Bean Naughty or Nice? with the CoffeeMeister

by Erin Meister, Posted Nov 24th 2009 @ 5:00PM

Vintage coffee-ad -- Santa knows where it's at.

Erin Meister trains baristas for North Carolina-based Counter Culture Coffee and sporadically maintains the blog Meet the Press Pot from her home in New York City. This is part of a series for the caffeine-addicted.

Speaking as a coffee person, I can tell you that buying holiday presents for beanies can be difficult -- we can be very persnickety about what we like ("Oh, gee whiz, thanks for this... tub of pre-ground snicker-doodle-flavored coffee."), and many of us have everything ("Wow, thanks... another set of No. 4 cone filters.").

Read on after the jump for some suggestions to make your French-press fanatical loved ones happy this holiday season.

Sometimes a good bag of beans is just the thing. Photo: Erin Meister.

Have a sibling or a good friend who's barely human before the day's first cup? Help them along by ensuring they're never out of coffee. Many great roasters have a subscription program (ahem!) -- often, like Topeka's PT's Coffee Roasting Company, in three, six and twelve-month options. Curl a notice about the forthcoming bean deliveries up in a charming travel mug, and bingo -- they'll never be a grinch again.

If you know someone whose idea of Sunday-afternoon tinkering is putting temperature controls on a home-espresso machine, encourage the obsession with a personalized coffee tamper from Reg Barber Enterprises. Once you select the base and handle style, you can request "God Shot" be printed on the top of the beautiful (and essential) tool. For a home barista who loves sharing the fruits of caffeinated labor, perhaps Illy's Art Collection cups would come in handy. This year's design was created by Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar, and each one (sold in pairs and sets of six) features an image inspired by his films, including the just-released "Broken Embraces."

Got a real bean geek in the house? Try a gift that says it all such as this cute in-the-know caffeine T-shirt. Or make a less whimsical impression with a beautiful hardbound edition of William H. Uker's classic book All About Coffee to guarantee your gift isn't returned or regifted.

And for the coffee fanatic who already has it all, make a charitable donation to a worthy organization like Coffee Kids, which aims to assist folks in coffee-growing regions get access to better health care and education, and achieve more financial stability and independence.

Caffeinate and show you care, friends!

Filed Under: Edible Gifts, Drink Recipes, Holidays
Tags: christmas, coffee, coffee gifts, coffee presents, coffeemeister, CoffeePresents, edible gifts, gift ideas, hanukkah, thanksgiving, winter