Holiday Gift Guide 2021

Holiday season is in full swing, and although Hanukkah has already come and gone, it’s not too late to shop for holiday gifts for the coffee drinkers in your life. We’ve compiled some of our favorite coffee tools in budget and investment options, so whether you’re looking to splurge on your auntie or just get a little something for your office secret Santa, we’ve got you covered.

Pourover: 

Step one to making dope coffee at home: Small batches, brewed fresh. Making pourovers at home might sound intimidating, but thanks to our brew guides and ample help on the internet, anyone can learn how to brew a great pourover at home.

Budget: Hario V60

Starting at less than $10, Hario offers their drippers in a variety of materials, prices, and colors, so you have options no matter your budget. We recommend ceramic (who wants a blog post about heat retention?) but if plastic, metal, or glass catch your eye, Hario offers those as well. Excellent cup quality with an easy learning curve, a V60 is a perfect pairing with a gooseneck kettle to get anyone started making baller coffee at home.

Investment: Hario V60

Okay, you caught us. We really like V60s.

Kettle:

Every V60-loving home brewer would be stoked to unwrap a new gooseneck kettle. Available in stovetop or electric versions, the long, thin pour spout offers maximum control over speed and agitation of the brew, and let’s be honest: They look cool.

Budget: Hario Buono V60 Drip Kettle

Classic, affordable, and durable as HECK, the Hario kettle is the people’s kettle. Seriously, these things last forever.

Investment: Fellow Products Stagg EKG+ 

Eminently instagrammable, you’ll definitely recognize design-driven Fellow Products from your favorite coffee influencer. The Stagg has a really nice handle balance, which makes it easy to pour slowly, and the EKG+ not only has variable temperature control, but is Bluetooth enabled so you can start your water heating while you’re still wrapped in a burrito of blankets in the morning. (Bonus points to Fellow for having replacement parts available for handles, lids, and more. Better for the earth and your wallet!)

Scale:

If someone in your life is just getting started with brewing at home, whether it’s pourover, french press, or anything else, one of the first things they’ll need is a scale that’s accurate to the gram. 

Budget: CJ4000 Digital Scale

Accurate to 0.5 grams and with a capacity of up to 4000g, the CJ4000 (or J-scale as it’s affectionately known) is one of the most reliable and accessible scales on the market. It has an AC adapter but also takes AA batteries, and will withstand thousands of hours of use. (Bonus points: the way the display is situated makes this scale amazing for baking, too!)

Investment: Acaia Pearl

What can we say about the Acaia Pearl? Ubiquitous to coffee bars around the world, accurate to 0.1 gram, capacity up to 2000g, the Acaia Pearl is the scale. An integrated timer reduces clutter around your coffee station, and a flow-rate indicator can help you learn to brew better in real time. The Pearl is ultimate.

Grinder:

The best thing anyone can do to up their coffee game is to grind their coffee fresh. Even if your intended recipient is in love with their decades-old automatic coffee maker, freshly ground coffee will bring the quality of their coffee experience from questionable to awesome.

Budget: Hario Ceramic Coffee Mill Mini

Yes, grinding by hand is a lot of work. Yes, triceps will burn. Yes, the family might roast you (or your gift recipient) much harder than your coffee was roasted because you’re getting swole for the sake of your coffee habits. But fresh ground coffee for under $40? Worth it.

Investment: Anything from Baratza

Baratza has a grinder for everyone from “I just want my coffee to taste better” to “I got a home espresso machine!” The company’s ethos is focused on repairability to reduce waste and save you money in the long run, and we have yet to meet a Baratza grinder that’s too far gone to fix. So if your dad keeps asking why the coffee tastes better at your house, get him started with a Baratza grinder of his own!

Storage:

Whether or not your intended gift recipient has a grinder, the next best thing they can do for coffee freshness is a good storage container. Oxygen is the enemy of coffee freshness, and an airtight container will keep coffee tasting better, longer-- whole or ground!

Budget: OXO Good Grips POP Containers

Available in a huge variety of sizes and shapes, OXO is a great choice for coffee storage, tea storage, or anything you want to keep airtight and safe.

Investment: Fellow Products Atmos Canister

Vacuum sealable, the ally of freshness, and honestly it just looks great on your countertop.

Travel Cup:

As life gets back to normal and we find ourselves on the go, nothing beats having a great insulated cup to keep your coffee hot or cold as you’re out in the world. Plus, if you didn’t brew at home, lots of cafes offer discounts for bringing your own reusable cup!

Budget: Klean Kanteen

We love ourselves a Klean Kanteen around here. Affordable, seals well, and practically indestructible, a Klean Kanteen will be at your side for as long as you can manage to not lose it.

Investment: Ember

The fanciest of the fancy, Ember mugs are raising the bar for temperature controlled coffee cups. Bluetooth enabled so you can set the exact temperature of your drink, battery life up to three hours on the go or all day with its charging coaster, Ember is the object of desire for every parent sipping hours-old, ice cold coffee (not that we would know anything about that, hint hint.) 

Happy Holiday season to you and yours from all of us at Three Keys Coffee!