It’s that time of year when you get to stress about finding the perfect gift for everyone you love. Thankfully, we have wine to power us through hours of endless internet scrolling. We think we can make it a little easier this time around. If your friends and family love wine (and if they don’t, are they even really your friends?), you truly can’t go wrong with any of the picks on our official wine lover’s holiday gift guide. And yes, we highly recommend grabbing a few things for yourself, too. Nobody has to know.
The Top Wines for Gifting
Billecart Salmon Cuvee Nicolas Francois Billecart Brut 2007
We fully subscribe to the “Champagne Every Day” mantra. Good bubbly shouldn’t be reserved for New Year’s Eve and milestone celebrations. That said, it’s an absolute staple of the holiday season, and your sparkling wine–sipping quota should double at minimum.
Billecart is a standby. A classic that never goes out of style. This 2007 vintage of Cuvée Nicolas François, one of the house’s top-tier offerings, is more than worthy of the jolliest celebrations. Better yet, it’s a steal at $129, which means you’ll probably want at least two bottles.
Holiday gifting tip: bring this to a celebration you’re attending so you can enjoy it, too. Or wrap it up and put your own name on the tag, signed “From: Santa.”
Pierre Moncuit Blanc de Blancs Brut Grand Cru 2008
Most of us can’t afford to gift everyone we love expensive Champagne upwards of $100 a bottle. So this Blanc de Blancs from a tiny grower within a Grand Cru Chardonnay region is an excellent budget option that will overdeliver on the brioche-like taste that Champagne lovers, well, love. After 11 years on the lees, and another two years in the bottle, this baby is ready to be popped on Christmas morning.
Beau Vigne Cabernet Sauvignon Juliet Napa Valley 2016
Christmas has come early with this Napa Valley Cabernet from a 100-point winemaker, Kirk Venge, for — drumroll, please — under $50. Whoever you gift this to will certainly think it was much, much more expensive because these days nobody really believes you can get a great Napa Cab for a price like this.
Frisson Cabernet Sauvignon Rutherford 2018
If you thought the price on the Beau Vigne was good, wait until you see what this bottle from the killer Cabernet-producing Rutherford AVA is going for. Normally $105, this Frisson Cabernet can be snagged for the price of two Jacksons. That’s $40 for a seriously legit bottle of Napa Cab.
So grab your sweatpants, get cozy on the couch, and knock out your holiday shopping in just a few clicks while sipping a hot toddy. At least, that’s how we plan to do it.
Top Non-Wine Gifts and Experiences
Glassware They’ll Love
We’re not saying that this handblown glassware from Estelle makes wine taste even better, but we’re not saying it won’t either. At the very least, it will make a statement at the recipient’s next dinner party. Traditional or stemless wine glasses are available in a variety of stunning hues — pinks and blues and greens and more — making this a much more personal gift than your standard stemware. Estelle even has Champagne coupes and flutes and decanters so pretty they could be mistaken for oversized perfume bottles.
Something Useful
We all have that friend that always seems to struggle opening a bottle of wine, and frankly, it’s hard to watch. Save them (and yourself) the trouble with a rechargeable automatic wine opener, which eliminates the need to ever fight with a corkscrew again. This one even has a foil cutter, and we all know that’s where the trouble begins.
A Wine Country Experience
Give the gift of wine country via an in-person experience on the Napa Valley Wine Train. The train offers a myriad of scenic wine and food rides up and down Napa Valley throughout the year (you can purchase a gift card here), but their holiday excursions are extra magical. Perhaps it sounds a little cheesy — this time of year just brings it out of us — but many of the wineries along Hwy 29 completely deck themselves out in twinkling lights that you’d otherwise miss while wine tasting in the daylight. It’s a view of Napa Valley that most visitors miss, plus you don’t have to worry about finding a designated driver.
Looking for other unique wine country gift ideas? Check out the falconry experience at Bouchaine Vineyards & Winery or the bubbles and caviar brunch at Davies Vineyards (Schramsberg’s sister winery), both in Napa Valley. There’s also horseback riding through the vines at Barthowlemew Estate in Sonoma or a helicopter tour and tasting with Eden Rift, located just north of Monterey Bay in the lesser-known Cienega Valley.
A Gift That Gives Back
This gift helps support Napa Valley’s restaurant community while bringing a taste of wine country’s culinary mecca to your home kitchen. Featuring 36 recipes from Napa Valley’s top restaurants (including a few cocktails), The Essential Napa Valley Cookbook has the deets on iconic recipes like chef Cindy Pawlycyn’s Mustards Mighty Meatloaf, Bounty Hunter’s Beer Can Chicken, Gott’s Ahi Burger, and Charlie Palmer’s famous Lobster Corn Dogs. There’s even a wine pairing from a Napa Valley winery paired with each dish, selected by Napa Master Somm Desmond Echavarrie. Seventy-five percent of proceeds from the cookbook go directly to Napa restaurant workers affected by the pandemic, while twenty-five percent go to Feed Napa Now, an organization that partners with restaurants to feed the local community in need.
