10 depending on if you get paper or hard back, and Fever Tree the art of mixing.

Gin Print for a Bar Cart or Kitchen

There are so many gin prints about and I think they’re a lovely gift if someone has a bar, or to hang in the kitchen. I look at the ones from Fy all the time, here’s one of them but they have a huge range if you just put ‘gin’ into search.

It’s beGINing to look a lot like Christmas! (Sorry). Hope gin lovers enjoy their gifts this Christmas.

Other posts you might like:

Blogmas: Christmas home decor ideas that wont break the bank

Blogmas: Christmas jumpers for Christmas jumper day 2020

Blogmas: Christmas takeaways from Newcastle restaurants

How to bring the Christmas markets into your home for 2020

An easy mulled cider recipe