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HEART LONDON MAGAZINE’S CHRISTMAS GIFT GUIDE – CHRISTMAS TIPPLES
Every year we put together Christmas Gift Guides to help take the stress out of your Christmas shopping and give you ideas of what to buy. Christmas without drinks just wouldn’t be Christmas, so if you are looking for something special to drink or looking to gift a Christmas tipple then look no further!
The Secret Garden Rooted in Nature Secret Garden Gin Set
We love the Rooted in Nature Secret Garden Gin set is lovingly crafted using 100% natural ingredients. Not only is it displayed in a pretty box with Christmas detail which makes it easy to wrap, the two bottles of gin are perfect for lovers of this liquor. The Christmas Gin with Cinnamon, Ginger and Cardamon smells and tastes divine and it delicious on the rocks or with tonic! The Wild Organic gin is also delightful and marries perfectly with tonic and a slice of lemon! The don’t add any sugars, artificial colouring, flavourings or additives either.
Available from the Secret Garden Distillery for £29.95
Novantaceppi Primitivo Red Wine
Christmas is never complete without a lovely bottle of red making the Novantaceppi Primitivo perfect to enjoy at this time of year. It pairs perfectly with red meat but can equally be enjoyed by the glass or bottle! This quality wine which has an exceptional taste and an accessible price tag of only £12.00. The Pinot Grigio bolts crisp citrus notes that meet the flavour of crunchy fresh pears and apples rounded by delicate nutty aromas. The blush-coloured Primitivo Rosédelights with full-flavoured and fruity aromas of red currant and blackberries.
Available from Amazon for £12.00
Champagne Taittinger Nocturne
Champagne is a must have during the party and Christmas season and Taittinger is a Heart London Magazine firm favourite. The Taittinger Nocturne is soft, fresh and mellow with delicate floral and ripe fruit flavours. The aftertaste is long and soft with a subtle sweetness. All in all, it is rounded, rich and well balanced, smooth and creamy. This lovely champagne is well balanced, and the bubbles feel like crystalline pearls on the palate. This delectable champagne makes the perfect gift and ideal drink to bring in the new year!
Available from Waitrose Ocado John Lewis for £44.15
Russell Distillers Jaffa Cake Gin Liqueur and Lemon Sherbet Gin Liqueur
Jaffa Cake Gin Liqueur really is like drinking a Jaffa Cake and it smells amazing! The delightful gin is delicious with lemonade or tonic, or perfect on the rocks! This innovative gin is the perfect gift for gin lovers! We also love the Lemon Sherbet Gin which is filled with bold and delicious citrus lemon flavours, reminiscent of the lemon sherbet sweets of yesteryear. It is nfused with natural lemon flavours, this hand-crafted liqueur is delicious ice, or mixed with lemonade or tonic water for a long, light drink. Russell Distiller is owned by the Russell family who also own Copper Rivet Distillery. They have also launched Rhubarb and Custard, Lemon Sherbet and with Strawberries and Cream. What is not to love with this tasty liqueur which tastes just like Jaffa Cake’s themselves!
Available from Amazon for £15.00
De Havilland London Dry Gin
Each bottle of small-batch distilled gin is labelled with its own unique flight number and signed off with the pilot’s signature. Just like the classic golden age of aviation De Havilland is a London dry gin made with precision-engineered purity. It is naturally derived from grain spirit with only authentic botanicals added for flavour. The De Havilland has a smooth, with a beautiful velvety nose that is rich with juniper, aniseed, and tantalising spice. De Havilland gin is deeply satisfying with a cool refreshing herbaceous length and a subtle vanilla finish making this gin special!
Available from De Havilland for £39.99
Sipsmith London Sipspresso Coffee Gin
This gin is perfect for coffee lover everywhere. The Sipspresso Coffee Gin is delicious sipped over ice and fun to drink as a shot, equally you can drink it as a martini. Along with the vital junniper, this expression features Brazilian and Rwandan coffees beans, plus cinnamon and vanilla, making for a flavour profile that shouts gin and coffee! The Sipsmith London Sipspresso Coffee Gin is a delightfully rich, warm and indulgent gin with a smooth and balanced finish.
Available from Sipsmith for £29.00
Bushmills Black Bush Irish Whiskey
Bushmills Black Bush is a blended Irish Whiskey. This wonderful Whiskey has a delightful oaky taste with hints of pepper, with a soft after taste. The malt is aged for up to seven years in a combination of oloroso sherry and bourbon casks. This whiskey has a good balance in flavours and aromas with a medium body and a soft smooth texture making it the perfect present for Whiskey lovers everywhere! Enjoy neat, over ice, or mixed into any whiskey cocktail.
