PHOTOGRAPHY BY JANELLE JONES, PROP STYLING BY OLGA GRIGORENKO
A coast-to-coast guide to the delicious regional American foods and drinks that should be on every holiday wishlist
THE MIDWEST
Smoking Goose Barley Swine Salame
Indianapolis, Indiana
This pork salame is infused with Central State Brewing’s “biggest, gnarliest, thickest beer” (Bashi Barleywine) and fruity urfa biber pepper from Turkey. $14, smokinggoose.com
Zingerman’s Rugelach
Ann Arbor, Michigan
The ultimate Hanukkah gift? These flaky Jewish pastries—which come in 16-piece boxes of either chocolate and raspberry or apricot and walnut-currant—from the famed college town deli. $30, zingermans.com
Made Fare Co. Granola Crackle
St. Louis, Missouri
This grown-up crackle is made with only heirloom grains (amaranth, millet, oats, and quinoa), pure maple syrup, extra virgin olive oil, and flavorings like dried figs and cacao nibs. $8, madefare.com
Maytag Dairy Farms Blue Cheese
Newton, Iowa
Made on the Maytag family farm since 1941, the quintessential American blue has a pungent aroma and lemony tang and works beautifully crumbled on burgers. $37 for a 2 lb. wheel, maytagdairyfarms.com
Potter’s Crackers Wisconsin Rye
Madison, Wisconsin
Of course Cheeseheads make exceptional crackers; this caraway seed–studded Wisconsin rye pairs superbly with sharp cheddar. $7, potterscrackers.com
Northern Waters Smokehaus Lake Superior Smoked Whitefish
Duluth, Minnesota
These hot-smoked fish make a great spread or chowder, but it’s hard to resist simply flaking off hunks and eating them with your fingers. $26, northernwaters smokehaus.com
Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams Extra-Bitter Hot Fudge Sauce
Columbus, Ohio
Flavors rotate seasonally at this growing ice cream parlor chain, but one of the year-round constants is this thick, bittersweet sundae topping. $13, jenis.com
Co-Op Sauce Liquid Pickle
Chicago, Illinois
This community-minded company is known for its roster of hot sauces, but dill-ophiles will flip for its briny probiotic elixir, which adds a tangy zip to Bloody Marys. $6, coopsauce.com
THE WEST
Rancho Gordo Beans
Napa, California
These heirloom beans come in varieties so chic—black-and-white vaqueros, mottled Christmas limas—they could be strung like beads and worn as jewelry. $6, ranchogordo.com
Townshend’s Bluebird Alpine Liqueur
Portland, Oregon
Made by distilling tea, this liqueur brings warming spices (ginger, fennel, angelica root) to hot toddies and spiked ciders. $32, townshends distillery.com
Big Island Coffee Roasters Puna Kazumura
Mountain View, Hawaii
The highly aromatic beans grown in the volcanic soil of the emerging Puna region could give Kona a run for its money. $27, bigislandcoffee roasters.com
Cowgirl Creamery Mt Tam
Point Reyes Station, California
If you like brie, you’ll love this triple-cream cow’s-milk cheese with a buttery interior and a bloomy rind that tastes faintly of mushrooms. $15, cowgirlcreamery.com
Girl Meets Dirt Heritage Preserves
Eastsound, Washington
Audra Lawlor left Wall Street for an Orcas Island “farmette,” where she transforms the bounty of the San Juan archipelago’s orchards—Italian plums, Gravenstein apples—into luscious jams. $10–$14, girlmeetsdirt.com
Olympia Provisions Saucisson aux Noisettes
Portland, Oregon
The Beaver State grows 99 percent of America’s hazelnuts, which come whole and roasted inside this French-style salami. $11, olympia provisions.com
Compartés Vegan Kale Dark Chocolate Bar
Los Angeles, California
Is there anything more SoCal than vegan chocolate topped with homemade kale crisps, pepitas, and sesame seeds? Luckily, it tastes as good as it looks. $10, compartes.com
Barnacle Foods Kelp Pickles
Juneau, Alaska
Pacific bull kelp is transformed into simple, snappy, saline pickles. We can’t think of a better topping for the 49th state’s ubiquitous reindeer hot dogs. $8, barnaclefoods.com
THE SOUTHWEST + ROCKIES
Gruet Winery Sauvage Rosé
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Founded by a French Champagne-making clan, Gruet produces startlingly sophisticated bubbly, such as this bright rosé made with pinot noir grapes. $20, gruetwinery.com
Sphinx Date Co. Stuffed Medjool Dates
Scottsdale, Arizona
Make a date with a tin of Arizona-grown Medjools stuffed with pecan, walnut, coconut, and candied lemon and orange peel. $40, sphinxdateco.com
Hayden Flour Mills White Sonora Wheat
Queen Creek, Arizona
North America’s oldest variety of white wheat, introduced by European missionaries in the 1700s, makes for excellent cakes and pizza dough. $9, haydenflourmills.com
