Julius Meinl
Blog
Festive season: 9 gift ideas for the coffee lovers
We all have that one person in our lives that is so obsessed with coffee that they wear a t-shirt with a line like, ‘I only need coffee on days ending in ‘y’ printed on it. They’re not just in love with the drink, but they’re also in love with the craft of making coffee in all its glorious variations. Coffee is part of who they are.
With the festive season coming up involving lots of gift giving, we thought we’d give you a little guide on how to buy for those constantly caffeinated coffee nerds.
We asked baristas what they would buy for a friend that mutters things like ‘light roast’ in their sleep – here’s what they came up with.
1. A brewing gooseneck kettle for pour over coffee
One of the gloriously simple, and increasingly popular, brewing methods amongst the diehard coffee crowds is the pour over.
While we could write essays on the intricacies of this coffee craft, pour over essentially involves pouring (go figure) water over freshly ground coffee and extracting the coffee flavours into a cup, or serving vessel.
While many say a gooseneck kettle is just paraphernalia that completes a coffee hipster’s get-up, baristas and those who seriously know good coffee consider it a crucial instrument to pull off the pour over method properly.
Using these quirky looking kettles ensure you have pour control throughout the process.
You’ll catch most baristas using an electric pour-over kettle, however, if you’re thinking of a more budget-friendly present (we’re not judging) than your coffee nerd will equally appreciate a stainless steel stove top kettle.
2. Aeropress coffee maker
Most coffee nerds are fans of the Aeropress as it delivers coffee with a clean taste that possesses clearly defined flavours.
By giving them an Aeropress, you’ll be saying, ‘I get you and your coffee obsession, and I’m here to support you in your wild and brew-tiful journey.’
A little bit of research online will lead you to the latest trending Aeropress on the market.
3. A voucher for their favourite cafe
If your coffee nerd friend/ lover/ relative is the type that prefers to outsource the whole coffee making process to a third party, aka. a talented barista in their favourite cafe, then why not give them a voucher for their go-to cafe?
They’ll think of you every time they get a coffee there. Plus, if you want to level up the whole present, you could gift the voucher packed into a coffee to-go cup.
4. A digital coffee scale
This one's for the diehard coffee nerds, the ones that spend hours in Youtube rabbit holes watching coffee making videos.
The craft of coffee requires the use of a scale surprisingly often. You’ll see top notch baristas measuring coffee like a baker measures a cup of flour.
When you’re deep into the coffee game, accuracy, consistency and experimentation are important, and all require the use of a scale.
That’s why your coffee nerd will get excited by what may seem to you a boring present.
5. A portable espresso maker
Nobody wants to encounter a coffee nerd that is away from home – and therefore away from all of their coffee making gear – and good quality coffee is nowhere to be found. There should be support groups for those who have witnessed such a scenario.
So, by buying your coffee nerd a portable espresso maker – yep, thankfully there’s such a thing – you won’t only be making them happy, you’ll also be saving others from experiencing the horror of the scenario described above.
6. A good looking (and feeling) mug
Never has drinking coffee been so pretty and this is largely thanks to the variety of beautiful cups being produced out there. The choice of cup that you drink your coffee out of cannot be underestimated. The tactile features of a cup can take the coffee drinking experience to a whole new level.
Whether it’s a delicate porcelain cup, a temperature-control ceramic cup, a reusable coffee cup or a double-walled titanium mug, buy your coffee nerd their new favourite cup to drink their coffee from.
7. Coffee Liqueur
With the revival of interest in cocktail mixology and the popping up of hip cocktail bars all over the world, liqueur – similar to coffee – is going through a renaissance.
A number of coffee liqueurs have sprung up all over the place in recent years with most of them being poured from bottles sporting some very pretty aesthetics and branding.
Considering your coffee nerds' palate preferences, gifting them a craft coffee liqueur makes a lot of sense.
This is a thoughtful and unexpected gift option for those coffee nerds that already have most of the coffee gear in this list.
8. A vacuum sealed tin or container to store their coffee in
You can do two things to upset a coffee nerd – play with the settings on their coffee grinder and leave their coffee beans out where they are exposed to their greatest arch-enemies – light and air.
Beans that have been looked after and sealed up to the very moment when they’re ground and brewed are those that make the most flavoursome coffee.
Your coffee nerd knows this, and buying them a vacuum sealed coffee bean canister will definitely prove to them how thoughtful you are and how much you care for them (and their beans).
9. Coffee cupping voucher
Coffee nerds like to be around their own tribe. They come alive when they’re chatting with people that get what they’re talking about when they mention words like ‘batch brewing,’ and ‘red eye’ etc.
One place where your coffee nerd will feel like they’re amongst their people is at a coffee cupping session (If you’re not aware, this is like a wine tasting, but with coffee).
Check out online where coffee cupping sessions are happening in your city and get your coffee nerd a ticket to the next one.
This might also interest you
Blog
Coffee Nerds 101: Brewing methods for the coffee lovers
05.10.2021
You’re so deep into the coffee-verse that just a cup of coffee can mean so many things, and what kind of coffee it will be is largely defined by what brewing method you use. Here are 5 of the most popular methods, summarised.
Blog
Coffee Nerds 101: Plant-based milks in the coffee world
28.10.2021
Plant-based milks are no longer just alternatives born out of necessity, but they’re now becoming a preference for many who simply like the taste. Read all about it here.
Blog
Coffee Nerds 101: 7 basic facts about the little brown bean
05.10.2021
Introducing the first instalment of our post series, ‘Coffee Nerds 101,’ a series of posts where we’ll be taking big slurps at the science and art of coffee from every possible angle.