Available from The Whiskey Exchange for £27.95
Maestro Dobel Humito Smoked Silver Tequila
Tequila is the best party starter making it perfect for party season and the Maestro DOBEL Humito is exceptional. The bottle is embossed giving a welcome retro look and the bottle sizing generous. It is made with 100% blue agave and its smokiness is achieved solely through channelling the complexity and richness of nature. Cooking the agave over aromatic mesquite wood results in an extraordinary balanced and elegant smoky note. This luscious liquid is smooth making it for an ideal gift for traditional spirit lovers looking to discover something new. A must for the Christmas period and the smoothest tequila we have ever tasted!
Available from Harveynichols.com and Hedonism.com for £64.00
Quinta Da Pedra Alta, 10-Year-Old Tawny Port
Port is perfect to drink around the Christmas tree with family or loved ones, with a tasty cheeseboard or to enjoy chatting with friends! We love Tawny for its mahogany hue and flavours of caramel, chocolate, dried fruit, and nuts. It’s the whisky of the Port world. And, just like whiskey, much of the flavour comes from aging in wooden casks. The Quinta Da Pedra Alta, 10-Year-Old Tawny Port boasts lots of dried fruits toffee caramel and cask notes. The luscious complex tawny characteristics with a velvety texture and a refreshing blissful finish.
Available from Masters of Malt for £24.95
Drambuie
During Prohibition, Drambuie carved a niche in America because it was able to beautifully mix in with bootleg spirits and tame their rough edges. It has been a favourite in our family decades, and we are never without a bottle during the festive season. It is perfect in a cocktail, especially in the Rusty Nail! Drambuie is Sweet but lively and light on the palate, as the orange explodes and the whisky boldy appears, wrapped in honey and herbs. Drambuie is the perfect after dinner drink and simply divine on the rocks! It is the perfect liqueur gift for loved ones who are drinks connoisseurs.
Available from Waitrose for £18.00
Copper Rivet Distillery Gin Gift Set
We love the Copper Rivet Distillery Gin Gift Set and is the perfect stocking filler or present for Gin Lovers! It features the Dockyard Gin, along with its Kent Strawberry Gin and Damson gin, all in pretty 5cl bottles, so you can try a little bit of everything! Our favourite is the Kent Strawberry Gin, this fresh drink is perfect with champagne, lemonade or tonic! It contains no additives and not a granule of added sugar and is probably the most natural un-mucked-about gin of its kind. It says strawberries, and you taste them, with their natural sweetness and anti-oxidants. The Dockyard Gin is a fresh tasting beauty, which is vibrant and brimming with its nine botanicals. Whilst the Oak Aged Damson Gin is perfect served chilled.
Available from Copper Rivet or Amazon for £15.00
Viñas de Oro Quebranta
Superb Peruvian pisco from Viñas de Oro is made using only one grape type – Quebranta! This delicious liquor comes off as sweet and delicate at first, with its fresh apple and sweet, oaky aroma. But at heart, this spirit is earthy, fruity and bold, finishing relatively dry, with teasing Sherry-like notes. Of course, this lovely liquor is delightful is Pisco Sour and Piscolas!
Available from Masters of Malt for £27.50
Brookies Byron Dry Gin
This gin is Brookies Byron Dry Gin. The Dry Gin was co-created with legendary master distiller Jim McEwan and co-founder Eddie Brook, and uses 25 botanicals, 17 of which are native to the Byron Bay Region. This popular gin is stunning, the smooth taste makes it a clear winner with Gin lover’s making it a perfect Christmas present. This luscious gin is juniper led including raspberry, zesty citrus, liquorice and macadamia. The Brookies Byron Dry Gin marries well with lemonade, on the rocks or tonic.
Available from Waitrose for £39.95 Waitrose UK
Pommery Brut Royal Champagne
There is better than a watching the bubbles in a chilled glass of Pommery Brut Royal Champagne before you sip this delightful fine wine! With a focus on elegance and length the wine offers a clean palate at the end without any dryness. Pommery Brut Royal Champagne is fruity, with interesting aromatics and a lovely, balanced and refreshing acidity and creamy palate, this Brut makes it a delicious aperitif, at the dinner table or wherever strikes your fancy! The perfect Christmas gift and a must to bring in the new year!
