Christmas Gifts for Him

Start with what he drinks

A bottle he would not buy himself is the safest gift here, because his own taste has already made the decision for you.

• Luxury Finest with Whisky Hamper, $269.95. For the whisky drinker who has opinions. The olives, tapenade and truffle chips alongside are meant to be eaten with a dram, not after it.
• Luxury Finest with Gin Hamper, $249.95. Gin is the one spirit people still like being introduced to, so it lands even when you are guessing.
• Luxury Finest with Château Tanunda Grand Barossa Shiraz Hamper, $129.95. A named Barossa shiraz at a price that works for a brother-in-law as easily as a client.
• Gourmet Treats with Red Wine Hamper, $69.95. The entry point, and the one to send when there are six names on the list and a limit on each.

If you already know the category, go straight to the spirit hampers, the red wine hampers or the craft beer hampers. Enjoy responsibly.

Then what he cooks with

For the man who does the cooking, the gift that gets used is an ingredient or a tool rather than an ornament. These come out of the drawer again in February.

• Gourmet BBQ Hamper, $119.95. Rubs, sauces and snacks for the person who has claimed the barbecue as their territory. No alcohol in it, which makes it an easy office gift.
• eat.art Carnivore Club all in one pack, $49.95. A complete rub and cure kit in a single pack, so there is nothing else to buy before he can use it.
• eat.art Smokehouse all in one pack, $39.95. The cheapest good gift on this page and the right answer to a kris kringle limit.
• eat.art Gin Botanicals Giftset, $49.95. For the gin drinker who has started making his own tonic. Botanicals rather than another bottle.
• Dreamfarm Clongs, $49.95. Tongs that sit up off the bench on their own, which sounds trivial until you have used them next to a hot grill.
• Olive wood bread knife in a wooden box, $59.95. Reads as considered because it arrives in its own box, then stays on the counter.

At Christmas, specifically

Three things change in December. Office exchanges usually carry a stated limit, so the $39.95 to $59.95 end of this page is the place to look rather than the hampers. Anything going to a workplace has to land before the shutdown date, not before Christmas Day. And a hamper with a bottle in it is the wrong call when you do not know whether he drinks, in which case the barbecue hamper and the cook's kit do the same job without raising it.

For the timing, see the Christmas delivery cut-off dates. For a wider seasonal choice, the Christmas hamper range and Christmas hampers for foodies sit alongside this page. Orders placed before 12pm on a weekday are dispatched the same day from our Corio, VIC warehouse, tracked with Australia Post.

Questions about gifts for him

What do you buy a man who says he does not want anything?

Something consumable, so there is nothing to store and nothing to display. Food and drink he already buys, in a better version than he would pick for himself, is the one gift that cannot become clutter.

What is a good Christmas gift for him under $50?

The eat.art Smokehouse pack at $39.95 and the Carnivore Club pack at $49.95 read as a proper gift at that figure rather than a token.

Is a hamper a good work Christmas gift for a male colleague?

Yes, provided it suits being opened in front of other people. Pick one without a bottle unless you know he drinks, address it to him by name rather than to the company, and send it before the office winds down.

What if he does not drink?

The Gourmet BBQ Hamper and the cook's kit above stand on their own, and the wider non-alcoholic hamper range is built as whole gifts rather than a bottle quietly removed.