We think that food gifts are always a good way to go, but especially on Father’s Day. Whether he likes to cook or eat or both, these gourmet gifts for dad will hit the spot for any special papa on your list. There’s something here for every man, from the guy who likes to sip whiskey in Mad Men style to the adventurer who only cooks outdoors. All you need in addition to one of these is a big kiss, a sweet note, and plenty of opportunity for him to eat, drink, cook, and be merry.
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The Smoking Gun from PolyScience is a handheld device that you can pack with wood chips, teas, herbs, spices and whatever else your culinary experimenter might want to use to smoke food or drink. Because the device is small and self-contained, it’s easy to smoke nearly anything, even in small quatities. So move over pork shoulder, it’s time to start playing with smoked cocktails, butter, and fruit—just to name a few. ($99.95, PolyScience)
If a dad you loves is into jerky, you’ll have to check out this DIY Jerky Crafting Kit from Fleishers Craft Butchery. This comes with everything you need to make gourmet jerky except for the meat—and, yes, including the directions and which cuts of meat will work best. ($29.99, Fleishers Craft Butchery)
Draft beer lovers will rejoice when they get their hands on Fizzics, the first portable draft beer system. Compatible with all size cans, bottles, and growlers up to 64 ounces, this turns any old beer into draft beer, enhancing flavor in the process. This lightweight, portable contraption is powered by 4 standard AA batteries and does not require CO2 or nitro cartridges, making it easy to tote camping, to a BBQ, while tailgating, or anywhere else your beer-lover might go. ($169.99, Amazon)
If the beer lover in your life is less about beer-on-the-go and prefers to savor his beer as he would, oh, fancy chocolate, this Craft Beer Pairing Bonbon Collection from Chuao Chocolatier is a great gift. The Arrogant Bastard Ale (ahem) that comes with the gourmet chocolates is said to have a deep malt sweetness balanced by hop bitterness on the finish, which makes it a great accompaniment to the boldly flavored bonbons. ($35.95, Chuao Chocolatier)
Gourmet snacks always make a great gift, but you know what makes an even better one? The gift of gourmet snacks month after month. That’s exactly what you get when you give dad the Snacks Every Month gift from Mouth, our favorite purveyor of indie food and drink. You can choose to send snacks for 3, 6, or 12 months and rest assured that, for that time, a foodie dad you love will be well sated. (Price varies from $50-60/month depending on the duration, Mouth)
I’ve long been a fan of Corkcicle, the brand that pioneered the icicle-shaped wine cork that helps keep open bottles at an even, cool temperature. They’ve since come out with a bunch of great products that stylishly keep drinks—from water to beer—cool, but I’m especially loving the Whiskey Wedge. This clever tools helps you turn a tumbler into a glass that can keep your whisky chilled without watering it down. Perfect. ($17.95, Amazon)
There are lots of food subscription box services out there, but we especially love Quarterly Co for folks who also love following food personalities. Every 3 months, Quarterly sends a special gift package of kitchen tools, ingredients, recipes, and something special from one of their culinary box curators who have included food personality Andrew Zimmern, the founders of Food52, and notable chef Ludo Lefebvre. Their latest curator: world renowned Chef José Andrés. ($75, Quarterly Co)
They may not be a blockbuster gift on their own, but these chewable coffee GO Cubes are a precious find. If you’re looking for a gift that will keep on giving, introduce a dad in your life to these. I think they’d made a great addition to any of these gifts for dads who love camping or, really, to nearly any other gift in our 2016 Father’s Day gift guide. (Six 4-packs for $20.70 , GO Cubes)
Quintin Middleton turned his childhood interest in knives and swords into a career as a respected bladesmith. Based in a small town outside of Charleston, South Caroline, Quintin is using his experience to grow a new venture, Middleton Made Knives, where he makes gorgeous custom-ordered chef’s knives out of high carbon steel. Each knife is custom made to the exact specifications requested by each customer, or you can buy an already crafted kitchen knife or oyster shucker from his online store. (Prices vary from $100-500, Middleton Made Knives)
If your guy is more into seafood than butchery, skip the knives and opt for this collection of shellfish knives at Food52. This oyster, clam, and crab knife set comes in a buttery soft leather wrap to protect these precious tools in between raw bar feasts. ($150, Food52)
We shared this “Father” decanter set from Love & Victory last year and, well, still love it this year. It’s a perfect gift for any dad who likes to keep a neat bar or just fancies himself a Mad Men era kind of guy, with a touch of rock-and-roll too. ($88, Love & Victory)
Nearly everything on our holiday list of gifts for the cook who has everything is still on our wish list, because so much coolness. This Phillips Pasta Maker, though, is in the number one spot. It continues to be well reviewed and is just so fun. Plus, you give it as a gift and fresh pasta comes back to you. That’s almost better than good karma. ($299.95, Williams-Sonoma)
The cadillac of all Father’s Day gifts for any guy who loves to cook outside, the Roccbox portable stone pizza oven is a portable, propane-powered brick oven that can be set up in a semi-permanent spot on your back patio or packed up to take along on your next camping trip. And then gourmet-style pizzas—or anything else that you want to cook in a hot stone oven—anywhere he wants. Genius. ($559, Roccbox)