Available from Waitrose, Ocado and Majestic for £40.00
Boco by House Coren English Sparkling Wine
The name for the wine was inspired by Old Sussex regional dialect, ‘boco’ derived from the French ‘beaucoup’ meaning ‘lots of/more. It was launched July 2021, Boco by House Coren is an English wine from West Sussex that is actually made using the Charmat method (just like prosecco), one of only a couple made here in the UK. Boco is made using a blend of Reichenstiener, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, which were all grown in the south of England. The blend results in a kaleidoscope of peaches, ripe pears, a hint of raspberry and a long, clean, citrus, and green apple finish. It also holds its own as an aperitif and is the perfect drink to bring in the new year!
Available from for House Coren for £26.00
Heidsieck Monopole Blue Top Brut Champagne
Heidsieck & Co. Monopole is based and produced in Epernay, one of the key regions for the production of wine where many of the famous and original names in Champagne are established. Heidsieck Monopole Blue Top Brut Champagne is another outstanding champagne which is perfect for the festive season. Monopole Blue Top kicks in with a sweet and defined intro with toasted honey goodness. This develops into a balanced hit of fruits, alongside its caramelised tones. The perfect present for a champagne lover!
Available from Tesco, Sainsbury’s and more for £28.99
Louis Pommery England – English Sparkling Wine
Champagne Pommery was the first champagne house to produce an English sparkling wine. Louis Pommery England is a moreish English Sparkling wine that’s elegant, light, and well-balanced. Because this wine is in a relatively light style, it works well as an apéritif and canapes. Louis Pommery England has characters of green apple, fresh lemon and lime, and honeyed stone fruits with well-integrated bubbles and a delightful mineral finish. A wonderful gift and a delicious sparkling wine!
Available from from Ocado and Majestic for £39.99
Graham Beck Brut Rosé NV
We are huge fans of sparkling Rose here at Heart London and the South African Graham Beck Brut Rosé NV is one of our new favourites. The Rosé NV is an anytime, anywhere Cap Classique. Its unique, pale silver-pink hue and elegant structure make it flirtatious and fun. With aromas of berry and cherry, and hints of fresh lavender. Not only is the delightful drink perfect for the Christmas season, but it is also excellent value for money at only £15.99! A full-flavored success that should be served chilled.
Available for £15.99 from Majestic, North South Wines, Simply Wines Direct
Denbies Cubitt Blanc de Noirs 2015 – 150cl
This Blanc de Noirs is created from hand-picked Pinot Noir from the Hillside vineyard on Denbies Estate. This wine is very well executed and structured, balancing a fresh, clean bite with indulgent ripe stone fruit and a dry, lengthy complex finish. This delectable wine is fantastic with a cheese board and is a vintage Blanc de Noirs fizz, meaning that it is a white wine made from black grapes. This sparkling Pinot Noir in a weightier, more aromatic and more textured wine. Another fantastic present.
Available from Denbies for £34.00
Domaine Carneros by Taittinger Brut 2016
This elegant sparkling wine opens with notes of honeycomb, key lime and citrus zest and a fine stream of tiny bubbles which persist long in the glass. This delicious brut is a classic charmer and is a terrific, refreshing California bubble owned by the renowned Champagne Taittinger from France. Whilst you can pair this delicious sparkling wine, it tastes so good that drinking it chilled and enjoying every sip seems more fitting. This is for sure the perfect wine to see in the new year and enjoy the Christmas season, not forgetting it makes a perfect present!
Available for £30.10 from Vino Wines
Winter Wonderland Gingerbread Espresso Martini
We are huge fans of Espresso Martini here are Heart London Magazine, so you can imagine how excited we were to hear about a Gingerbread Espresso Martini and this wonderful Scottish Vodka Cocktail. It just doesn’t just smell divine, it tastes divine too! It is perfect on the rocks or in a shot glass, although it is best sipped to savour the delicious flavour. The bottled cocktail which makes for a brilliant seasonal gift and is an elegant and unusual concoction to serve to guests during the festive season. It is fine Scottish vodka, with the delightfully sweet and elegant notes provided by the keynote of Holy Grass, the botanical from which Holy Grass Vodka is made. This is then blended with mellow, warming gingerbread spices and coffee for a supremely delicious instant cocktail.
