By TM Petaccia

What’s holiday cheer without the, you know, cheer? For the home cocktail enthusiast on your shopping list, you can fill their stockings and never leave the state. There are a host of gifts crafted and created in North Carolina, plus a few out-of-state add-ons you can gift to give your hobbyist mixologist some excellent cocktail tools.

Mecklenburg ABC Gift Card

Bottles of booze have been a time-honored holiday gift. If you want to leave it up to the recipient, you can purchase gift cards at any Mecklenburg ABC store in five-dollar increments, starting at $10. Note: they can only be used at Mecklenburg ABC stores. Get more info on their website.

Unique NC Spirits

North Carolina boasts a wide array of distillers – many producing internationally awarded spirits. You can find most of them in the N.C. section of your local ABC store. Some of particular bottles of note include:

Oaklore Distilling Oloroso Sherry Cask Finished Bourbon ($100): Made in Matthews, this limited release four-grain whiskey (wheat, rye, corn, and barley) offers some earthy wine and dried fruit notes. Can also be ordered online for deliveries out of state.

Durham Distillery Conniption Kinship Gin ($38 ): A 2024 and 2025 Gold Medal Winner at the World Gin awards, this gin gets its stellar purple color from butterfly pea flowers. Combining juniper with Indian coriander, cardamom, and bitter orange, it is fresh and just a bit peppery. Makes a beautiful martini or vesper. Can also be ordered online for deliveries out of state.

Three Stacks Distillery Social House Vodka ($30): If you think all vodkas were created equal, you haven’t tried Social House. Made in Kinston at a former power plant built in 1906, this vodka offers some subtle corn and vanilla notes, and makes a standout Bloody Mary or vodka martini Can also be ordered online for deliveries out of state.

Muddy River Distillery Coffee Rum ($28): A relatively new edition to the Belmont distillery’s line of unique infused rums, this one is made with a proprietary blend of locally roasted and sustainably sourced coffee. Distinctive, but not overpowering, you can use it for a fun rum-based espresso martini or Rum White Russian. Also of note is Muddy River’s Basil Rum ($25).

John A.P. Conoley Carolina Peanut Butter Whiskey ($20): Don’t knock until you try it. Made in Bogue, this is a celebration of one of North Carolina’s largest crops. A great “dessert whiskey,” it especially pairs well with chocolate ice cream as a separate sipper or for a fun boozy shake.

Copper Barrel Blueberry Moonshine ($26): You can’t talk North Carolina Spirits without a little moonshine, and this one comes from North Wilkesboro, the very heart of moonshine country. A good bridge for those who aren’t yet quite ready for full-on shine, or an interesting sidetrip for the more moonshine savvy, the blueberry flavor is deep and works as a casual sipper, as a creative spritz alternative, or just with seltzer and lime.

Maker’s Mark North Carolina Series Bourbon ($60): While not made in North Carolina, it can only be purchased here. This is the inaugural release of a new series of whiskies paying homage to various states. It offers some nice pecan and a fruity notes. A large piece of ice or a few drops of water is all this whiskey needs.

Bitters & Syrups

Regal Reedy Bitters. Made right here in Charlotte, Jo Nencetti crafts a wide range of creative bitters using locally sourced herbs and other botanicals. Products include Carolina Black Water (black walnut and wild cherry bark), Bless Your Heart (Hawthorn and Schisandra berries), and It’s a Southern Thang (pecan). $15/bottle. Order online.

Crude Bitters. Made in Raleigh, Craig Rudewicz and Lindsay Lasserre have been crafting unique bitters since 2012. Flavors include “Rizzo” (rosemary, grapefruit, & peppercorn), “X” (shiitake, sesame, and banana), and “Sycophant” (orange and fig). You can find them at several area shops, as well as from their website. $20/bottle.

Craftsman Syrups. A popular vendor at many Charlotte-area farmers markets and pop-ups, Stephen and Katie Marshall’s non-GMO, vegan syrups often include local ingredients. Current flavors include “Holiday Blend” (spiced cranberry), spiced apple-vanilla, and roasted peppers and citrus. In addition to the farmers markets, you can order from their website. $13. Gift packages and custom sets also available.

Unpretentious Palate Old-Fashioned Cocktail Kits. A popular gift anytime of year, our own cocktial kits offer six bottles of custom curated old fashioned syrups created by six of Charlotte’s leading mixologists. The kit also includes garnishes and full instructions. $70. Order online.

Etc.

Beautiful Booze. Written by Waynesville native Natalie Migliarini with her husband James Stevenson, Beautiful Booze: Stylish Cocktails to Make at Home is a stunningly photographed and well written exploration of how you can enjoy high concept cocktails without having to leave your home. Available at most booksellers. Available at local book sellers. $26 at Amazon.

Seltzer Bottle. If you are spritzing or tonic-ing or scotch-and-soda-ing, buying all that club soda or seltzer can get pricey, not to mention the environmental impact. Having a seltzer bottle assures you have fresh, bubbles whenever you want them, plus gives your cocktail game a little art deco vibe. You can find seltzer bottles and CO2 cartridges at local speciality shops and online retailers.

Leather Wrapped Whiskey Glasses. Charlotte leathersmith ColsenKeane has earned a national reputation for handcrafted leather goods, available at the ColsenKeane Leather shop on 7th Street. Their leather-wrapped glass sets include two 12 oz lead-free, dishwasher-safe glasses with a matching set of leather wraps in your choice of seven colors. $95. Also check out their limited edition leather coasters; 6 for $35.

Inexpensive Bar Tools. Not so much locally sourced, but locally obtained, The Chef’s Store on Eastway has a nice collection of bar hardware to round out any home mixologist’s collection – from shakers to bar spoons to hand juicers, and more – at below retail prices. Cost varies.