2 weeks Ago
No matter whether you’ve been naughty or nice this year, here come the holidays. If you’re looking for last-minute gifts, there’s still time, especially if you order, or pick up, locally. Remember that you can still get spirits or wine delivered directly to your home, under certain conditions.
Luckily for us, a few local producers have really stepped up to the holiday plate. Sausalito Liquor Co. has introduced a new product, Hanson of Sonoma is re-releasing its annual seasonal product, Novato’s King Floyd’s Bar Provisions is packaging a few of its products together and Cork Pops, also of Novato, brings it all home with an internationally acclaimed “legacy” product.
Any and/or all are sure to make great gifts for the cocktail and wine enthusiasts out there. Shop local has become a trendy catchphrase, but sometimes shopping local is the absolute best thing you can do for yourself, for the community and, perhaps most importantly, for the product. Happy holidays! • Sausalito Liquor Co.
’s Unsinkable Chocolate Liqueur , 48 proof, $33.99 Sure, they make two whiskeys and a gin, but a chocolate liqueur? If a recent tasting at a Marin History Museum event is any indicator, Sausalito Liquor Co.’s Scott Jampol is on to something.
Those history buffs literally surged toward the tasting table when he mentioned chocolate liqueur. Jampol’s newly released chocolate liqueur is more akin to milk chocolate rather than dark chocolate, having a rich mouthfeel, a lighter color, a lighter body and less bitterness. It’s perfect for a chocolate martini, or a chocolate Manhattan — paired with either Unsinkable whiskey — if you want to keep it all in the family.
Beautiful packaging also makes for a beautiful gift, so wrapping it would be optional — and so would be giving it. For more information and to purchase, go to sausalitoliquor.com .
• Hanson of Sonoma’s Organic Espresso Vodka , 80 proof, $40 For many vodka makers, flavored vodka is a way to increase profits, because when you lower the proof — allowed only in flavored vodka — you actually increase the volume of product, and if you can sell it for the same price, so much the better. That’s not the case with Hanson of Sonoma, which has a tasting room in Sausalito. This vodka is a full 80 proof, it’s organic — fully organic, even the Hawaiian espresso — and it’s delicious.
The fresh flavor of coffee shines through without added refined sugar — none in fact, which is unusual for flavored vodkas. Put some of that morning cup of joe into your holiday evenings. It’s excellent in an espresso martini or paired with hot chocolate for a mochaccino you simply will not forget.
It’s naughty and nice in one package, and we like that. For more information and to purchase, go to hansonofsonoma.com .
• King Floyd’s Old Fashioned Bitters Gift Set , $74.99 Novato’s King Floyd’s creates a whole line of aromatic bitters, everything from cardamom to grapefruit. But for the holiday purists, and old-fashioned drinkers — pun intended — tried and true always renders the best gifts.
Handsomely packaged in a fabulously designed wood box — design courtesy of West Marin musician Darren Nelson — the three-bottle lineup — aromatic, orange and cherry cacao — is about as classic as one can get. Combine the first two with sugar and you’re three-fourths of the way to an old fashioned. Each bottle is 3.
5 ounces and, if one is weak-willed, the set can always be broken up for stocking stuffers. Hey, two — or one — is better than none, right? Other sets are available with different bitters and in different quantities, starting at $39.99, proving that just because you’re bitter doesn’t mean you can’t also be happy.
For more information and to purchase, go to kingfloyds.com . • Cork Pops Legacy Wine Opener , $34 Worried about opening that old bottle of cabernet for your holiday family feast? Will you be able to get that cork out intact? Or will you have to consume your family heirloom with a layer of cork dust? The Cork Pops Legacy Wine Opener can fix that problem for you.
It works by using a needle-like syringe, inserted through the cork, which delivers a short blast of inert gas, pushing the cork out in one piece with a noticeable “pop.” It’s ingenious and it works for professionals or novices alike. While you might not necessarily need it for every bottle of wine, when you find yourself confronted with that problem cork on that old bottle of red wine or that vintage port, you will certainly appreciate having it around, and so will your guests.
The “Legacy” version of the Cork Pops contains a foil cutter and a safety mechanism, making it easier to handle than the Cork Pops’ original version. Either way, it’s a gift worth giving or getting. Each cartridge opens about 70 bottles of wine, meaning that you might just be set for all of the holidays to come.
For more information and to purchase, go to corkpops.com . Jeff Burkhart is the author of “Twenty Years Behind Bars: The Spirited Adventures of a Real Bartender, Vol.
I and II,” the host of the Barfly Podcast on iTunes (as seen in the NY Times) and an award-winning bartender at a local restaurant. Follow him at jeffburkhart.net and contact him at jeffbarflyIJ@outlook.
com.
