Father’s Day Gift Guide 2021: Wines, Spirits & Beers To Get Dad This Sunday

You know what’s coming around this Sunday 5th September, and by now you should know what kind of last-minute gift you want to pick up for the old man. Yep, Father’s Day is going to be an important one this year. If he’s like most people in Australia right now, Dad is locking down amongst current restrictions, either with or without you by his side. Whatever the case, he’s going to need this to be the best Father’s Day because let’s be real, we all need to be putting in extra effort for the one’s we love right now.

You’ve already browsed our Father’s Day gift guide to find him something that’ll lift his spirits, but if you really want to nail it, you’ll need to get him something stiff to drink as well.

Here we’ve rounded up some of our favourite drinks that have come out this year, as well as a few classics to help him stock that home bar.

Spirits

Lark Father’s Day Pack

Tassie iconic Lark Distillery has been prolific on the releases this year, and with plenty of releases under their belt, they’ve wisely put together some of their greatest hits in a Father’s Day gift pack. The exceptional collection of bespoke gift sets is worth looking at if Dad likes variety in his life, with numerous 100ml bottles coupled together to give him options.

Our pick is the Father’s Flight, beautifully presented with three bottles – Symphony No.1, Brandy & PX Sherry, and Rum Cask III.

larkdistillery.com

Morris Whisky

Coming straight out of Rutherglen, Victoria, Morris Whisky is a newcomer to the scene with a strong expression of the region’s storied terroir. Aged in their fortified barrels, Morris of Rutherglen has released two distinctive whiskies – the Australian Single Malt Signature, and the premium Australian Single Malt Muscat Barrel. Given the barrels have housed some of Australia’s best fortitified wines, you can bet Dad will love either of these whiskies if he prefers those richer, sweeter notes in his dram.

morriswhisky.com

Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey is a critically acclaimed and carefully matured Bourbon from the heart of Kentucky that has won over 100 national and international awards for its unique taste. Crafted and bottled by the World’s most awarded and family-owned distillery, home to Pappy Van Winkle and more, Buffalo Trace Bourbon features rich flavours of toffee, vanilla and molasses. This flavour profile pairs perfectly with a Father’s Day Sunday roast as it can be used as a sauce or marinade or combined with something sweeter like a caramel sauce.

The Glen Grant Arboralis

If Dad considers himself a bit of a whisky enthusiast then he’s no doubt a fan of The Glen Grant. Get him the brand’s latest whisky, Arboralis Single Malt, so he can keep that love rolling around. The newly releases whisky is an elegant, affordable expression which boasts floral and fruity aromas, connected well with notes of creamy butterscotch and ripe pears.

danmurphys.com.au

Ramblin Man Whisky

If dad is after something truly premium, get him this 18 yer old beauty from Young Henrys. First distilled and barrelled in Tasmania in 2000, this exclusive whisky was transported to Newtown in mid-2016. At Young Henrys headquarters, the Whisky was lovingly transferred into Australian Apera Sherry casks, spending its final years aging before it was bottled by hand in November 2018. Now ready for release in 381 individually numbered bottles. A taste of the whisky would see a nose of right citrus, pekoe tea, and orange zest, burnt brown sugar, vanilla custard, raisin, walnut, and honey. A balanced palate of sweet malty, cereal notes, and orange marmalade upfront through to chewy caramel and French oak, finishing with candied lemon peel and Leatherwood honey. The sweet spices and fruity viscosity ensure a thick, chewy, oily, and long finish.

younghenrys.com

Noble Cut Gin

The Noble Cut Gin, a brewer’s Gin, is proudly distilled in Newtown using blending techniques and flavours from brewing and distillation. The Gin showcases native ingredients, with Australian botanicals such as lemon myrtle and pepperberry as well as Tasmanian grown enigma hops. The Enigma hops, grown and developed locally, are added to the Gin basked to give a mineral complexity you’d expect to find in fine white wine.

younghenrys.com

Aberfeldy’s 12 Year Old

If dDd enjoys playing around with cocktails at home, he’s going to need a new Single Malt that works beautifully in a cocktail like a Hot Toddy. That’d be the Aberfeldy’s 12 Year Old, which is scented with spices and plump fruit with a defining note of honey. The unique fermentation process this whisky goes through is reason for that famed honeyed character, which helps it bring a bit of personality to classic cocktails. Get him to try the Gold Fashoned after he cracks this one open – just take some Aberfeldy with aromatic orange bitters, sugar, and a dash of water.

aberfeldy.com

Dubliner Whiskey & Honeycomb Liqueur

Does your Dad have a sweet tooth? Dubliner Whiskey & Honeycomb Liqueur is a silky-smooth liqueur that will add a touch of warmth and spice to any drink. The notes of caramel and honeycomb are perfect for a cocktail or even a dessert that Dad can enjoy.

