On Holiday Wines
What I'm buying and drinking this season.
Welcome to the Tuesday UnRecipe post for all subscribers, about the wines I buy for holidays. On Friday, paid subscribers will receive a recipe for gingerbread cookies, which are one of my favorite seasonal bakes. As always, check out my past posts here and learn more about my day job here. Thanks for reading!
I hope you know by now: I love wine. I especially love thoughtfully-made natural wines and chilled reds, but I’m happy as long as there’s a decent, dry wine on the menu anywhere we go. When we travel, I search out small, independently-owned wine stores and ask those people where to eat and drink in town. They always have incredible, thoughtful recommendations, and they understand on a deep, personal level what it means to seek well-made food and drink. Wine people are good people.
I’m lucky to know several amazing proprietors who own fabulous wine stores here in Chicago (CC: BottlesUp!, Vinissimo, Diversey Wine). I’m even luckier that they know me and my tastes well enough to recommend a bottle for me no matter what the occasion, season, or price range. This is just one of the perks of shopping at a small, locally-owned business: they know you! They also know, in many cases, the people who make the wine, the people who import it, and the people who distribute it. They can tell you the story of the wine before it hit their shelves AND they can tell you the story of how this wine will fit into your life and onto your table. It’s a beautiful thing.
Holiday season means that I’m stocking up on wines every time I stumble into one of these shops. You can never have *too* many bottles of delicious, interesting wine on hand, to open when a friend drops by, to gift to the friend who has everything else, to pop open to celebrate making it through another sub-zero Chicago day. Here are my favorites for the season (and beyond!):
Reds
I love red wine, but I’m incredibly picky about what reds I drink. In my old age, I cannot handle heavy, boozy reds. If a wine is over 14.5% ABV, I’m going to struggle through half a glass and then give up. On the other hand, if a wine clocks in somewhere closer to 12%, I’ll happily drink half of the bottle in one night. I realize this doesn’t make sense. I can only explain it by telling you that I cannot sit through a two-hour movie without getting up at least four times, but I will happily rot on the couch without moving for six episodes of The Office. The math doesn’t math, but I am what I am.
Anyway, back to red wines! These are all juicy and young-ish, which make for easy drinking and versatile pairings. If you’re looking for big, bold Cab Sauvs or Super Tuscans, you’ll need to veer far, far away from this list.
Classic, Crowd Pleaser
Lioco 2022 Mendocino County Pinot Noir
Extremely easy-drinking and lighter than you’d think, especially considering the weather when these grapes were picked. This goes well before dinner, during dinner, and even after the meal ends but before dessert comes out. She’s gorgeous, she’s affordable, she’s made with minimal intervention. Perfection!
The Funky, Fun One
Wow, this was SUCH a fun bottle. It’s only funky in that it’s a co-ferment, meaning that different types of grapes are used—muscat and mourvedre, in this case, inspiring the M&M name. The taste is bright, young, crazy fruity, and light. Colin and I crushed a bottle in a night, and I’m headed back to buy more this week. A great, light bottle to pop at 4:00 for happy hour with games and snacks.
Double Trouble
Two Shepherds Carignan & Carbonic Carignan
I met William Allen at an Off Soif tasting event here in Chicago where he was pouring his wines before he even had distribution in the area. Now, I’m pleased to say, he not only has plenty of distribution in the area but a loyal following from myself and a few friends, who consistently buy his wine, bring bottles as party favors, and reminisce about how much fun it was to chat with him. These wines are absolutely lip-smackingly delicious, and best of all, they don’t try to overcomplicate the delivery. Just good wines. Done. Buy literally anything made by them and put it on the table wherever you go.
Whites/Oranges
I’m lumping white and orange wines together for this list! I always try to have at least one bottle of non-red wine around for guests who prefer something else, and these are my go-tos to have on hand.
Two Falanghina
Okay, I’m biased (the winemakers at Poggio La Noce are friends and clients). But truly, this is the white wine against which I measure all white wines: it’s salty and mineral-heavy. There’s not a trace of sweetness here, just a delicious, savory nectar that I dream about drinking on a piazza by the sea while eating fresh, salty sea food.
Azienda Agricola San Salvatore Falanghina
I tried this recently and fell in love. It’s the perfect white wine to pair with food, in my humble opinion: full of beautiful saltiness and herby zip. Put it on the table and watch the white wine haters in your life convert one by one.
The Splurge Orange
Maria & Sepp Muster - Erde 2019
I’ve been gifted this bottle twice and each time, there’s a moment of silence when the gifting happens. That’s how special this wine is! Of course, it comes in a clay bottle, which makes it fun and intriguing to begin with, but when you open it, the truly unique nature of this wine shines through. A great present!
Sparkling
I love sparkling anything, and over the last year, I’ve found myself insistent that we have at least one bottle of sparkling something on hand at all times. Weirdly, I have a few people in my life who don’t like carbonation (are they okay!!), so this is strangely not the crowd-pleaser section of my house wine portfolio. But, that being said, sparkling wine tends to be popular with most people, especially during tinsel season, so grab a few of these bottles to pop over the next few weeks for sure.
My All-Time Favorite
Raventós i Blanc Blanc de Blancs
I’ve had this bottle on hand more often than not over the last few years. It’s my go-to for everything from a weeknight spur-of-the-moment celebration to Christmas dinner parties. It is so, so good: crisp, bubbly, acidic, and dry as a bone. I’m literally about to go pour a glass right now. It. Is. Perfection!
Funky Sparkler
I had the pleasure of meeting the makers of this fantastic wine when we visited LA and ate at Lasita for one of the best dinners I’ve had. I’m not a fan of kombucha-like pét-nats, but rest assured: this isn’t that. Not by a long shot. It’s light and juicy and not-too-sweet and fresh as hell. It stands up equally well to flavorful food and long afternoon debates about the best way to cook a turkey. If I ever see this wine in stores, I immediately buy it, even if I have a bunch of other bottles on deck. That’s how good it is!
The Cider!
A few weeks ago, I was in a shop and asked for something that my family, who have wildly different tastes, would all have a sip of on Thanksgiving. He presented me with this bottle, and let me tell you: it was as close as you can get to a home run with a crowd I for which have never once picked a universally satisfying bottle. We had a tiny sip for a toast midday before we started cooking, and it was so good that we drank it right through dinner. In vintage sundae glasses, nonetheless, which made it taste better! Extremely light, delicate bubbles, low sweetness, but a brilliantly clear pear flavor: it tasted like a carbonated essence of pear in the best way, and I think it would smash on any holiday table.
Whew! Thanks for sticking with me there. Wine, as I’ve said before, is extremely intimidating to write about, but I love learning about it and tasting it to share with others. See you back here on Friday for gingerbread cookies!
I was just in Chicago but the next time I’m there I’d love to visit your wine shops! Oh, and the same goes for when you’re next in Rome🥂🍾