Unsure if your host likes sweet or salty? Strike a happy medium with strips of applewood-smoked bacon cloaked in dark chocolate. $8 for a package of four strips at Co Co. Sala.
Anyone who fancies making cocktails will love Carpano Antica Formula, the Rolls Royce of sweet vermouth that’s delicious stirred into Manhattans or sipped on the rocks. $33 for a one-liter bottle at Ace Beverage.
A six-pack is so college. Impress your hosts with a growler of fresh Port City beer—which lasts several days in the fridge—plus a handy case for toting it to the brewery for refills. $16 for a flagship beer-filled growler plus $15 for the koozie at Port City Brewing Company.
Your hostess will feel just as pretty as her partiers stepping out of the kitchen in one of Anthropolgie’s feminine aprons. Perk: It’s machine washable. From $32 at Anthropologie.
Let the glasses do the swirling and your host do the sipping with these handsome whiskey vessels made from handblown glass. $32 for a set of six at Tabletop DC.
Whether making mulled wine or warm spiced cider, we love the zesty aroma of these mulling spices filling the kitchen as much as the taste. Treat your host to a spice ball for easier cleanup. Spices and ball from $11 each at Williams-Sonoma.
A must for the tonic fiend: small-batch tonic syrups from (left to right) Charleston, New York, and Austin, which only require sparkling water and any range of spirits for a unique cocktail. Starting at $11 at Salt & Sundry.
It’s tea for two with Le Creuset’s stylish enamel teapot, which comes in a variety of bold colors, perfect for an early-morning or after-dinner cuppa. $28 at Le Creuset.
Your hosts can start their guests’ mouths watering with Arlington-made soy wax candles in savory scents like clementine-clove. An added benefit: 10 percent of each sale goes toward local animal rescue. $28 from Sydney Haleco.
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