From Annabel’s £3000 humdinger of a hamper to The Modern Pantry’s £30 per head version for reluctant chefs and everything in between – not least Bompas & Parr’s Adventure Hamper where flares and ice picks come as standard Christmas kit.
The Bear Grylls of hampers
The Adventure Hamper, £699.99
From today, aspiring explorers can snap up Bompas & Parr’s Adventure Hamper exclusively at Selfridges. Expect an array of provisions and equipment from pickles and jams that will help with malaria, altitude sickness, insect bites and jellyfish stings to more practical kit including a hand customised ice axe perfect for defrosting the freezer, flares for drawing attention to yourself and a Magnum of a Piper-Heidsieck Rare Vintage 1998. Each hamper comes with a guide book and manual created by Bompas & Parr to inform your adventure.
Star spotter’s hamper
The Ivy Hamper, £175
Fans of Richard Caring’s celebrity mecca, the iconic The Ivy can now recreate the experience at home with a hamper packed full of classic items from the restaurant such as chocolate truffles, a jar of foie gras, a Christmas pudding and even a pair of Ivy napkins as well as the obligatory bottle of Gaston Chiquet Champagne. Just make sure you have an A-list guest list to match the contents.
Organic Hamper
Daylesford A Very Merry Christmas Hamper, £100
Traditional with that organic, twist we’re talking rich, moist Christmas cake, baked by hand on the Daylesford farm, raspberry vodka and Prosecco, marmalade for Christmas morning, Boxing Day chutney, brandy sauce for the Christmas pudd, milk chocolate honeycombe, dark chocolate with ginger, shortbread and even some mini crackers to snap when you’ve popped the Prosecco.
The Rolls Royce of hampers
Annabel’s Limited Edition Hamper, £3000
You can trust Annabel’s to come up with the most outlandishly expensive hamper of the season. This strictly limited edition version includes rare wines, such as a Philipponnat Grand Cru Clos des Goisses 1999 and a Château La Mission Haut-Brion 1995 alongside a 100g white Alba truffle (accompanied by a truffle slicer – natch) plus a pair of Harry’s Bar salt and pepper grinders. There’s also a bargain basement version – a snip at £300.
For the reluctant chef
The Modern Christmas Hamper, £30pp
The Modern Pantry knows that we’re not all budding Nigellas and that some of us would prefer to spend Christmas morning recovering from our Christmas Eve hangovers rather than flitting around the kitchen. Chef patron Anna Hansen has created two hampers to choose from each containing everything needed to impress with limited slaving over that hot stove. Dishes include Turkey schnitzel and bread sauce or Roast pork belly and green pepper relish – with sides of Duck fat roasted potatoes, Spiced roasted parsnips and carrots and Chestnut and nutmeg puree.
Hamper Alternative
Gelupo Gelato Christmas Pudding, £32.50 for 9-12 people
And finally who cares about a hamper when you can have a Gelupo Gelato Christmas Pudding. The limited edition Christmas Pudds arrive in a beautiful ceramic pudding basin tied with muslin. Think figgy-rich gelato mixed with chunks of home-made Christmas pudding. Serve straight from the freezer and cut in with a hot knife to reach the boozy, chocolate sauce in the centre. The limited edition run of just 250 are individually signed and numbered and come in three sizes.
