Happy holidays to all even though it seems like bits of the season started to creep in just after the calendar turned September 1st, when a mountain of all things pumpkin spice appeared overnight at Albertson’s like mushrooms after a heavy rain. Honorable mention goes to all the ginormous X-mas bric-a-brac at Costco that hit the stores before Labor Day. Regardless, if you’re in search of holiday wine gift ideas, look no further.

First, some fabulous but not expensive wines that Carla and I enjoyed over the past year. Then a collection of pie-in-the-sky bottles in case you’re pressed into a “I have to spend too much money for a wine gift for someone” situation. Otherwise, if you’re interested in any of the wines listed but not sure where to find them, a quick look on winesearcher.com will reveal retailers who carry it, the price, and how they can ship it to you.

Now to the vino.

Holiday Wine Recommendations 2025

White wines

Here are three not-so-typical whites that were highlights from the past year.

• 2024 Benito Ferrara Greco di Tufo, “Vigna Cicogna,” Campania: Ferrara’s single vineyard Greco di Tufo is utterly delicious and one of my favorite white wines of the year. A must try.

• 2023 Kir-Yanni Assyrtiko, Macedonia: Greek wines from Assyrtiko have a unique combination of ripe fruit and high acidity with a touch of phenolics and an absurd level of volcanic minerality. Kir-Yanni’s is a bit more restrained than most. It’s sleek but still turbo-charged.

• 2022 Cerbaiona Gramatica Vermentino, Bolgheri: I’ve tasted Cerbaiona’s Brunello several times before, but never the Vermentino. I recently enjoyed a bottle with fellow MS, Myles Trapp, at the restaurant Loreto in LA—a Baja-inspired seafood/shellfish place. Both the wine and restaurant are highly recommended.

Pink wines

Pink wine is not seasonal. You may quote me on that. And you can never have too much of it. Here are three favorites from this past year.

• 2023 Conterno-Nervi Il Rosato, Piedmont: Cantine Nervi is owned by famed Barolo estate Giacomo Conterno. Their rosato is Nebbiolo-based and as serious as rosé gets.

• 2023 Schloss Gobelsburg Cistercien Rosé, Niederösterreich, Austria: Enjoyed several times last year but never better than when tasted at the winery in early April. Schloss Gobelsburg is one of Austria’s top wineries. Their Zweigelt-based Rosé is delightful and not expensive.

• 2022 Domaine Joseph Roty Marsannay Rosé, Burgundy: a superb Pinot Noir-based pink wine from one of the top producers in Burgundy.

Red wines

Three outstanding reds from different places. The Ridge Geyserville is relatively easy to find but you may need winesearcher.com to help with the other two.

• 2022 Domaine Anita Morgon, Chateau-Gaillard, Beaujolais: Not your typical lightweight Beaujolais that smells like strawberry crayons. The 2022 Domaine Anita Morgon is stuffed with blackberry fruit and savory herbs with a touch of stony earth. It’s also a reminder that Cru Beaujolais is one of the most versatile reds and delicious with food.

• 2022 Ridge Geyserville, Sonoma County: One of the first Zinfandels I ever tasted was the ’76 Ridge Geyserville. I had it at the Earle restaurant in Ann Arbor decades ago when Carla and I both bartended there. The Earle is still there and the Geyserville is still one of my favorite Zins.

• 2021 Paolo Scavino Barbera d’Alba “Affinato in Carati,” Piedmont: Although Barolo and Barbaresco get all the press, Barbera is the most widely planted grape in Italy’s Piedmont region. It’s also a red wine chameleon in that styles range from old school rustic and tannic, heavily-oaked and over-priced, and polished and elegant. Scavino’s Affinato is the latter, and only made in select vintages from the oldest plot of Barbera vines the winery owns.

Pie-in-the sky bottles

It’s bound to happen. You have to get your boss/father-in-law/fussy friend a bottle of wine as a holiday gift. The problem is that the recipient may know just enough about wine to be dangerous, and have expensive tastes on top of it. Fear not. Here’s a list of home run bottles sure to please. All are guaranteed to make the recipient say, “sure, he always looks like he got dressed in the dark, but that bottle of wine he gave me last Christmas was amazing.”

