Twelve Days, Twelve Drams: A Faff-Free December Prize Draw for UK Bourbon Hosts
Photo: Infrogmation of New Orleans, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
There is a particular magic to a December draw. The tree is up (or the tree is a bin bag of lights you will get to on Sunday), the tin of chocolates has been breached, and the group chat has collectively decided that the word festive is acceptable again. It is also the one month of the year when a bourbon prize draw feels less like a niche hobby and more like a small act of public service.
So here it is: twelve prize ideas for UK hosts who would rather be pouring than poring over paperwork. Nothing here needs a licence application, a spreadsheet the size of a duvet cover, or a kitchen that doubles as a compliance seminar. Just a decent dram, a bit of luck and a handful of ground rules.
Why December suits the cheeky draw
People are already in a giving mood, already visiting each other, already looking for an excuse to gather for twenty minutes in a warm kitchen. A prize draw slots neatly into that rhythm. It gives the evening a hinge — a small moment where everyone shuts up and someone sticks a hand in a hat.
It also solves the gift problem. Rather than buying four generous presents nobody needs and one thoughtless one that will be remembered forever, you run a draw and let fate do the emotional labour.
The twelve, in no particular order
1. The miniature trio. Three 5cl bottles of Buffalo Trace and friends, wrapped in enough bubble wrap to survive a fall down the stairs. Light, postable, no breakage drama and genuinely exciting to unwrap.
2. The Old Fashioned kit. A small bottle of bourbon, a bottle of bitters, a jar of sugar syrup and a note explaining the 2:1:1 rule. No perishables, no panic about the fridge.
3. The serious tumbler. A heavy-bottomed rocks glass that makes a supermarket bottle feel like an occasion. Buy two and split them between two winners so more people get a turn.
4. The tasting notebook. A slim notebook plus printed scorecards for a blind tasting. Encourage everyone to write something pretentious and then read it aloud. The results are worth more than the paper.
5. The bar tools. A jigger, a bar spoon and a small strainer. Utterly low-faff to post, and the sort of thing people keep for twenty years.
6. The water jug and pipette. For the bourbon nerd who insists on adding exactly three drops of water. Present it with total seriousness. It will get the biggest laugh of the night.
7. The hot toddy hamper. Honey, cinnamon sticks, a lemon and a recipe card. Winter in a shoebox.
8. The cheeseboard bundle. A decent cheddar, oatcakes and a chutney. Pairs with a dram, and is quietly the most popular prize every single time.
9. The alcohol-free option. A good alcohol-free spirit or a posh cordial set. Not everyone drinks, and a prize everyone can enjoy is a better prize.
10. The merch drop. A cap, a T-shirt, a sturdy glass or a branded hoodie. Especially good for the guest who is driving and would rather have something to wear home.
11. The digital bonus. A tasting notes pack or a voucher for a specialist bottle shop, delivered by email. Zero postage, zero worry, particularly useful for the cousin in Aberdeen.
12. The grand finale. One bottle of Buffalo Trace as the headline prize, drawn last. Build to it. Make a small ceremony of it. Bang a pan lid, if that is your style.
The house rules that save the evening
Keep it free to enter, with no purchase required — a proper free-entry route keeps things simple and above board, and it means nobody can accuse you of selling tickets in the kitchen. One entry per household, drawn publicly, and ideally filmed on a phone you can wave about triumphantly when someone claims the odds were suspicious.
And the obvious one, stated plainly: entries and prizes for over-18s only. If you cannot be sure, ask. Nobody has ever been genuinely offended by being asked for ID; plenty of people have been quietly grateful for it.
A short word on the responsible bits
Prizes involving alcohol come with responsibilities that are not complicated: hand the prize to an adult, do not pass it on to anyone underage, and never make drinking a condition of taking part. Not everyone drinks, and the person who chooses a soft drink should get exactly the same cheerful send-off as the winner.
Once the bottle is opened, the usual common sense applies. Pace yourself, keep water nearby, eat something that is not exclusively crisps, and remember that the only truly uncool way to end a party is to drive home when you should not. Book the taxi. Leave the car. The bottle will still be there tomorrow.
Boxes, bows and calling it a night
Wrap what you can, label what you cannot, and keep a printed list of who won what — otherwise the chocolate tin and the bottle will become the subject of a family legend nobody can verify.
Then put the lid on the pan, pour yourself something small, and enjoy the fact that a decent evening cost you about twenty minutes of organisation. That is the whole trick. Cheerful, straightforward, and no faff.
