12 best gifts for gin lovers: From glasses and games to tonics and sweets

Best: Overall

Rating: 10/10

Alcoholic gummies might not sound like the height of sophistication, but these knee-wobblingly-good treats really impressed us. More akin to a crafted French pâte de fruits than a Percy Pig, Smith and Sinclair’s treats are grown up, innovative and (blissfully) not too sweet. And though they pack a bit of punch – they’re about 5 per cent ABV – it’s done with class and balance; we wouldn’t be surprised to see these dished up at the end of a Michelin-starred meal. We can’t imagine a gin lover who wouldn’t enjoy ‘em.

The flavourings are genius. The sugar-dusted gummies are modelled after four classic gin-based cocktails (G&T, gin fizz, negroni and bramble), but with a herbal twist of hibiscus, elderflower and thyme. They genuinely taste like their respective drinks, but in solid form. The hibiscus negroni has a pleasant kick of bitter orange; the classic gin and tonic a freshness that reminded us of Mediterranean-style G&T. As for impact? Let’s just say that after two gummies we were having a great time. Do ask your giftee to consume responsibly.

Best: For trivia lovers

Rating: 8/10

What to get for the gin fiend who has everything? It has to be this trivia-based board game, perfect for a spirited night in with a favourite pour. Grab a bottle-shaped token and be-gin the journey around the board, answering questions and picking up essential G&T “ingredients” – gin, tonic, ice, botanicals and garnishes – as you go.

There’s no actual drinking involved (a pro or a con, depending on your point of view). But it does pay to have sunk a few gins in the past, as it’ll help with the trivia. Expect questions on gin history (true or false: gin and tonic originated in India?), mixology (the Vesper is the signature drink of which spy?) and brands (what colour is Tanqueray’s bottle?). It’s not only suited to pros, though. Pop culture questions keep gin-appreciating novices interested in the game, too. Cheers to that.

Best: For colourful drinkers

Rating: 9/10

We love a G&T, but of all the drinks out there, it can often look kind of dull. Enter, these eye-catching balloon-shaped glasses, which add a flash of colour to the otherwise transparent serve. Packaged in a set of four, each glass is mouth-blown, and therefore entirely unique.

They’re uniformly jazzy though: think hues of blue, orange, green and purple, with “fizz” bubbles dotting each bowl’s base. Pretty enough to look at when empty, but the real magic happens once filled with liquid. Viewed from the right angle, hues are augmented, so the entire glass seems to glow. Those fizz bubbles appear magnified too, adding real wow-factor to your recipient’s G&T.

Of course, because the glasses are largely clear, it’s still possible to appreciate any crafted garnishes or theatrically large ice cubes. And your giftee can go wild, because there’s plenty of space to include them. At 700ml, each glass is – as coincidence would have it – large enough to hold an entire 70cl bottle of gin. Not, of course, that we’re encouraging that…

Best: For samplers

Rating: 9/10

This testing set describes itself as “the end of buyer’s remorse” and, actually, we have to agree. When you buy a cheap gin it’s not a big deal if you don’t like it, but if you’re splashing out? It’s got to be a winner. And this set of 30ml bottles lets the gin obsessive in your life try before committing to a fancy pour. It includes five top-shelf gins perfect for mixing into G&Ts, sipping straight or splashing into martinis.

The five tipples – Bathtub, Conker, No. 3, Hernö Old Tom and Four Pillars rare dry – are all packaged up in a gift-worthy style, with wax-dipped seals and info cards that give your recipient space to scribble their own tasting notes. And they should have plenty of tasting notes, as each gin included is an entirely different, delicious style. The origins are interesting, too: Hernö is from Sweden, for example, and Four Pillars is Australian. Basically, you’re gifting your loved one a globe-trotting sipping adventure – all for just £19.95.

Best: For G&T fans

Rating: 8/10

Maybe your giftee is all about trying new gins. But have they ever experimented with different tonics? This aptly named “exploration pack” from premium tonic producer Double Dutch will let them customise and tweak that other big ingredient that goes into a G&T.

We named Double Dutch’s Indian tonic water as our favourite tonic water recently, and your giftee will be able to taste why: there’s a 200ml serve included in this case. They’ll also get to sample 10 other tonics and mixers from the range, including cucumber and watermelon, pomegranate and basil, and rhubarb and pine needle. Once they find their favourite Double Dutch mixer, you can order a whole case of that for their next birthday or holiday gift. And, suddenly, that’s a year’s worth of gin-spired gifts, sorted.

Best: For martini fiends

Rating: 9/10

If you didn’t know, Alessandro Palazzi of London’s Dukes makes some of the best martinis on the planet. And, if you didn’t know, we named No.3 Gin as our favourite gin of 2021. So, a bottling that combines Palazzi’s know-how with No.3’s sippable spirit? We can’t imagine anything more tantalising for a martini drinker.

