Wine Country Gifts
We’ve spent some time in California wine country this year at Urban Home, and you could hardly ask for a better place to hang out. We’ve learned about the history of California wine-making, an industry that is so important the golden state’s economy and culture and one that exerts significant influence over American lifestyle. We’ve cooked with California wine and we’ve certainly drunk it. We’ve prepared dishes inspired by California wine suppers, from baked rigatoni to steak, from salmon with lentils to pears and stilton. We’ve uncorked some noteworthy California Pinot Noirs from the legendary ’09 and ’10 vintages. And we’ve made the wine rack an important design feature of our Los Angeles urban home.
During this gift giving season, why not recognize everyone but the teetotalers on your list with the gifts for serving, appreciating, learning about, and drinking wine? Wine itself is a gift – from the grapes, from the earth; to ancient peoples and many contemporary ones, from the gods themselves. It is a way of making sacred a moment in time, and that is the definition of a holiday itself. You may not be able to give the gift of a getaway weekend in wine country – though now is a good time to book if so – but you can give the gift of wine country chic, that style of living that is casual and elegant, rustic and luxurious. Because it revolves around the harvest, wine country style is reverent of the passage of time through seasons, and any reader will confirm that that is the core of Urban Home. Whatever winter holiday you celebrate – Hannukah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, Yule, New Year’s Eve, a birthday or anniversary, or simply the day that dawns – here are some gift ideas to make every moment as sacred as the gift of wine. As always, this is a curated list based on my years of experience as a lifestyle writer and homekeeper, and none of these is a compensated endorsement.
Stemware. As noted in Urban Home's Guide to Cocktail Parties, basic wine service includes stemware for red and white wines, followed by champagne flutes and from there by stemware specific to any and every pour from brandy to sake. Good stemware is designed to express the best qualities of the wine being poured; combined with materials and craftsmanship, the exacting standards that go into this are why stemware can be costly and why there are differences between glasses for different varietals. Everyone in wine country will confirm that balloon glasses are preferred. This is because in order to fully express itself, a pour of wine should be coddled in the round accommodations that only a correctly proportioned round wine stem can provide. While expensive stemware is impressive, it isn't necessary. Much more important than its cost is the fundamental design of the wine glass. A basic red wine glass should be slightly larger than a white wine glass, with a wider bowl than a white and a gentle slope to the sides. A basic white wine glass should be smaller than a red, with a slightly longer, more angular side than a red. For both, a correct five-count pour of wine shouldn't top off more than halfway up the bowl of the glass.
Basic stemware is widely available and provided the correct proportions are present, there is nothing wrong with these. Two open stock sources we like at Urban Home are Ikea and BevMo. Another good source is Crate and Barrel’s Viv wine series. Serious oenophiles can be heard to rhapsodize about Riedel's Vinum and Sommeliers series as effusively as they critique the contents. While you're shopping Riedel, consider their O series of wine tumblers. These affordable servers revolutionized how wine tables are set. They are packaged in sets of two so it is possible to build a collection for your recipient or yourself. Though for the most part we agree with the prevailing wisdom that a wine glass, which is to wine what a setting is to a gem, should not be overly fussy, we believe that opening sparkling wine constitutes enough of an occasion that the glass can be one as well. If you’re feeling as showy as your bubbly is, showcase it in Napa Style’s Venetian champagne flutes.
Serveware. As is true of cocktail shakers, among the best places to shop for decanters are tag sales and antique shops. We honor the history of vintage pieces both by displaying and by using them. Watch for interesting pieces during your travels throughout the year; any devoted viewer of Antiques Roadshow will consider the story of the find a part of the gift. Back on the shopping floor, as with stemware, good decanters are available in all price points from budget to extravagant and, as with stemware, cost doesn't de facto equal value. We like Riedel's Cabernet and Syrah decanters and Wine Enthusiast’s Vivid decanter. It's not a decanter, but Williams Sonoma's Bleaker bar pitcher is beautiful, reasonably priced, and not the kind of item that everyone already has. While it's not the right size for a party-sized batch of pitcher drinks, we have used ours to serve everything from last summer's rosé sangria to last autumn's hot cider. Rest your decanter or bar pitcher on label-patterned stone coasters from Gainey's tasting room. From Art Deco movie images of breakfast in bed to more practical considerations of circulating drinks at a gathering, good serving trays are as useful as they are often overlooked. For years, we have used West Elm’s square lacquered trays in our urban home. Finally, to open bottles that are corked but not caged, we keep two openers at our urban bar: a waiter's corkscrew, and the Rabbit.
