It's been several years since I last compiled a holiday gift guide, but this year of all years, I thought it would be a good way to highlight some of the products I love — or would love to own — that can be purchased from some of my favourite coffee companies and other small businesses. I hope you'll find some inspiration for gifts for the coffee lovers in your life. And yes, that includes gifts to self, of course (I promise I won't tell).
I can't think of any coffee lovers who would not love to receive a top-quality bag of speciality coffee beans as a gift, and I'd recommend finding a roaster or coffee shop local to you; they'd appreciate your support. But if you need more inspiration, my coffee city guides may help. Equally, if you're thinking of purchasing a speciality coffee subscription as a gift, I can recommend Dog and Hat (which I reviewed here) for the quality and variety of their selection. As we've all been spending a lot more time at home this year, coffee brewing equipment is another good gift category; you can find a list of the equipment I use regularly here, but I'd recommend buying from an independent coffee shop or roaster, if you can.
Cups
Regular readers will know that I have a passion for beautiful ceramics, and these are some of the cups that I either own or that have caught my eye.
Melisa Dora tumblers (£25). I discovered the work of Melisa, who is based not far from me in south-east London, when I bought one of her tumblers at Rosslyn Coffee. I love the cheerful colour palette and minimalist design, and now own two of her tumblers, a mug and two pasta bowls.
Squids Ceramics. Most of this guide is rather UK-centric, so I wanted to highlight the work of my colleague Sarah, particularly for any US readers. I have one of Sarah's natural tumblers with her signature swirling design, but check out her Instagram for some more colourful pieces; I am planning to commission a pair of these tumblers, once I finally get back to New York!
Huskee Cup (from £14). I have a number of reusable coffee cups, but the 6 oz and 8 oz black Huskee Cups remain among my favourites. Made from recycled coffee husk, they are lightweight, nice to hold and even help improve my latte art pouring (admittedly, this bar is very low).
Totes
I own several nice handbags, but in 2020, I've used tote bags almost exclusively, and I own and love both of these.
Amoret (£15). I picked up this tote bag last time I was visiting Amoret in Notting Hill. It's sturdy, made from denim, and holds most of the groceries from my bi-weekly shop.
Monmouth (£10). When choosing coffee beans from Monmouth, my local roastery in Bermondsey, I always liked it when I chose a coffee that ended up having a hot pink label, and now I have a tote bag to match. These bags are produced by Re-Wrap, an Indian social enterprise, and are really well designed with interior pockets and thick handles.
Other ideas
Frequency coffee table (from £235). OK, this product isn't exactly a stocking filler, size- or budget-wise, but if you've been to Frequency in King's Cross and loved the interiors, you can now recreate the look at home. Made-to-order in three sizes at Frequency's workshop, these will up your flat lay game no end. NB: my photo below is of one of the tables in the cafe; you can look at the three coffee tables for sale on their website.
Curve Coffee descriptor poster (from £16). Margate-based Curve is one of my favourite UK roasters, and I've always loved Sally Cowell's illustrations on their coffee bean packaging. For those who are keen to train their palate, this poster is a great way of exploring coffee flavour profiles. It also comes with a 100g sample of unlabelled filter coffee to put what you've learned into practice, and it also includes a donation to the Ethiopian charity, Girls Gotta Run.
Catalyst Coffee sriracha (£7). The food at Catalyst, in the Clerkenwell / Holborn neighbourhood of London, is as good as the coffee, which is roasted in house. The sriracha is made with fresh chillies and Catalyst coffee, and is available in three tiers of spiciness, depending on your chilli tolerance.
Standart magazine subscription ($69 for four issues). A beautiful magazine dedicated to the beauty of coffee, Standart is packed full of insightful and compelling articles about coffee, people and culture. I've only ever read single issues, but if you sign up for their annual subscription (four issues), you also receive a sample bag of coffee with each magazine. You can browse their previous issues here.
Note: this post is not sponsored, I don't have any commercial relationships with any of the featured companies, and none of the links above are affiliate links. As outlined in my disclaimer, I will always disclose if I have been gifted any products or services, or if a post has been sponsored or produced in collaboration with a brand.
No comments:
Post a Comment