Snow is now officially on the ground here in the prairies and that means that Christmas isn't fair behind. Yes, that means that you will be bombarded with an exorbitant amount of pressure from all manner of media to find the right gifts for your loved ones. Unfortunately we cannot make all of the pressure go away but we can help you find the perfect gift for that home barista, coffee enthusiast or espresso aficionado on your list. Below are our top 5 gift ideas from some of North America's finest coffee roasters.
5. Coffee Subscriptions
The coffee subscription is a great gift for anybody who is interested in fine coffee. Who wouldn't want fresh coffee arriving at their door? Especially when they didn't have to pay for it.
Transcend Coffee
Transcend offers the choice of 1 bag/month for 3, 6 or 12 months.
http://www.transcendcoffee.ca/products/transcend-coffee-subscription
Phil&Sebastian
Phil&Sebastian gives you the option of a monthly, green coffee or gift subscription (1-3 bags/month for 1, 3 or 6 months)
https://www.philsebastian.com/shop/coffee-subscriptions/
49th Parallel Coffee Roasters
49th offers similar subscriptions to Transcend and P&S with the addition of "The Complete Espresso Subscription". This customizable package allows the subscriber to choose three 16oz bags of 49th espresso (Epic, Old Skool or seasonal single origin espresso) every month.
http://www.49thparallelroasters.com/collections/subscriptions/products/the-complete-espresso-subscription
These are just a few of the myriad options for subscriptions. We suggest that you either find out who the giftee's favourite roaster is or buy from one they haven't had or can't regularly obtain in their home city. To the serious coffee enthusiast variety truly is the spice of life.
4. The Complete Homebrew Kit
The Complete Homebrew Kit from Verve Coffee Roasters is the ultimate brewing station for those scientific coffee drinkers who don't have the time for manual brewing or for the discerning host or hostess. This heavy-hitting kit allows the receiver to make a controlled, yet relatively large batch of fine coffee at a time. The Bonavita Brewer's glass-lined stainless steel carafe can keep your delicious caffeinated goodness hot for hours on those long monday mornings and is equally up to the task of entertaining. With a capacity of 8 cups and the ability to brew from start to finish in 6 minutes this machine can keep your guests satisfied and alert for hours of board game fun this Christmas! Included for brewing accuracy is a digital scale, swiss gold metal filter and Baratza Encore burr grinder alongside the Bonavita's stable 205 degree brew temperature because what is quantity without quality?
Includes:
- Bonavita Brewer
- Baratza Encore grinder
- Swiss Gold cone filter
- Digital scale
- Verve Roasters mug
- 12oz bag of Verve coffee
http://www.vervecoffeeroasters.com/collections/merchandise/products/complete-homebrew-kit
Those of you who know us personally or have read our posts in the past will know that we have a strong, almost fanatical love of the Hario V60 and, although we have not yet done a post on mugs and other vessels, few will disagree that the notneutral mug, designed in cooperation with Intelligentsia, is one of the best on today's market. Housed in a seasonally stylish gift box these pristine pieces of porcelain are the perfect present for the design-driven amateur coffee enthusiest in your life.
Includes:
- 1 hario V60 dripper
- 1 Black Cat Project notneutral 10oz mug
- 40 paper files
- 1 3/4 lb bag of Intelligentsia Coffee's House Blend
http://www.intelligentsiacoffee.com/product/merchandise/pourover-gift-box
There isn't a barista, brew-master, java junky or caffeinated cubicler who wouldn't shriek with joy upon finding this little bundle of joy under the tree. Who wouldn't want to arrive at work with their vintage toolkit only to produce their aeropress and brew a delicious cup of excellence. Stumptown Coffee Roasters have long been ahead of the game when it comes to branding, packaging and merchandising in a practical yet desirable way.
Includes:
- 1 Stumptown-branded canvas with leather accent bag from Wood & Faulk
- 1 Aeropress Kit
- Porlex Mini hand burr grinder
- Two enamel mugs displaying the proud Stumptown bison
- 1 bag of Stumptown Coffee's Hair Bender
*hot water not included
http://buy.stumptowncoffee.com/rambler.html
1. Acaia Pearl Collector's Edition
This is the Holy Grail of coffee-related gifts of geekery. Since its release the Acaia coffee scale has been making waves in the specialty coffee industry. We hope to do a detailed post on the best scales for your brewing sometime in the new year but for now all you need to know is that the Acaia is a game-changer. It is accurate to 0.1 gram and is wifi/bluetooth compatible which allows you to monitor not only the time and weight but also the flow rate if your brew as you brew it. The accompanying app stores all of this information so that you can tweak or recreate past brews. Included in this gift box is a Hario V60 brewer and server that compliment the minimalist design of the Acaia. This is the perfect gift for the coffee geek in your life who already "has everything".
Includes:
- 1 Acaia Pearl scale
- 1 glass Hario V60 brewer
- 1 Hario decanter
- 1 aerial heat-resistant pad
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-wdN4ZySx8
We hope that this gift guide helps you find that perfect gift for that special coffee-lover in your life. Merry Christmas!
Jordon Jeschke