Available from Dunnet Bay Distillers for £25.00
Tidal Rum
We all love a Christmas tipple in front of a winter fire and the new British rum created in Jersey is perfect for this and any other occasion. This lovely rum is beautifully bottled and is the perfect gift for rum lovers. The bitter orange and sweet caramel notes effortlessly complement the festive flavours making Tidal Rum a Christmas must-have. This rum is delicious on the rocks or pair with coke or lemonade. the rum is slowly aged in oak casks and infused with rare marine botanicals. Its rich golden smoothness comes from a careful blend of four cask-aged rums – from Trinidad, Jamaica, Barbados and the Dominican Republic. A beautiful rum and the perfect Christmas present.
Available from Tidal Rum or Amazon for £34.95
Old Putney Single Malt Scotch Whisky Aged 12 Years
This is the perfect present for Whisky lovers, the beautiful, embossed bottle contains a single malt Whisky that has been distilled on the most northerly shores of Scotland in Wick, Old Pulteney perfectly captures the very essence of its location, paying homage to its maritime roots. From by the sea to under your Christmas tree, Old Pulteney’s core collection of single malts is matured in casks that absorb the coastal air, making it a perfect dram to transport yourself to the sea this Christmas, or as a beautiful gift for loved ones. Enjoy honey, caramel, earthy grain, nut and citrus notes in this 12 year old Scotch whisky.
Available from Masters of Malt for £29.50
Waterford The Cuvee – Irish Single Malt Whiskey
The Waterford The Cuvee Single Malt Whiskey will remind you of a tropical delight. The aromas of fresh red apples, lavender, oranges, over-ripe banana skin, and fresh mint are grounded with the scents of fresh dry soil, giving out a vigorous aroma. This is intertwined with the candied taste and scent of clove sweets, dark chocolate, cherries, granola bar and green olives. The finishing notes adds a spicy kick with its pepper smell and oily spiciness, making this drink a true delight to indulge in. This is a perfect whiskey gift for all whiskey lovers in your life or perhaps you could even treat yourself with this, especially if you want to make sure you have a great beverage to wash down all of those delicious Christmas trimmings with.
Available at Drinks & Co for £79.95
Boatyard Sloe Boat Gin Liqueur
The Boatyard Sloe Boat Gin Liqueur is a rich, sweet sloe gin from Boatyard distillery in Northern Ireland, steeped with wild-harvested sloe berries for six months. It has fruit top notes of plums, almond and lively berries fill the palate, with soft honeysuckle lingering in the finish. This is a perfect gin choice for people who prefer a citrus, zesty flavoured gin as opposed to the bitter taste of gin. With this gin, you are bound to win, this Christmas.
Available at The Whisky Exchange for £28.95
The Kinahan’s Irish Whiskey: The Kasc Project 43%
Kinahan’s Irish Whiskey: The Kasc Project which comes with 43% of alcohol is packed with flavour. Its nose notes are filled with the sweet aromas of rich caramel and pineapple peek supported by a spicy undertone. The palate contains a treacly syrup with barbecued mango and sweet tropical fruit with a hint of vanilla pod. The Christmassy notes of nutmeg and clove, orange oil and brown sugar, with caramelised pineapple proves to be a justifiable finish! An enjoyable drink for this Christmas and every Christmas after that, say cheers with your family, loved ones and welcome the New Year with this mouth-watering drink.
Available at Masters of Malt for £34.95
20 Whiskies That Changed The World Tasting Set
This intriguing whisky set contains everything you need to know when looking into the recent history of whisky to see and experience how things have changed over the past few decades. The set comes with 20 whiskies which are divided into four themed categories, a pair of tasting glasses – each measure is big enough to share – and a tasting book packed with details of all the whiskies. There are four categories are The Whisky Revolution contains the whisky samples of Compass Box Hedonism, Monkey Shoulder, Clynelish 14 Years Old and Glenfiddich 15 Year Old Soleria, the Magic Of The Cask category includes the Balvenie 12 Year Old Doublewood, Macallan 18 Year Old Sherry Oak, Glendronach 15 year Old Revival, Dalmore King Alexander III and Glenfarclas 105, Peat Makes The World Go Round: Talisker 18 Year Old, Springbank 10 Year Old, Laphroaig Quarter Cask, Lagavulin 16 Year Old and Octomore 10 Year Old Fourth Edition and The New World: Yamazaki 12 Year Old, Nikka Coffey Malt, Amrut Fusion, Blanton’s Gold and Michter’s Rye. This is a an excellent product and the presentation of the box symbolises sophistication, class and elegance, this is truly a winner.
Available at for The Whisky Exchange for £160.
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