The full pantry

A serious store cupboard, built from the Spanish and Italian houses we import ourselves. The kind of hamper that is still being used in March.

Who it is for

This one goes to the person who cooks. It is not a novelty hamper and there is nothing in it that gets eaten once and forgotten: every jar, tin and bottle is something a good kitchen gets through, and the quality is a step above what a supermarket carries at any price. The wine is chosen for the food in the hamper rather than picked off a price list, and it is a grower’s bottle rather than a supermarket label.

Who makes it

Clos Saint Sozy work in the Lot, in the south-west of France, in the traditional way. Conservas Virto have been canning in Navarra since 1927 and still do most of it by hand. Donna Itriya work in Puglia with ancient grains and bronze dies. We import these ourselves rather than buying through a wholesaler, which is why the hamper costs what it does. You can read how the protected designations work at the European Commission.

Packing and delivery

We pack this hamper in a 14-inch wicker hamper finished with raffia and a ribbon. Everything is packed by hand in Worcestershire on the day it leaves us, and nothing is made up in advance and left sitting in a warehouse. Order early for Christmas – December delivery slots fill from the middle of November, and the week before Christmas always goes first. We deliver across mainland UK and can send the hamper straight to the recipient with a handwritten card and no prices anywhere in the parcel. See the rest of the range on our Christmas gift hampers page.

How to serve it

Foie gras and terrine want to come out of the fridge fifteen minutes beforehand and be cut with a warm blade, onto toast or brioche rather than a cracker that fights them. Most of the jars and tins are designed to be opened rather than cooked – good bread, good butter and a plate is the whole method.