Seasonal Spirits with John Henry

Take a toast to the new year with some special spirits that make great holiday gifts. Spirits and wine expert John Henry joins us with some the gift of spirits. His recommendations include: Glenmorangie Signet Gift Set, Coole Swan Gift Set, Basket of Sicilian Goodies, Palm Beer, St Germain Gift Set, Palmes d’Or and Fantinel

PRODUCT DETAILS AND VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP...

1. Glenmorangie Signet Gift Set, $44.99, www.glenmorangie.com
The good folks at Glenmorangie Distillers in the Scottish Highlands have really taken it over the top on this one. Great gift for the malt lover in your family, especially for those Johnny Walker fans itching to step up.

2. Coole Swan Gift Set, $29.99, www.cooleswan.com
This is a very special Irish Dairy made from fresh cream, single malt whiskey, Ivory Coast chocolate and Madagascar vanilla. Sensational in hot chocolate, or dark coffee and most sublime perhaps when served ice cold on it's own

3. Basket of Sicilian Goodies, AVERNA $32.99, www.avernausa.com, www.diaploselects.com
This gift basket available online at DiPalo Select's contains everything you need to set up the perfect Sicilian feast:
Pecorino Pepato - A hard sheep's milk cheese with peppercorns
Piacentinu Ennese - a semi-hard sheep's milk cheese studded with peppercorns and flavored with Saffron. It is bright yellow, which is really beautiful
Extra Virgin Olive Oil - a very high quality monocultivar (single variety of olive) oil from one producer in Sicily. It tastes nutty and buttery and herbacious.
Capers - special salt cured capers from the island of pantelleria
Modica Chocolate - chocolate made only in the town of modica in sicily. made in the ancient Aztec tradition which was brought to Sicily by the Spaniards (who brought the chocolate and the know-how from Mexico). Comes in Vanilla, Cinnamon, and Chili pepper, as well as plain dark chocolate. It has a really interesting texture. It is granular--you can see the grains of sugar in the chocolate.
Add a bottle of Averna and make some Sicilian Triangles.

4. Palm Beer, $9.99 for a six pack, www.palmbreweries.com
Belgium's leading Amber Ale. Fantastic beer paired with holiday faire, whether goose or guacamole. Great gift for the beer lover yow. Just recently introduced in the states in bottles. Available at Gourmet Garage locally and at Gary's and other fine stores.

5. St Germain Gift Set, $29.99, www.stgermain.fr
A great product for the wine or cocktail lover in your family or circle of friends. Artisan French liqueur made from elderflowers. Great in bubbly or any cocktails

6. Palmes d'Or, $99, www.feuillatte.com
Palmes d'Or is the tete du cuvee from the Nicholas Feulliatte house of champagne. The bottle is reflective of the black pearls which a an enchanting woman wore who Nicholas sought courtship with. Don't you love the gold "diva packaging" the gift bottle comes in this year? Great product and at a reasoanble price for a tete du cuvee. Available at Syosset Wine Cellars and Morrells here in NYC.

7. Fantinel , $14.99 - $22, www.fantinel.com
Prosecco style sparkling wines are a wonderful and affordable alternative to Champagne. Reasonably priced at $14.99, Fantinel Prosecco is pale straw in color with light and elegant aromas of fruit and honeysuckle followed by crisp flavors of citrus, melon, and pear.
Fantinel Rosè - Brut (SRP $22.00) is an elegant Pinot Noir and Chardonnay cuvee. Produced using grapes from the winery's selected vines and careful processing techniques, this sparkling wine exhibits fine and persistent perlage that results in a unique, creamy consistency. Blush coloring with intense aromas of ripe fruit and a hint of bread crust is followed by notes of lush red fruit and perfectly balanced acidity on the palate. Both are superior examples of sparkling wines from Northern Italy, a region which is responsible for growing some of the best white wine grapes in Europe.

8. Gift Basket, $99
Q tonic, Pom Wonderful, Shrubb and the Cape North Vodka.