Christmas gifts: how to choose one that will please anyone
Christmas is a season of good moments, and part of it is finding presents that genuinely please the people you give them to. Choosing well is harder than it sounds, especially when you want something a bit out of the ordinary that works for family and for people you know less well. Here are some gift ideas and some practical advice on picking the right one.
Why it pays to think about Christmas presents early
Planning presents ahead of time takes the rush and the stress out of last-minute shopping. It also gives you the room to find something genuinely well matched to the person you are buying for. Order online in the run-up to Christmas and you will often catch offers and special deals too.
Christmas presents: the classics and some newer ideas
When it comes to choosing a Christmas present, the question is usually what will suit the person. The classics, tree decorations, printed mugs, Belgian chocolate, are always popular. But more and more people are after something more personal and more practical, a present that shows a bit of thought.
Christmas coffee: a present with a difference
One of the better ideas for a Christmas present is a Christmas coffee. It is a blend that brings the aromas of the season together: cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg and orange. Coffee in Christmas packaging is a way of giving someone a first-rate product and, with it, a few quiet minutes over a good cup.
Practical Christmas presents: choose something they will use
Plenty of people value a present they can actually use day to day. A stock of freshly roasted coffee, or a good tea, never goes to waste.
Presents for close family and for people you know less well
What to buy usually depends on how close you are to the person. For parents or a partner, go for something personal that reflects what they are into. For wider acquaintances and colleagues, smaller things work: a smart cup, a set of teas, or sweets in Christmas packaging.
Christmas: the moment for a present that says something
Christmas is the right occasion for a present that shows how you feel about someone. Match it to their character and to the circumstances. A Christmas present can be practical or sentimental, and what matters is that it brings some joy and stands for the time you spend together.
Coffee as a Christmas present: the classic that always works
Coffee is one of the most popular Christmas presents there is, and it fits almost any occasion. It turns up as a stocking present and as part of a bigger gift set. Why is it so popular? Because it is universal: most people like to start the day with a good cup. A Christmas coffee goes a step further, with a natural flavour and aroma profile that suits the season.
Christmas coffee: the taste and smell of the season
A Christmas coffee tastes excellent and it brings back the evening by the tree. You can build on the aroma with a natural coffee syrup (cinnamon or gingerbread) or with warming spices such as cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg, which add depth. As a Christmas present it holds up even with the fussiest palates.
Why Christmas coffee is a practical present
A practical present is a good way of showing you know what someone actually needs. Christmas coffee is not only a nice thing to receive, it is an invitation to spend part of the holiday together over a cup. It also looks good in its Christmas packaging and is ready to hand over, which saves you wrapping something at eleven o’clock on Christmas Eve.
How to choose the right coffee as a present
A few things are worth checking before you buy:
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Type of coffee. Find out whether they prefer ground, whole bean or instant. You can also go for a seasonal flavoured blend with cinnamon, vanilla or chocolate.
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Country of origin. Coffees from different countries taste distinctly different. Ethiopia, Peru and Brazil all offer very different profiles.
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Christmas packaging. Look at how it is packed. A coffee in Christmas packaging looks smart and is ready to give as it is.
Christmas coffee: more than a drink
Our Colbergcoffee Christmas Coffee is more than a drink, it is a small ritual that brings Christmas into the house. The beans come from mountain farms in Peru (Chanchamayo HB) and are roasted fresh by the Polish seaside, at our family roastery in Kołobrzeg, which is what keeps the quality high and the aroma intense. A medium roast brings out sweet chocolate and roasted almonds, exactly right for a winter morning. Give it as a Christmas present and you are giving more than a product: you are giving someone time to sit down with a cup of something worth drinking. It works in bean-to-cup machines, in a moka pot and in a French press, so any coffee drinker can get on with it. The packaging, with a label designed by Roksana Machowska, is made for giving.
What to put alongside the coffee
To turn it into a proper gift set, add one or two small things:
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Belgian chocolate, which sits well against the aroma of a Christmas coffee and adds sweetness.
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A printed cup, a practical extra they will keep using for years.
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A Christmas tea, as an alternative to the coffee or alongside it, good for winter evenings.
Christmas coffee as a present for parents and grandparents
For parents or grandparents, think about a set that tastes good and carries some feeling with it. Coffee can stand for time spent around the table and for family gatherings. Add chocolates or biscuits and you have a present that will get a smile.
How to build a Christmas gift set
Ready-made gift sets are one of the most popular options, and they are easy to adapt to the person. A set can be built from things people use every day: coffee, tea, chocolate, kitchen bits. Putting together a personalised set to match someone’s taste is a good idea in itself.
A coffee gift set: classic and elegant
Christmas coffee with a cup, a flavoured syrup or some biscuits makes an excellent Christmas present. Pick a blend with a pronounced spiced aroma and it fits the season neatly. Think about the packaging too: it is what people see first.