Books. As with shakers and decanters, vintage wine books are charming, useful and unique. In New York City, cornerstone used bookshops include the Left Bank and the Strand. In Los Angeles, the Cosmopolitan is especially strong on books about California, and nothing is more central to California culture than wine-making. The great publishing house of Sunset has long published specialty lifestyle titles and with its focus on the American West, California is a strong presence. Two of their vintage titles that I got at the Cosmopolitan are California Wine Country (1979 edition) and The Sunset Guide to California Wine (1973 edition). Home cellarers from established to aspirational will be wowed and inspired by Samantha Nestor's beautiful coffee table book Living with Wine. California Wine Country: Interior Design, Architecture, and Style celebrates that home style. If they don't have them, give serious drinkers the current printing of Kevin Zraly's Windows on the World Complete Wine Course, or a gift subscription to Wine Spectator. Finally, one of the ways John smartly got me into a west coast urban home was the promise of weekends in Central Coast wine country. California’s Central Coast is a good introduction to the Santa Ynez valley and the wineries and other attractions in the area. Once you're there, grab a copy of The California Directory of Fine Wineries / Central Coast in the hotel gift shop. No mention of the Central Coast is complete without Sideways. Sneak a peek of your favorite oenophile's shelves to see if they've read Rex Pickett's classic wine-country road novel; if not, give a copy along with its sequel Vertical. Another marquis name among oenophiles is Randall Grahm; his Been Doon So Long is as delightful as his wines are. Finally, perhaps the best paperbound wine country present is a cellar book, a set of label savers, and a nice pen.
Wine. A column about wine country gifts is incomplete without recommendations for a few bottles. As noted last month, 2009 and 2010 were spectacular vintages for California Pinot Noirs; any of the wines highlit in this column would be a welcome present or host gift. While I love all of those wines, I keep returning to Loring, Merry Edwards, Calera and the Hitching Post. White drinkers usually appreciate a good Chardonnay; try Ridge Estate Chardonnay 2010 or Gary Farrell Russian River Valley Chardonnay 2009/11. Few remember to gift dessert wine; try Bonny Doon's Le Vol des Anges or DEWN Viognier Port. Finally, New Year's Eve ascendant is the perfect reason to give sparkling wine. Cavicchioli Lambrusco Dolce, with its vivid red berry flavors and joyous magenta bubbles, is the very definition of celebration – if you can, present it with a pint of hothouse raspberries. If you want someone else to do your wine-gift pairing, Wine Country Gift Baskets does a lovely job of packaging wine-themed gift baskets. They are also wine-containing, so there are legal limits to states they can ship to. For anyone who assumes that gift basket wines tend to be eye-squint, Wine Country Gift Baskets offers selections from respected producers including Mondavi, Ferrari-Carano and Rodney Strong.
Finally, as you wrap your wine country gifts, take your cue from wine country elegance and remember that less is more. Keep the packaging simple. This year, we are wrapping our holiday gifts in gold-striped paper and adding simple bows in gold, scarlet or evergreen. Wine bags can be lovely but don't feel obligated to use them. Wine is a present in and of itself, so it is correct and lovely to take your cue from your sommelier when gifting, and presenting, a bottle of wine. Offer the bottle label forward, cradling the back of the bottle in one hand while steadying the bottom of the bottle with your other hand. Just as a wine glass is the setting for a pour of wine, so is the presentation of a bottle of wine the setting for the gift of wine.
During this gift giving season, why not recognize everyone but the teetotalers on your list with the gifts for serving, appreciating, learning about, and drinking wine? Wine itself is a gift – from the grapes, from the earth; to ancient peoples and many contemporary ones, from the gods themselves. It is a way of making sacred a moment in time, and that is the definition of a holiday itself. You may not be able to give the gift of a getaway weekend in wine country – though now is a good time to book if so – but you can give the gift of wine country chic, that style of living that is casual and elegant, rustic and luxurious. Because it revolves around the harvest, wine country style is reverent of the passage of time through seasons, and any reader will confirm that that is the core of Urban Home. Whatever winter holiday you celebrate – Hannukah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, Yule, New Year’s Eve, a birthday or anniversary, or simply the day that dawns – here are some gift ideas to make every moment as sacred as the gift of wine. As always, this is a curated list based on my years of experience as a lifestyle writer and homekeeper, and none of these is a compensated endorsement.
Stemware. As noted in Urban Home's Guide to Cocktail Parties, basic wine service includes stemware for red and white wines, followed by champagne flutes and from there by stemware specific to any and every pour from brandy to sake. Good stemware is designed to express the best qualities of the wine being poured; combined with materials and craftsmanship, the exacting standards that go into this are why stemware can be costly and why there are differences between glasses for different varietals. Everyone in wine country will confirm that balloon glasses are preferred. This is because in order to fully express itself, a pour of wine should be coddled in the round accommodations that only a correctly proportioned round wine stem can provide. While expensive stemware is impressive, it isn't necessary. Much more important than its cost is the fundamental design of the wine glass. A basic red wine glass should be slightly larger than a white wine glass, with a wider bowl than a white and a gentle slope to the sides. A basic white wine glass should be smaller than a red, with a slightly longer, more angular side than a red. For both, a correct five-count pour of wine shouldn't top off more than halfway up the bowl of the glass.
