The story below is a preview from our November/December 2024 issue. For more stories like it, Subscribe Today. Thank you!
Talented local artisans, makers and gourmet shops offer a range of exclusive, local food and beverage subscriptions, upcycled goods and unique culinary collaborations, perfect for gifting the discerning foodie in your life this holiday season.
Deciding on gift ideas for the discerning foodie in your life can sometimes feel like a tall order. But thanks to Roanoke’s breadth of talented food and beverage producers, artists and makers, and gourmet shops, you’re guaranteed to deliver a serious dose of holiday cheer. From exclusive bottle subscriptions to upcycled goodies to dream collaborations, these are our picks for a delicious season of gifting and receiving—and treating yourself.
Courtesy of Blindhouse Beer
Blindhouse Beer
MEMBERS ONLY
Forget jelly of the month club. Enroll the beverage connoisseurs in your orbit in one of these sip-worthy subscriptions.
Blindhouse Beer: “Laurel” Bottle Club
Founder-brewer Tyler Wert has earned a loyal following for his funky farmhouse ales and with Laurel, Blindhouse Beer’s first-ever bottle club subscription, fans can get exclusive access to limited edition bottles. Membership (six months or 12 months) includes two bottles of each release per month, like refermentations with local fruit, herbs and flowers and a selection of favorite single barrels. Other benefits include exclusive glassware and a tote bag, an annual member event, 10% off all taproom draft and packaged product and one free tasting for a member and up to three guests.
Courtesy of Asher’s Coffee
Asher’s Coffee
Asher’s Coffee: Coffee Subscription
Founder Jacob Asher Galbraith has grown Asher’s Coffee from a farmers market staple to a downtown brick-and-mortar, but the small-batch, locally roasted beans ethos remains paramount. A one-month coffee subscription includes a 12-oz. bag every week. You can opt for the same roast each week or mix and match favorites like Muddy Honey, an extra-caffeinated breakfast blend, Blue Sky Pie, a jammy light roast or Cuddly Llama, a low-acid medium roast. Drop by the shop on the second Saturday of every month for a tasting session to discover your new favorite roast.
Crystal Spring Grocery: Wine Club
Whether you choose a two- or six-bottle-per-month membership, CSG’s wine club promises to deliver an assortment of expertly curated wines. Each month’s selection comes with tasting notes and recommended pairings for each bottle, plus perks like five percent off half cases and 10% off full cases, available to mix and match from the shop’s entire wine inventory. There are three tiers available, including Bangers, introductory, easy drinking wines; Deep Cuts, general manager Devon Steiner’s current crushes featuring small production wineries and non-traditional varietals; and Posh, bottles destined to impress friends or age in your cellar.
Courtesy of Write to Your Mom
Handmade paper from Write to Your Mom
UPCYCLED GOODIES
We love it when beautiful, one-of-a-kind gifts also happen to make a positive impact on food waste and the environment.
Write to Your Mom: Handmade Paper
Shannon Settlemyre has always loved working with her hands and believes that writing letters is the ultimate way to show someone you’re thinking of them and share joy. Her handmade paper is made from a pulp derived from shredded paper, which sometimes includes paper clippings from Appalachia Press and Breadcraft pastry box liners. She loves experimenting with produce scraps; she creates natural dyes from the likes of onion peels and avocado pits (which yields a pretty pink hue) and creates patterns using things like corn cobs and cabbage leaves. The one-of-a-kind stationery is beautifully packaged and packed with plant-able wildflower seeds.
Sun and Spruce Soaps: Scrubs & Soaps
Many of Sun and Spruce Soaps’ bars smell (almost) good enough to eat, and those made with spent RND espresso grounds are no exception. The grounds give soaps like apple butter, vanilla latte and honey almond a subtle exfoliating quality, and impart a luxurious lather and invigorating aroma to body scrubs like the newly released coffee and brown sugar whipped foaming scrub. Owners Krissy and Wes Reynolds also use Yard Bull Meats beef tallow to add moisturization to their shampoo bars including scents such as honey oats and milk, rosemary mint, rainbow sorbet and herbal breeze.
Courtesy of Sun and Spruce
Sun and Spruce soap
FOODIE COLLABORATIONS
Roanoke’s food scene is rich with independent foodie entrepreneurs and makers, so when they team up, the result is almost just too good.
Big Lick Exotix x Spice Titan: Honey Ranch Blend
Antwan Fizer, owner of Big Lick Exotix, knew his assortment of international snacks would lend itself to local foodie collaborations. He sought out Matt Rose of Spice Titan to create a blend that would complement savory-leaning snack and they both loved the idea of ranch. Rose uses a super-fine buttermilk powder base, combines it with a duo of garlic and onion powders, then mixes in honey powder, dried dill and chives and finishes it with a pinch of black pepper and pink Himalayan salt. The tangy, sweet and garlicky flavors make it ideal for sprinkling on popcorn, chips, snack mixes and even chicken. Rose loves to combine it with Spice Titan’s Home Base blend, mix it into sour cream, then chill to make a slamming French onion dip.
Courtesy of Spice Titan
Big Lick Exotix x Spice Titan’s Honey Ranch Blend
Fermented Fire Hot Sauce x the River and Rail: Riveracha
When chef Tyler Thomas faced a sriracha shortage at The River and Rail, he tapped his friends at Fermented Fire Hot Sauce to dream up a replacement. For the winning formula, dubbed Riveracha, founder Jesse Feldberg fermented fresno chiles with carrots and loads of garlic, then processed it with apple cider vinegar for tang and a touch of brown sugar for a subtle sweetness. Feldberg says Riveracha is excellent on eggs, over rice bowls and stir fries, swirled in aioli and other dipping sauces and any savory dish needing an extra kick or flavor punch. The label also features local artwork by Erica Cundiff of Blue Honey Rose.
Want to discover even more great gift ideas for the foodies in your life? Check out the latest issue, now on newsstands, or see it for free in our digital guide linked below!
The story above is a preview from our November/December 2024 issue. For more stories like it, Subscribe Today. Thank you!