Which wine to give as a Christmas present? Here's how to avoid the biggest mistakes
How to target the recipient's tastes without throwing money away: from 'wine derbies' to fortified wines, the most important thing is to avoid unnecessary excesses
2' min read
2' min read
In a year of uncertainty and an overt decline in wine consumption, some good news comes from the shelves of wine shops in the run-up to the Christmas holidays. There is in fact a discrete flow of customers (at least in line with last year) and this gives hope for a slightly less critical end to 2024 than the ominous forecasts based on the figures of a few months ago. In short, the habit of buying Christmas presents in wine shops lives and fights with us! The important thing, at this point, is how to target the tastes of the next person, without throwing precious money away.
To begin with, a heartfelt piece of advice: avoid dealcoholic wines like the plague. Let me explain myself better before slipping into collective derision: since the doctor hasn't ordered you to drink wine (or maybe you don't like it or can't drink it for health reasons), you can always turn to other types of gifts, such as good books, succulent plants, room perfumers, jewellery and so on. I would add that since the widespread mood is centred on so-called natural wine, be aware that to deal with it you need technical processes that have nothing natural about them. At this point and for similar reasons, I also advise against wooden crates and glass bottles that are too heavy; they are all indefensible in terms of sustainability and care for the environment.
Special formats, on the other hand, are beautiful and prestigious, but stop at the magnum if you don't finish first at the Monza Grand Prix because from there on they become hardly usable furnishing accessories, which will end up in a dusty corner of the living room like silver frames and trays.
Another thing: Beware of pre-Christmas offer emails from all over the place, with poor reliability that usually clog the inboxes of companies planning Christmas gifts. These are offers of 'unobtainable' wines sold at modest prices by 'private individuals' or second-hand distributors. So pay attention to them, because they can turn out to be huge swindles; and in any case, it is always better to rely on those who are on the market with a name and a brand to defend, according to history and tradition.
There is a growing interest in fortified wines, which I like very much and lend themselves to popular gift ideas. I am referringto Port, Sherry and Madeira, without forgetting our great Marsala, since we are in Italy and I have a love for this flag.
