Let’s face it, Aussie craft spirits make just about the best Christmas presents you can find anywhere. There’s an Aussie spirit for pretty much anyone who enjoys a tipple. Here’s the proof.
Every year, there’s aways someone on your Christmas list that’s hard to buy for. So we’ve put together a list of 10 Aussie craft spirits perfect for some of the trickier recipients of your generosity!
1. For your mate who reckons they’re a gin connoisseur
We all have a friend who has more bottles of gin stashed in their house than the local bottle-o, but with over 300 gin distilleries in Australia, there’s always something special they haven’t seen before.
Using actual oyster shell asa botanical to create incredible mineral qualities and a smooth mouthfeel, North of Eden also use lemons, limes and cumquats grown on the farm and local saltbush, hawthorn leaf, rose and lemon myrtle to make this a truly unique gin.
Rather than a grain or grape alcohol base, Hartshorn Distillery uses fermented and distilled whey from its sheep’s cheese company as the base alcohol for its spirits.
The result is a long elegant texture that lets the botanicals sit on top like a comfy sofa. Botanicals, by the way, that are all native to Tasmania (apart from the juniper).
2. For your friend who watered your plants while you were away (but still killed a couple)
There’s nothing sadder than coming home from holiday to find all your leaf-babies limp, brown and unresponsive. So your friend with your spare key deserves something special as thanks.
Apart from the obviously appropriate label, this gin is a champion of the estate-grown plants and fruit Animus use to make it.
Strawberry gum leaf, lemon thyme, rosemary, oranges and native bush tomato support the classic gin notes of bold juniper, coriander seed, and citrus, with a long, spicy balanced finish.
3. For your boss who made life easier for you this year
We all spend way too much time at work, so a boss that doesn’t hover over you, doesn’t over-fill your in-tray, throws the occasional party and basically isn’t a dick about it should be celebrated.
This superb after-dinner digestivo (or great as a refreshing spritz) is packed with the lemon juice and rind from the lemons that Ed and Marty Svehla have foraged locally in Botany, NSW.
Check out our full review of Banks & Solander’s Limoncello here.
4. For your boss you have to tolerate (not in a handsy way)
Sometimes you just have to grease the wheels to keep the cart rolling. And if your boss is one of those that’s on the brink of becoming a rust spot on the axel, maybe a little Aussie spirit lubrication will make for an easier time at work.
Made with Hellyers Road’s superb whisky and fresh cream straight from the dairy next door, this liqueur not only knocks Baileys on its ass, it gives it a good kick in the ribs to make sure.
Going back to work after the new year is guaranteed to be a more pleasant experience if you give your eye-roll of a boss a bottle of this.
Or you could just go to HR.
5. For the neighbour who always signs for your parcels
The show might be over, but we all know that “everybody needs good Neighbours,” and a little gesture can go a long way. So for that neighbour who always opens the door and signs for your deliveries, saving you from the post office queue, now’s the time for some recognition.
With 6x 30ml bottles of superb Aussie craft whisky, plus a Nip of Courage etched glencairn glass, this sampler pack is the perfect thank-you.
If your neighbour’s more of a gin drinker, these 3x 200ml bottles of 78 Degrees Distillery’s Classic, Sunset and Desert gins is a winner.
6. For your organiser mate who makes sure you all catch up
I know all it takes is a single WhatsApp message or group text, but are you going to do it? Without this friend, you’d probably see your mates a lot less—or even worse, it might be down to you to do it! So, for that person that organises the troops, this will make sure you never have to.
Nothing’s more organised (or delicious) as a negroni that’s ready to go! Even better, Prohibition Distillery’s Bathtub Cut Negroni is 100% Aussie. Along with their 69% ABV Bathtub Cut gin, Prohibition have used Applewood’s Okar instead of Campari and Maidenii’s Sweet Vermouth.
7. For the mother-in-law who makes Christmas her whole personality
Leering at you from the front door in the worst Christmas jumper you’ve ever seen, amid more tinsel than Mardi Gras and more flashing lights than Vegas, the mother-in-law with a Santa complex demands your attention.
Even the most thoughtful non-Yule based presents will be politely-received, but never rejoiced. Here’s how you up your game with someone who really comes alive at Christmas.
Using whole Christmas puddings in the still then ageing the gin in 100-year-old Muscat barrels, this has all the flavours of Christmas dessert as well as the hallmarks of a brilliant, juniper-forward barrel-aged gin.
An Antipodean take on the classic British sloe gin, this tart yet sweet gin is the perfect Christmas tipple.
8. For the father-in-law who’s trying to be your pal
Amongst all the shoulder punches, obscure ‘60s sport references and next-level dad jokes, you know he’s only trying to join in, even if it is annoying. This Aussie craft spirit acknowledges his efforts without rewarding or encouraging them.
From the mind of one of Australia’s most creative distillers, Wholly Shit Rye gets its name from the rye grains being dried over the burning sheep dung from distiller Peter Bignell’s farm instead of the more traditional peat!
Translated from the Scots Gaelic McIntosh—‘son of the chief’—this distillery and its owner-distiller Stuart McIntosh follows traditional Scottish whisky-making methods to achieve incredible flavours.
9. For your mate who’s more like your sister but only drinks moscato
You’ve been inseparable since kindy to the point where you’re almost the same person. And then you offer her a martini.
You’re not sure when her penchant for Passion Pop started, but it’s time to level up and these are the lock-key-and-shoulder-against-the-gateway spirits.
With a meringue base and summer fruit infusion, Pavlova is sweet, but it’s a sophisticated sweetness. She’ll love this with sparkling cranberry juice or as a Champagne cocktail.
Delightfully smooth and syrupy with a warm blanket of spice and a hint of oak, this liqueur is best served neat as a sip-and-savour, but maybe start her off with this in a spritz and slowly move to having it just over ice!
10. For your bundy-and-coke cousin
We should none of us judge someone’s guilty pleasure. That’s why this present has to come from a place of love. Just make sure your cousin opens this bottle in front of you. That way you can take over if their guilty pleasure is truly the only thing they’ll drink!
Made in Far North Queensland from pure Aussie sugar cane syrup, this agricole style rum has hints of vanilla, caramel and oak from its five years spent in barrels.
Check out our full review of this multiple Best Rum in the World Award winner here.
Toast, caramel, a little citrus. Spice and sweetness from ex-bourbon casks and a rich, thick mouthfeel from five years maturation, then add to that the heft of 57.2% ABV—if this doesn’t knock your cousin out of their revolting rut, nothing will!
And if your cousin insists on putting coke with either of these rums, give them some Dark Soda by Long Rays. Thousand times better.
