Gifts for Cocktail Lovers and Home Mixologists: Cocktail Spices Spice Drops

In short: A clever gift for a cocktail lover or home mixologist is a set of flavours that go straight into a drink. The Cocktail Spices Collection holds four Spice Drops, Mint, Lime Zest, Lemongrass and Cinnamon, for mojitos, gin and tonics and mocktails with no muddling or steeping. Spice Drops are alcohol free, each 5ml bottle holds around 150 drops, and they keep for up to three years.

Home mixologists like to experiment, and the best cocktail gifts give them something new to play with. The Cocktail Spices Collection goes straight into spirits, mixers and syrups, so there is no muddling, steeping or straining. Because Spice Drops are alcohol free, they work just as well in mocktails for friends who are not drinking.

What is in the Cocktail Spices Collection?

• Cinnamon Spice Drops, 5ml (Great Taste 2015, two stars)
• Lime Zest Spice Drops, 5ml
• Lemongrass Spice Drops, 5ml (Great Taste 2015, two stars)
• Mint Spice Drops, 5ml

How do you use Spice Drops in cocktails?

Put one or two drops in the glass or shaker, add the spirit, mixer or syrup and stir or shake. Start small and add more to taste. For mocktails, add the drops to sparkling water, lemonade or juice in the same way. Every bottle comes with its own dropper.

How much should you use?

These ratios come from our product pages. Start with them, taste, then add more if you like.

What can you make with it?

• Mint and Lime Zest in a mojito or a virgin mojito.
• Lemongrass in a gin and tonic.
• Cinnamon in an old fashioned.
• Cinnamon in a spiced apple mocktail.
• Lime Zest and Lemongrass in sparkling water for a simple alcohol free spritz.

Why are Spice Drops a good gift for a cocktail lover?

Each 5ml bottle holds around 150 drops and keeps for up to three years when stored in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight, so the set will not be finished or stale within a few weeks. Spice Drops are made by Holy Lama in Kerala, India, where more than 80% of our workforce is women, and the range won best new ingredient at the World Food Innovation Awards 2015.

Spice Drops contain no artificial colours, flavours or preservatives and are oxalate free. They are vegan, gluten free and alcohol free, and contain a plant derived emulsifier, polysorbate 80, which helps them mix into food and drink.

How are Spice Drops made?

Spice Drops are made at our own factory in Kerala, India, by a family business that dates back to 1946. The spices are crushed in a hammer mill or under a roller without heat, then extracted, and the solvent is removed under vacuum. For some flavours the distilled oil of the same spice is added back. Leafy herbs such as Mint are distilled essential oil only. The result is real spice flavour: the natural compounds that give each spice its taste and aroma are still there, such as piperine, which gives black pepper its heat.

How can you make it a bigger gift?

• Pair it with our Curry Spices Collection for a curry and cocktails night.
• Add our handmade gift wrap, a fabric scarf they can keep, for £2.50.
• See every set in our Spice Drops gift collections, or read our guide to Spice Drops gift sets for every food lover.

Ordering for Christmas? Check our Delivery page for the last order dates.

Shop the Cocktail Spices Collection.