The Best of Gourmet Gift Baskets, Gift Crates and Gift Boxes Start With The Maker.

Gourmet Gift Baskets, gourmet gift boxes, gourmet crates, plates and platters. Where should you start your search when there are so many great ideas out there. It's easy, It's all about whats on the inside, avoide the generic stuff.  Don't be fooled by an online store that classes themselves as "gourmet" and overcharge you for the privilage just by using the word gourmet in their name. You'll need to wade through these in your search for gourmet authenticity, but it's easy. As both a chef and myself a producer, I'll point out what I think are "red flags" in the gourmet world. So I have some simple questions for you to ask yourself as you browse, tips of what to look out for, and gourmet gift tricks to avoid. At the same time I'll give a shameless plug as to why we here at Wozz! think we are one of the best gourmet gift choices out there. Crafting by hand, the real deal. No middle men, no fillers, and no BS.

5 Quick Research Hacks to Remember

* Are the gourmet gift items available from a supermarket.

* Are all gourmet items useful or just mini sample sizes only.

* Is the packaging Eco friendly.

* Are these artisan products or mass produced co-packed items.

* Do any items in the gift basket support local producers, communities and farms.

Things to avoid.

A Bucket of Beer and Basket of Biscuits
The ultimate gourmet gift trap. This one comes in all shapes and sizes and is the main barrage of gourmet nonsense you get hit with online. $100 for a mixed six pack, an ice bucket and a bag of peanuts titled "fathers day gifts" or "man boxes" or something equally dubious. Rest assured they'll have something for mum too, in the tune of a basket holding nothing more than a box of cake mix, some shortbread cookies and raspberry jam from goodness knows where. All finished with a bow and wrapped in plastic. Everything in these buckets and baskets you can pick up from your local supermarket and are about as gourmet as a box of fruit loops and a choosy mums choice of peanut butter.

Ugh!

That's not how we roll, everything in our collections is unique, made with ingredients locally sourced and not available in supermarkets! Our flavor combinations sound gourmet and special because they are.

 

The Big Gourmet Gift Basket of Minis
You've seen this, a basket that looks huge and full to the brim with big jars and boxes all sprawled out in the product photo. Unfortunately, when you send as a gift directly to the receiver you might never know the truth. All those big jars are actually 4oz or smaller and more comparable to the single serve butter and jam you'll find served for an in flight meal than anything gourmet. They look great in a photo with a big gift basket or box as a backdrop, but completely useless to use. How can something be gourmet if you can't actually put it to use?

Rookie error.

Don't worry all our jars are the real deal, 12oz and designed to be used. We always include recipe cards and pairings that create a meal and an experience beyond simply receiving a gift in the mail.

Gourmet Gift Packaging and nothing Gourmet inside.
To be honest some of the packaging ideas out there are quite brilliant and a whole lot of fun in their opening, for the guy in your life anyway. For instance, you can buy these cans in Australia and the label reads "Canned Koala" It seems a little ominous at first. You tilt the can this way and that and realise the only way inside is obviously a can opener. Off you go digging in the second draw and begin the unusual unwrapping. Once inside you pull a fluffy toy out of the can and the joke comes full circle. I enjoy watching someone struggle with ten minutes of packaging for a bag of peanuts and couple strips of jerky as much as anyone. But we are talking gourmet and jerky and peanuts, just like a Koala stuffed in a can, might be a fun gift; in the same breath it's isn't very gourmet.

Our presentation is simple, clean, eco friendly and with attention to detail. No plastic, bubble wrap of foam peanuts. Just corrugated cardboard and locally sourced renewable wood curls. Presented with recipe cards and a note saying who the gift is from, even if you forget to write a note. We've got your back. A gourmet gift means from the farm, to chef to you and that's what we do.

 

Who's a Maker & who's a faker
For anything truly authentic always start with a maker. To often we get caught starting our search with the middlemen websites, resellers, and hawkers. You find the best wine at the vineyard, the freshest bread from the bakery and the finest cuts from your butcher. Why would the best gourmet gift choices come from anyone other than a true producers themselves. Simply having a brand's name on a co-packed product doesn't count either, not if you are looking for the best or even just good. Co packers don't process fresh ingredients. They buy processed purees and concentrates in buckets and bags from other factories, calling them "ingredients" and mix them all together and bottle them. I don't care if those ingredients say organic or Non GMO, the end result is still a sub-par product that has nothing to to with quality or gourmet.

Not us. We still source and peel fresh ingredients, we use no frozen purees, concentrates, citric acid, additives or flavors. We do not use copackers to mass produce and pump out crap. The owners of the company (that means me and the wife) make everything. We pay a fair price to our farmers, create thoughtful products with you in mind using other local ingredients. Our award winning products are known for their quality and innovation. At Wozz! we want to see that everyone wins, and that includes you.