It’s time to ring in the New Year, and what other way than with a sparkling wine or Champagne? Following are some of my favorite “non-vintage” or “NV” bottlings, with choices for every budget. Why non-vintage? For a few reasons, with the most prominent being consistency. Generally speaking, a Champagne house or sparkling wine producer [...]
Heidsieck & Co Monopole Blue Top Premiers Crus When you’re stumped — and pressed for time— about what to get as a gift for the wine lover in your life, the best idea is a bottle of Champagne. Champagne is the epitome of celebration, the exclamation point of a joyous occasion — and therefore a [...]
This — along with the gas-filled types — is a great gift for a person who enjoys wine but who has a hard time getting the cork out of bottles. Being too weak or coordinated to get a cork out of a bottle is nothing to be ashamed of, and shouldn’t relegate a person to [...]
Some folks don’t have their own wine blog, so they write down their wine notes every time they open a great bottle. If you know someone who jots down their wine notes in a regular notebook, then this gift is the ultimate upgrade. It looks fancy, has room for all the details for the wine, [...]
The Rabbit and other me-too’s have been more popular recently, but it all started with the original leverpull by Screwpull. I’ve owned one and been quite happy for almost ten years of rigorous use — it has been through several tastings that required the opening of 200 bottles or more (in one day). I think [...]
If one of your gift recipients has a full-blown wine cellar, these color-coded tags are the perfect present. One of the most annoying things when looking for a wine in a cellar is having to pull each bottle out to see what it is. In addition to identifying the wine, you can also write in [...]
Riedel is the name to remember when it comes to glassware, but you already knew that. Now that the Austrian glassmaker can be found in Targets throughout the US, is it still fancy enough for gift ideas? Of course … but you want to choose glasses that are more unique and unusual — and pricey. [...]
(FYI – all of the suggested gifts on this wine blog can be purchased from Amazon by clicking on its image) OK, this these are pretty geeky items — but still pretty cool. Basically, it’s for wines that need to breathe — think young, expensive Zins, Cabs, and mature Bordeaux and Burgundy. After placing the [...]
(click on images to learn more) This 7-item Accessory Gift Set ($55) has just about everything a wannabe snob could wish for, all encased in a fancy wood box. It includes a ‘patented’ one-hand cork screw, thermometer, stainless steel stopper, foil cutter, wine ring, pourer, and bottle cap. Good for someone who often entertains wine [...]
Do you know someone who keeps a “wine book” ? In other words, they keep notes on nearly every wine they drink, and glue a label next to their notes to help remember the wine? Well, it can be gosh-darn difficult to get the labels off of the bottles — especially if they use a [...]
I have been swirling, sniffing, and spitting wines as a PR / marketing professional in the wine industry since 1996, and currently head the marketing communications department for Opici Wines. You can follow me on Twitter @joejanish or @wineweekly.
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