treat the coffee junkie in your life with a homemade coffee gift basket this holiday season with the plays well with butter holiday gift basket series! pair a beautiful coffee mug with a bag of locally-roasted coffee beans, a growler of nitro cold brew, & a batch of homemade chai scones & you will be giving your coffee lover the ultimate coffee gift – get ready for a hefty caffeine buzz!

this Recipe for Later!

’tis the season for holiday parties at work, secret santas, family gatherings, & one-too-many wintery cocktails with friends.

& along with these many joyous reasons to get together & celebrate with friends & loved ones during the holiday season comes the need to pull together thoughtful gifts to show gratitude & appreciation for the special people in your life.

i am SO very excited to help ease away some of the gift-giving stress this holiday season with a plays well with butter holiday gift basket series, which continues today with a coffee gift basket that’s packed full of coffee-time treats that will knock the socks off any coffee junkie in your life!

in case you missed the first post in this series, “how to build the ultimate holiday gift basket for your favorite foodie”, check it out here.  i talk about some of my gift basket essentials, as well as the overall approach i take to building a gift basket – which can be boiled down into four simple components:

#1. think about your gift basket recipient: what does your recipient LOVE?  you don’t have to know their life story, but think about some of the things you know that they appreciate & really hone in on them as a theme central to your gift basket.

#2. start with something store-bought: it’s the holidays, we’re all busy, & we definitely don’t need to over-complicate our lives by setting out to diy everything.  think about your gift basket’s theme & choose a couple of things that you know you can simply grab at the store. the key here is choosing a couple of easy things that will tie into the theme perfectly.  keep it simple!

#3. add in something with local or artisanal flare: think about your favorite local treats & how they could tie into your gift basket’s theme.  a couple of hand-selected favorites from your favorite local spots will not only be a great conversation starter when you give your gift basket to your recipient, but will also give your favorite small businesses some great business this holiday season.

#4. & finish with a homemade touch or two: what can YOU add to the mix?  make a small batch of something that you know will kick ass.  add it to your gift basket (& be sure to include the recipe as well!). the time & effort you take to include an extra handmade touch will totally knock the socks off of your giftee & make them feel absolutely spoiled.

today we’re talking a coffee gift basket – the ultimate holiday gift for any lover of all things caffeinated in your life.

i honestly can’t remember when my obsession for coffee started.  at this point, i think i’ve probably been drinking (ahem, chugging) coffee for more than half my life.  75% of the time in college you could find me studying at the starbucks we had on campus.  i have an embarrassingly large collection of coffee mugs hiding in my basement.  one of my favorite ways to spend a saturday afternoon these days is checking out a new local coffee joint with my husband.  whether it’s black coffee or a froofy blended coffee drink, i will try it (& probably love it).

needless to say, i am SO excited to share with you some of the best gifts you could give to the coffee lover in your life this holiday season.

naturally, this coffee gift basket starts with…coffee.

gifting a great locally-roasted coffee is the best local or artisan touch you can add to your coffee gift basket.  (& as a bonus, it’s an awesome way to support your favorite neighborhood coffee shop this holiday season!)

we’re blessed with MANY amazing coffee roasters here in minneapolis, but lately my favorite has been from spyhouse. 

if you’re ever in the twin cities, you MUST check them out.  they have a few locations in my favorite neighborhoods in minneapolis & their spygirl latte (aka lavender & honey latte) is what dreams are made of.  their cafes sell their beans retail & you can also order from their site.

when buying coffee as a gift, it’s best to buy whole beans to best ensure the coffee will be as fresh as possible when it’s enjoyed by your recipient.  before you buy whole beans, though, be sure you know whether your giftee has a coffee grinder at home.  if you don’t know, play it safe & gift ground beans.

in the event that you don’t have a local gem of a coffee shop nearby you, you can always buy from the store.  starbucks beans are great (love their sumatra!) & target’s archer farms coffees are actually pretty amazing, especially for the value (their tanzanian coffee is on point!).

in addition to the coffee, let’s add more coffee to this coffee gift basket…

you’re gifting a coffee lover, after all!

i love the idea of gifting a coffee lover with a couple of different kinds of coffee, & nothing is trendier right now in the coffee world than nitro brewed cold brew coffee. 

your coffee lover is probably already pretty familiar with cold brew coffee.  cold brew is an iced coffee concentrate brewed over a long period of time at room temperature, resulting in a smooth cup of joe with low acidity.  nitro brewed coffee takes cold brew coffee to the next level, infusing cold brew coffee with nitrogen & is served out of a tap like beer.  this results in the creamiest & silkiest coffee imaginable that is almost as rich & satisfying as a stout beer.

nitro cold brew has been popping up in coffee shops & restaurants across minneapolis for a little over a year.  my favorite nitro cold brew is from blackeye roasting co, a roasting company local to the twin cities where you can take nitro cold brew home with you in a growler or a keg.

if you’re gifting nitro cold brew, definitely wait until the last minute to pick it up.  because of the nitrogen, it will last about 2 days in a sealed growler before the flavor starts to turn.

if you don’t have a local spot serving up nitro cold brew nearby you, you can certainly grab a cold brew from the store.  califa cold brew (which comes in a ton of great flavors), chameleon cold brew (their vanilla is ahhhmazing) & stumptown cold brew (i am obsessed with winter cheer!) are all readily available in grocery stores.

next comes a great coffee mug…

with all this coffee, your coffee lover will absolutely need a cute new coffee mug in their coffee gift basket.  a great coffee mug is the perfect store-bought element for your gift basket.  when i look for a coffee mug, i always try to find one has great size & is dishwasher safe.

like this cutie at west elm.  i love the dainty metallic gold hearts!

you could also definitely go the travel mug route.  make sure you choose one that retains heat very well, has a lid & seals up tight.

& finally, a treat.

ask any coffee lover what the best part of their coffee routine is, & they’ll probably say dunkin’ something sweet into their hot cup of joe.

ok, maybe that’s just me.

but seriously, the bitter acidity of a great cup of coffee just begs for something sweet to pair with it, & nothing fits the bill better than a batch of my mini chai scones with maple chai glaze. 

these mini chai scones are rich & crumbly, & their maple chai glaze is sweet & bursts with the flavor from warm chai spices. dunked in coffee, there’s nothing better.  your coffee lover will be floored by this delicious & impressive homemade touch!

if scones aren’t your jam, definitely gift some homemade biscotti or chocolate-dipped almond butter shortbread!

pull all of the elements together for the ultimate coffee gift basket.

are you a coffee lover?  what are the other additions you’d make to a coffee gift basket for the coffee addict in your life?  let me know in the comments below – i would LOVE to chat!

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