Bubbly

• NV Ruinart Brut Rosé Champagne: Gorgeous packaging and completely delicious wine. If you suspect the recipient might be put off by Rosé Champagne (qué?), you can always go for Ruinart’s non-vintage Blanc de Blancs which is equally thrilling and also attractively packaged.

• MV Krug Grand Cuvée Brut Champagne: One of the consistently great Champagnes and a sentimental favorite. Krug has supported the MS exam since almost the beginning. In fact, there is a Krug Cup awarded to anyone who passes all three parts of the M.S. Diploma Exam on their first attempt. It’s only been done 17 times in 56 years.

White wines

Your white wine gift could remind the recipient that they need to give insanely expensive White Burgundies a rest. There are too many other great white wines out there. Here are three of them.

• 2023 Cantine Terlano Pinot Bianco Riserva “Vorberg,” Alto Adige: I’m convinced that Cantine Terlano is the greatest white wine producer in Italy. Their Pinot Bianco Riserva “Vorberg” is easily one of the best wines made from the Pinot Blanc grape anywhere.

• 2022 Georg Breuer Riesling Berg Roseneck Grosses Gewächs, Rheingau: Before your brain goes all unfolded fitted sheet on you, a quick explanation. Georg Breuer is one of Germany’s top estates located in the Rheingau. Grosses Gewächs means Grand Cru. This is a great dry Riesling from one of Germany’s top vineyards. It’s layered, remarkably complex, and will hold its own next to any Grand Cru White Burgundy. I also think it’s a more delicious drink. Riesling usually is.

• 2023 Emrich Knoll Grüner Veltliner Loibner Vinotekfüllung Smaragd, Wachau, Austria: I know, it’s an even longer German wine name. But you can always ask Siri to read it to you, and AI to translate it. Regardless, this was one of the highlights from day one of my Austria trip last April. Grüner Veltliner is Austria’s most famed white grape/wine, and Emrich Knoll is one of the Wachau’s top wineries. Smaragd is the highest quality classification for Grüner Veltliner and Riesling in the Wachau. All of which means the 2023 Loibner Vinotekfüllung is ripe to the point of being unctuous, but completely dry with more than enough acidity to balance. It’s also rich, layered, and savory. In short, a wow. And yes, you can find it online.

Red wines

Here’s a trio of brilliant reds to steer your ritzy recipient away from the Cabernet Sauvignon paradigm-centric universe (thank you, Randall Graham).

• 2019 Il Poggione Brunello di Montalcino Riserva “Vigna I Paganelli,” Tuscany: Sangiovese is my second favorite red grape/wine behind Pinot Noir. You might ask why I’m not including one of the great Red Burgundies on the list. The answer is because I don’t think you should have to hock one of your kids to pay for a bottle of wine. Ahem. Otherwise, Brunello is considered the top of the Tuscan Sangiovese pyramid, and Il Poggione one of the finest producers. It’s also one of my favorites. The 2019 Riserva is made from the estate’s oldest vineyard, “I Paganelli,” planted in 1964.

• 2020 Catena Zapata Malbec Adrianna Vineyard “River,” Gualtallery, Ucco Valley: I remember tasting the Adrianna Malbec at the Catena winery in Mendoza years ago. It was incredibly perfumed on the nose. The palate was weightless—concentrated and focused but not heavy. In short, it was a world-class red wine. Since that time, the Catena Zapata team has started to bottle different parcels of the Adrianna Vineyard. River is aptly named after a small section planted on the site of an ancient riverbed.

• 2021 Henschke Shiraz “Mount Edelstone,” Eden Valley: My visit to Henschke was one of the greatest single producer tastings I’ve ever experienced. Stephen Henschke opened over 20 wines for my group, most of them red and all made from vineyards over a century old. More than anything, I found Stephen’s mastery of red wine texture and tannin management to be unmatched. No surprise the winery’s legendary Hill of Grace Shiraz lived up to its billing as one of Australia’s two greatest red wines. But I found the Mt. Edelstone Shiraz to be just as impressive. The wine is produced from un-grafted, dry-farmed vines planted in 1912. The 2021 is full-bodied and elegant with a rich, satiny texture, and plush tannins. It’s beyond delicious.

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Make the perfect holiday wine and food pairings.