The vesper martini – the most popular martini at Dukes, and a supposed favourite of James Bond – is made with just gin, vodka and vermouth. It sounds simple, but it’s surprisingly hard to get the balance right, and this readymade pour has done all the hard work for you. Just stick it in the freezer for a couple of hours before serving, then pour away. Even drunk neat, minus a twist of orange (as suggested) or an olive, it tastes like it’s been freshly made in a quality bar – creamy, smooth, savoury.

One tip: don’t forget about the bottle in the freezer. At 28.6 per cent, it can actually freeze solid if left for too long. Which, to put it mildly, might put a dampener on cocktail hour.

Best: For Instagram drinkers

Rating: 8/10

Gin, tonic, ice – they’re not the only things that go into making a great G&T. The right garnish can elevate your drink to a whole new level, enhancing existing flavours or bringing out new ones. And if you’ve got a friend who’s into dressing up their serves like they’re at a first-rate bar, this prettily packaged kit will help them do it.

Produced by a family-owned business in Dorset, the set of six jam jars contains a range of herbs and spices for adding colour and zip to cocktails. There are wrinkly juniper berries for enhancing flavour in G&Ts; pink peppercorns for adding gentle fruity heat to brambles; cardamom for highlighting exotic aromas in tropical gins; or dried pea flowers to naturally dye any drink blue and purple. Refills are available at a discounted price, so you can keep your gin-lover topped up over the long-term, too.

Best: For bookworms

Rating: 9/10

Mother’s ruin – we bet you’ve heard the old 18th-century nickname for gin. But do you know how the juniper-flavoured spirit got it? Or, for that matter, how gin came to be in the first place? For your friend who has a fascination with the tipple – or anyone with an interest in London history in general – this engrossing book by Olivia Williams is essential reading.

As we’ve alluded, it’s not just about gin itself, but the societal implications of OTT alcohol consumption in historic Britain, the rise of cocktail culture and the drive towards the “gin-aissance” of the 2010s. A perfect read for devouring alongside over a refreshing G&T.

Best: For slogan fiends

Rating: 8/10

Even when they’re only drinking water, the gin lover in your life can proclaim their affinity for the juniper spirit. All they need is a set of these four slogan glasses, complete with “gin is my tonic” scrawled across the front.

Because they’re on the dainty side – with a slightly inverted rim, similar to a white wine glass – we found these cute glasses to be best-suited to gin drinks using crushed ice or smaller cubes, rather than enormous ones. Gin fizzes, in particular, work a treat. Alternatively, your giftee can use them for tasting gins neat – that shape concentrates aromas better than a straight up-and-down rocks glass.

Best: For DIY types

Rating: 7/10

When your giftee has tried every gin there is on the market, why not encourage them to make one of their own? They don’t need a still. Just a bottle of run-of-the-mill vodka and this little kit, which packs in all the botanicals to produce 10 bottles of simple gin at home.

It’s very easy. Plunk some of the herbs and spices – which include juniper berries, cacao nibs and dried lemongrass – into a jar, add the vodka and away you go. The kit’s included strainer, pipette and brown card labels let you do things with a bit of a professional flair, though in fact you hardly need them to make it work.

It is a tad on the pricey side: you could probably buy a lot of the included kit for cheaper, if you can be bothered to source it all. But who has the time? And besides, what you’re buying here is a fun, nicely packaged, readymade project for the gin-lover in your life. It will give them the chance to build gin-making confidence using reliable instructions. It’s hard to argue with that.

Best: For kitchenware lovers

Rating: 8/10

As any enthusiastic G&T-maker will know, ice is an essential part of the equation. For this drink, you need to go big. Real big. For example, with these extra-large ice cubes. They’ll cool both gin and tonic down quickly, but melt slowly, giving drinkers the best chance to get to the bottom of their glasses before dilution occurs.

But is an ice cube tray gift-worthy? This one is. Not only does it look fabulous, with its confetti-sprinkled exterior. The case is made of silicon, so you can easily pop frozen cubes out; but it’s reinforced with a steel frame. That means it doesn’t wobble on the way to the freezer and keeps its shape as you slide it over that bag of frozen peas. Finally, there’s a lid, so you can keep pure water in – and any funky freezer smells, which might taint the ice, out.

Best: For mixologists

Rating: 8/10

Whether the object of your gifting adores complex cocktails, or just a straight-up G&T, a jigger (spirits measure), is an essential for their home bar. So why not make it a good-looking one? This eye-catching number from Urban Bar is made with premium 18/8 Japanese steel and finished with gleaming copper to make for an on-trend mixology spread. The company claims it’s got a high resistance to corrosion, too, which means the cocktail-making fan in your life should be able to use this for years to come with no worry of rust.

Besides looking great, we loved that the thin central rod makes the jjgger easy to grip, so you can whip up cocktails with ease. And we loved that, despite looking sleek and simple, it’s versatile. The two cups hold up to 25ml and 50ml respectively, but other subtle markings set out smaller measurements. That means this is the only jigger you’ll need to make almost any cocktail to perfection.

The jigger will be next in stock from 31 January.