Elle’s Belles Starry Triple Berry Mini Pies
Bozeman, Montana
Elle Fine packs blue-, black-, and raspberries into her pies, which come topped with a constellation of sugary stars. $49 for two mini pies, ellesbelles.com
Heart of the Desert Pistachios
Alamogordo, New Mexico
“Red or green?” is New Mexico’s official state question. Really! In the spirit of the official answer (“Christmas”), buy one sack of each of these chile-flavored nuts. $7, heartofthedesert.com
Dram Apothecary Wild Mountain Sage Bitters
Salida, Colorado
Shae Whitney infuses her bitters with wild sage, which adds an earthy, herbaceous taste of the Rockies to cocktails. $18, dramapothecary.com
Queen Farina Creamed Honey
Cache Valley, Utah
Utah’s state insect, the honeybee, is responsible for this raw wildflower honey, which is rendered spreadable through a process of controlled crystallization. $19, queenfarina.com
Jackson Hole Pop I’m Your Huckleberry! Popcorn
Jackson Hole, Wyoming
Ghirardelli white chocolate–frosted, huckleberry-flavored, candy-coated popcorn is a perfect crunchy après-ski snack. $10, jhpopcorn.com
THE SOUTH
Edwards Virginia Smokehouse Petite Cooked Boneless Country Ham
Surry, Virginia
This Southern holiday mainstay is back churning out hickory-smoked hams after a 2016 fire burned down the original smokehouse. $64, edwardsvaham.com
Desert Door Texas Sotol
Driftwood, Texas
Adventurous tequila fans should try this vegetal, super-drinkable spirit, which a trio of military veterans distill from the desert spoon plant. $55, desertdoor.com
Banner Butter
Atlanta, Georgia
These cultured butters, which come in flavors like sorghum and roasted garlic, will ruin the store-bought kind for you forever. Six for $42, bannerbutter.com
Pappy & Co. Barrel-Aged Pepper Sauce
Louisville, Kentucky
Ultra-rare Pappy Van Winkle is America’s hottest bourbon, but this ghost pepper sauce, aged in Pappy barrels—which lend an oaky smokiness—is even hotter. $12, pappyco.com
Peninsula Grill Ultimate Coconut Cake
Charleston, South Carolina
Bobby Flay called this elegant 12-layer cake, covered in drifts of cream cheese frosting and toasted coconut, his all-time favorite dessert. $130, peninsulagrill.com
Olive & Sinclair Duck Fat Caramels
Nashville, Tennessee
These why-didn’t-we-think-of-that duck fat caramels are seasoned with thyme, chilies, and black pepper. When you run out, try O&S’s sea salt and vinegar variety. $20, oliveandsinclair.com
Congaree and Penn Jupiter Rice Grits
Jacksonville, Florida
This Northern Florida farm is revitalizing the Old South tradition of rice-based grits, which are even more delicious with a drizzle of the farm’s pecan finishing oil. $9, congaree andpenn.com
Watanut Georgia Pecan Shortbread
Augusta, Georgia
Packed with Georgia pecans, these buttery shortbread cookies taste like something your grandmother would make—if she had French pastry school training. $10, watanut.com
THE NORTHEAST
Gilda’s Biscotti Dad’s Midnight Stash
Salem, New Jersey
This medley includes all seven varieties produced by this small-batch bakery, such as lemon fig and chocolate hazelnut. $10, gildasbiscotti.com
Sfoglini Pasta Shop Pasta
West Coxsackie, New York
Stuck in a spaghetti rut? Sfoglini makes inventive use of unexpected grains (spelt, hemp), flavors (chestnut, cocoa), and shapes (radiators, trumpets). $8, sfoglini.com
Side Project Pho Jerky
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philly boasts the East Coast’s largest Vietnamese population, and their iconic soup gets the snackable treatment in this jerky, flavored with star anise, clove, Thai basil, and more. $8, sideprojectjerky.com
Runamok Maple Syrup
Fairfax, Vermont
It’s hard to improve upon organic syrup hand-tapped from 81,000 northern Vermont maples, but Runamok’s ginger-root infusion does the trick. $17, runamokmaple.com
Snake Oil Hot Sauce
Baltimore, Maryland
Chef Spike Gjerde uses heirloom fish peppers for this “prescription-strength” hot sauce—the perfect punch of heat for Chesapeake oysters. $7, snakeoilhotsauce.com
Taza Chocolate Mexicano Discs
Somerville, Massachusetts
Ground on a granite millstone, these rustic discs (in flavors like guajillo and cinnamon) make killer hot chocolate. $21, tazachocolate.com
Seed + Mill Halva
New York, New York
This Chelsea Market shop transforms tahini into sweet, nutty halva, with toppings like rose and pistachio. $30/lb., seedandmill.com
Maine Sea Salt Co. Dulse Seaweed and Salt
Marshfield, Maine
Steve and Sharon Cook use greenhouses to evaporate seawater from Buck’s Harbor, adding a mineral note with iodine-rich dulse seaweed. $13, maineseasalt.com