Basic stemware is widely available and provided the correct proportions are present, there is nothing wrong with these. Two open stock sources we like at Urban Home are Ikea and BevMo. Another good source is Crate and Barrel’s Viv wine series. Serious oenophiles can be heard to rhapsodize about Riedel's Vinum and Sommeliers series as effusively as they critique the contents. While you're shopping Riedel, consider their O series of wine tumblers. These affordable servers revolutionized how wine tables are set. They are packaged in sets of two so it is possible to build a collection for your recipient or yourself. Though for the most part we agree with the prevailing wisdom that a wine glass, which is to wine what a setting is to a gem, should not be overly fussy, we believe that opening sparkling wine constitutes enough of an occasion that the glass can be one as well. If you’re feeling as showy as your bubbly is, showcase it in Napa Style’s Venetian champagne flutes.
Serveware. As is true of cocktail shakers, among the best places to shop for decanters are tag sales and antique shops. We honor the history of vintage pieces both by displaying and by using them. Watch for interesting pieces during your travels throughout the year; any devoted viewer of Antiques Roadshow will consider the story of the find a part of the gift. Back on the shopping floor, as with stemware, good decanters are available in all price points from budget to extravagant and, as with stemware, cost doesn't de facto equal value. We like Riedel's Cabernet and Syrah decanters and Wine Enthusiast’s Vivid decanter. It's not a decanter, but Williams Sonoma's Bleaker bar pitcher is beautiful, reasonably priced, and not the kind of item that everyone already has. While it's not the right size for a party-sized batch of pitcher drinks, we have used ours to serve everything from last summer's rosé sangria to last autumn's hot cider. Rest your decanter or bar pitcher on label-patterned stone coasters from Gainey's tasting room. From Art Deco movie images of breakfast in bed to more practical considerations of circulating drinks at a gathering, good serving trays are as useful as they are often overlooked. For years, we have used West Elm’s square lacquered trays in our urban home. Finally, to open bottles that are corked but not caged, we keep two openers at our urban bar: a waiter's corkscrew, and the Rabbit.
Books. As with shakers and decanters, vintage wine books are charming, useful and unique. In New York City, cornerstone used bookshops include the Left Bank and the Strand. In Los Angeles, the Cosmopolitan is especially strong on books about California, and nothing is more central to California culture than wine-making. The great publishing house of Sunset has long published specialty lifestyle titles and with its focus on the American West, California is a strong presence. Two of their vintage titles that I got at the Cosmopolitan are California Wine Country (1979 edition) and The Sunset Guide to California Wine (1973 edition). Home cellarers from established to aspirational will be wowed and inspired by Samantha Nestor's beautiful coffee table book Living with Wine. California Wine Country: Interior Design, Architecture, and Style celebrates that home style. If they don't have them, give serious drinkers the current printing of Kevin Zraly's Windows on the World Complete Wine Course, or a gift subscription to Wine Spectator. Finally, one of the ways John smartly got me into a west coast urban home was the promise of weekends in Central Coast wine country. California’s Central Coast is a good introduction to the Santa Ynez valley and the wineries and other attractions in the area. Once you're there, grab a copy of The California Directory of Fine Wineries / Central Coast in the hotel gift shop. No mention of the Central Coast is complete without Sideways. Sneak a peek of your favorite oenophile's shelves to see if they've read Rex Pickett's classic wine-country road novel; if not, give a copy along with its sequel Vertical. Another marquis name among oenophiles is Randall Grahm; his Been Doon So Long is as delightful as his wines are. Finally, perhaps the best paperbound wine country present is a cellar book, a set of label savers, and a nice pen.
Wine. A column about wine country gifts is incomplete without recommendations for a few bottles. As noted last month, 2009 and 2010 were spectacular vintages for California Pinot Noirs; any of the wines highlit in this column would be a welcome present or host gift. While I love all of those wines, I keep returning to Loring, Merry Edwards, Calera and the Hitching Post. White drinkers usually appreciate a good Chardonnay; try Ridge Estate Chardonnay 2010 or Gary Farrell Russian River Valley Chardonnay 2009/11. Few remember to gift dessert wine; try Bonny Doon's Le Vol des Anges or DEWN Viognier Port. Finally, New Year's Eve ascendant is the perfect reason to give sparkling wine. Cavicchioli Lambrusco Dolce, with its vivid red berry flavors and joyous magenta bubbles, is the very definition of celebration – if you can, present it with a pint of hothouse raspberries. If you want someone else to do your wine-gift pairing, Wine Country Gift Baskets does a lovely job of packaging wine-themed gift baskets. They are also wine-containing, so there are legal limits to states they can ship to. For anyone who assumes that gift basket wines tend to be eye-squint, Wine Country Gift Baskets offers selections from respected producers including Mondavi, Ferrari-Carano and Rodney Strong.
Finally, as you wrap your wine country gifts, take your cue from wine country elegance and remember that less is more. Keep the packaging simple. This year, we are wrapping our holiday gifts in gold-striped paper and adding simple bows in gold, scarlet or evergreen. Wine bags can be lovely but don't feel obligated to use them. Wine is a present in and of itself, so it is correct and lovely to take your cue from your sommelier when gifting, and presenting, a bottle of wine. Offer the bottle label forward, cradling the back of the bottle in one hand while steadying the bottom of the bottle with your other hand. Just as a wine glass is the setting for a pour of wine, so is the presentation of a bottle of wine the setting for the gift of wine.
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