A tea gift set: made for winter evenings
For tea drinkers, a set of different flavoured teas works well. A Christmas tea usually carries notes of cinnamon, orange, clove and vanilla, which gives it a character of its own. Add honey, lemon or a travel mug and you have a present built for a quiet winter evening.
Christmas presents for the people closest to you
Go by what they like and what they are interested in. For parents or grandparents a set of teas or a Christmas coffee with a distinctive aroma is a safe bet. Sweets work as an addition: Belgian chocolate, biscuits, candied fruit. For anyone who values function over sentiment, kitchen kit does the job, a good travel mug for instance, which keeps a drink hot for hours.
Gift sets for a partner: the romantic option
If you are buying for your other half, go for something with a bit of feeling in it. A Christmas set with coffee, chocolate and a personalised mug is spot on. Add a card or a photo of a day you both remember and the present turns personal. It is a good way of giving someone something that will remind them of your time together, particularly over an evening with a hot drink.
Last-minute Christmas sets: what to pick when time has run out
Sometimes the presents get bought at the last minute. In that case go for something universal that is both smart and useful. A Christmas set with coffee or tea is a quick, safe choice. Plenty of shops sell sets that already come in Christmas packaging, which saves you the wrapping.
Tree decorations as an extra
Adding a tree decoration to a gift set is an easy way of putting a bit of colour in the box. Baubles, lights or hanging ornaments are small but welcome additions to the main present, and they tie the whole set to Christmas.
Practical Christmas presents that suit everyone
A practical present is one that gets used. It is useful and it shows you paid attention to what the person needs. Think kitchen kit: printed cups, travel mug sets, and smaller things such as a good tea or sweets in Christmas packaging.
Gift set ideas for children
For children, go for something that will make them happy and still be useful. A set with a fruit tea, a mug with a Christmas motif and something sweet, chocolates or gingerbread, works well. Add a few tree decorations they can hang up themselves on Christmas Eve.
Ideas for children:
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A sweet set: chocolates, gingerbread, a small printed mug.
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Tree decorations: baubles, lights, hanging ornaments in Christmas colours.
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A hot chocolate set: the drink mix, a travel mug, marshmallows.
Last-minute presents: quick ideas that work
There is not always time for a long search. When there is not, stick to what you know works and can buy online for quick collection or delivery: ready-made gift sets, gift cards, and small things in Christmas packaging that are easy to personalise.
Christmas presents for people you know less well
Buying for wider acquaintances is harder, because you do not always know what they like. Go universal: tea, coffee or a box of sweets. A smart travel mug also works, for winter walks or for the office.
Christmas sets that come ready wrapped
Ready-made Christmas sets are the answer if you want something that looks good and is practical at the same time. Ours come with coffee, tea, chocolate and kitchen bits, already in Christmas packaging. You can hand one over as it is, which helps a lot when you are shopping late.
Our gift sets: have a look at what we have put together
We have a wide choice of Christmas gift sets that work as Christmas presents. There are classic coffee and tea sets and more upmarket ones built around premium products. Every set is carefully packed in Christmas packaging, so it is ready to give.
The right Christmas present: matching it to the person
Start with what they like and what they are interested in. A present that has been thought about, one that fits their taste, their way of living and what they actually need, is the one that works. Ask yourself a couple of questions first. Do they drink coffee or tea? Do they want something practical, or something more of a treat? Those two answers will get you most of the way there.
Presents for coffee and tea drinkers
Coffee and tea are among the most chosen Christmas presents. Both are universal and suit most tastes. For someone who cares about flavour and aroma, a Christmas blend in beans or ground is an excellent present. A set of teas in different flavours works just as well for long winter evenings.
Example gift sets:
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For a coffee drinker: Christmas coffee, a printed cup, a flavoured syrup.
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A tea set: Christmas tea, a smart tin, a few sweets.
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The upmarket set: a whole bean blend, a new moka pot, a ceramic mug.
Practical Christmas presents that please anyone
With a practical present, go for something that earns its place on the worktop. Travel mugs, cups, a kit for making matcha: all of them work for close family and for people you know less well. Presents like that are useful, and they show you thought about what the person needs.
A Christmas present for parents
For parents, go for something that lets them enjoy a bit of time together. A Christmas coffee, a set of teas with chocolate, or mugs with a personalised print are all spot on. Adding something small, biscuits or gingerbread in Christmas packaging, finishes it off.
Christmas presents for children
Children like presents that are fun and edible. A set with chocolate, biscuits and a few tree decorations they can hang up themselves is a good bet. Add small extras such as a toy or a book with a Christmas theme.
Gift ideas for your other half
If you want to give your partner something out of the ordinary, go for a present that will remind them of your time together. A Christmas set with coffee and a personalised mug, a card and a photo of the two of you makes for a present people keep. Add something sweet, Belgian chocolate or biscuits, to round it off.
All our coffee and tea gifts are in our online coffee shop at Colbergcoffee.pl, and in person at the coffee shop and Colbergcoffee café in Kołobrzeg.