danmurphys.com.au

Scapegrace Black Gin

Consider your dad to be one of the more adventurous spirit lovers? Scapegrace Black is the world’s first naturally black gin, a mixed bag of natural botanicals from our Kiwi neighbours bound to take dad’s classic G&T up a notch. Aronia berry, saffron, pineapple, butterfly pea, and sweet potato are carefully combined to create this premium artisanal gin.

danmurphys.com.au

Australian Distilling Co Gin

Australian Distilling Co. Gin has a huge range of the good stuff, demonstrating just how diverse gin can be while also maintaining a strict dedication to iconic Australian locations. Each unique expression seeks to highlight the flavours that define that particular location, which is why you’ll find essentials like 2021 award winner Adelaide Gin, Brisbane Gin, Shiraz Gin, Melbourne Gin, Perth Gin, Darwin Gin, and more. It’s a simple way to pick apart the many various flavours that make up this country, so grab a few different ones if you want to give dad an Australian taste masterclass.

australiandistillingco.com.au/

Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva Rum

One of the more exceptional rums, that we’d encourage dad to add to his spirits shelf. Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva is an elegant and complex sipping rum, carefully crafted from the purest of sugar cane honey. It is delicately distilled in ancient copper pot stills and aged in small oak casks for up to twelve years. Marrying a unique body with excellent balance has made it a reference for rum lovers and connoisseurs throughout the world.

danmurphys.com.au

Nikka From The Barrel

The virtue of Japanese whisky is well-known by now, and the dominance is obvious when you taste something like Nikka From The Barrel. The affordable, accessible expression is one of the best entry-points to Nikka’s storied range. If dad is feeling a bit exahusted by Scotch and Australian whiskies, send his palate on a trip to Japan by picking one of these gorgeous bottles up for Father’s Day.

danmurphys.com.au

Old Kempton Solera Cask

Tasise’s Old Kempton Distillery has put together a bunch of options for Father’s Day, including curated gift packs and the choice to personalised your own tasting pack of their single malt whiskies, gins, and liqueurs. The Solera Cask is our pick, showing off what this quintessentially Australian distillery can do, with strong hints of toffee and dried fruit. If dad like a bit of plum pudding with a dram on the side, this is the finest choice to make.

oldkemptondistillery.com.au

Koko Black x Four Pillars Chocolate Hamper

If you think dad will appreciate some premium chocolate with his gin, then you should head on over to Koko Black. They’ve teamed up with Australia’s iconic Four Pillars to put together a pack based on the ideal pairing. That would be the Yarra Valley Shiraz Gin paired up with an 18-piece Dark Collection by Koko Black, including negroni marbles, native lemon myrtle block, raspberry macadamias, rocky rogue, and more for $199.

kokoblack.com

Wines

DR3 x St Hugo Barossa Valley Shiraz 2014

We’re going to keep it light on wines for Father’s Day this year, but we couldn’t resist including the DR3 x St Hugo Barossa Valley Shiraz 2014. a charming single-vineyard wine, it’s been one of our favourites this year and tastes perfectly connected to the Ebenezer region in the northern Barossa. St Hugo produced this generous, opulent wine in collaboration with F1 star Daniel Ricciardo as part of an exclusive ongoing series that should definitely be one to watch over the next few years.

sthugo.com

Beer

You can tell we’ve been much bigger on spirits for Father’s Day this year. And like the wine section, we’ve gone rogue and picked out one beer. What’s more, is that this beer has no alcohol whatsoever. Yep, before you close this window out of rage, actually do some digging around on NORT Beer. Australia’s first female-founded 0% beer brand is already coated with awards thanks to their 0% refreshing ale, and now they’ve got quite the range with the world’s first 0% pacific ale, tropical XPA, and an All Day XPA. If dad has been loading up on way too much beer this lockdown, give him a bit of a surprise by edging him towards to low-to-no alcohol trend. NORT has put together $35 packs for dad’s who want a bit of a lockdown survival kit without worrying about coming out of this with a beer gut.

nort.beer

Non-Alcoholic

Nespresso Reviving Origins

Does dad playing around with his capsule coffee machine rather than shake up a few cocktails? You’ll want to know about the new Nespresso Reviving Origins range then, with the company adding two new blends to their already considerable range of well-balanced, well-curated capsule coffee. Available for both the Original and Vertuo machines, the Reviving Origins Range kicks off with the intense roasted coffee of Cafecito de Cuba, Nespresso’s very first Cuban blend, and continues onto the smoother, more fruity notes of the Kahawa ya Congo – the first organic blend in the program. If you’ve already got dad a load of gifts, throw some capsules in to seal the deal so dad day stretches beyond Sunday 5th September.

nespresso.com

Chris Singh

Chris Singh is an Editor-At-Large at the AU review, loves writing about travel and hospitality, and is partial to a perfectly textured octopus. You can reach him on Instagram: @chrisdsingh.