The grand sweet hamper

The sweet range at its full width, in an 18-inch wicker hamper – the list below runs to most of what we carry.

Who it is for

The safest Christmas hamper there is – children, grandparents, a family you do not know well, an office. Nothing here needs a fridge, nothing needs cooking, and nothing needs explaining. It is also the one that gets opened first on the day. 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

Hedene are a Paris house who buy single-origin from named beekeepers rather than blending. Charles Antona work in Corsica, under PDO, from fruit grown on the island. Les Florentins have been in Lyon since 1912. 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 an 18-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

Chocolate keeps best somewhere cool and dry rather than in the fridge, which dulls it. The patisserie is the thing to open first – it is the one item here with a clock on it. Honey keeps for years unopened, so there is no rush with it.