We’ve got you covered for gifting every wine lover in your life.
On this episode of Sip Sip Hooray! the Marys are playing Santa’s helpers! We’ve been on the hunt for the perfect wine holiday gifts, from budget-friendly stocking stuffers to little indulgences, experiences, good reads and a few splurges.
We wanted to think outside the typical wine gift and inspire you to get creative gifting the wine lover in your life. We tried to have a broad price point range too, in hopes of providing inspiration for all pocketbooks.
Be warned, you may want to keep some of these to gift to yourself.
To be clear, we are not getting any kickbacks for promoting any of these gift ideas, and they are all chosen and in most cases, tested by us.
Don’t miss our exclusive discount codes for several of these gifts.
- WINE COOLER BAGS • Uashmama Wine Bag Carrying Tote & Wine Bag Cooler $46-$50 ($36-$40 for the bag, $10 for the chiller sleeve). Uashmama Ice-Cube Beverage Chiller $44
• Uashmama Al Fresco Wine Tote $119
• The Pill from Coming Soon New York $145 – Use discount code NEWFRIEND for 10% off.
- EXPERIENCES
• Virgin Experience Gifts – variety of price ranges. Use code SAVE25 for 25% off $150 or more
Experiences you can gift include Napa Valley hot air balloon rides, wine bike tours, yoga with goats, wine tasting afternoons, hands-on cheesemaking in Sonoma and more.
• Napa Valley Aloft hot air balloon rides &280-$300
- Wine Education classes – great for the budding wine enthusiast or connoisseur.
- Astor Center New York – in person classes. Sign up for emails for 10% off.
- San Francicso Wine School – in person and online classes
- Napa Valley Wine Academy – in person and online classes. Check the website for Black Friday deals being offered now!
- Create a custom experience. Many local wine shops and restaurants offer special wine tastings, classes, winemaker visits or dinners. Book a spot for your friend or family member, and even yourself so you can go to the event together.
- GAMES
• Water and Wines wine puzzles $49. Use code SIPSIPHOORAY for 15% off through January 31, 2025. Cannor combine with discounted items or other discount codes. Or, check the website for the Black Friday special of 3 puzzles for the price of 2 puzzles.
• Wine Wars: A Trivia Game for Wine Geeks and Wannabes $26 at Amazon.
- BOOKS
• The World in a Wineglass by Ray Isle, Listen to Ray’s episode on Sip Sip Hooray!
• White Wine: The Comprehensive Guide to the 50 Essential Varieties and Styles by Mike DeSimone and Jeff Jenssen. Listen to the World Wine Guys on Sip Sip Hooray!
• The Rebel School of Wine: A Visual Guide to Drinking with Confidence by Tyler Balliet.
• Fire + Wine: 75 Smoke-Infused Recipes from the Grill with Perfect Wine Pairings by Mary Cressler and Sean Martin.
- MAGAZINES AND NEWSLETTERS
• The Feiring Line by Alice Feiring Substack newsletter. Listen to Alice’s episode on Sip Sip Hooray!
• Tom Wark’s Fermentation Substack newsletter. Listen to Tom’s episode on Sip Sip Hooray!
• Steven Mirassou’s Wine Saves Lives Substack newsetter. Listen to Steven’s episode on Sip Sip Hooray!
• Karen MacNeil’s Winespeed newsletter. Listen to Karen’s episodes – on The Wine Bible and on Come Over October on Sip Sip Hooray!
- WINE CLUB GIFTS
• Iron Horse Vineyards Sparkling Wine Club Gift Subscription $399. Listen to Joy Sterling’s episode on Sip Sip Hooray!
• Big Basin Vineyards Explorer Wine Club – 2 bottles per release, average $75. Listen to Bradley Brown’s episode on Sip Sip Hooray!
• Fuil Wines Wine Club. You can gift by the number of shipments per year, with 3- or 6-bottles per shipment. Listen to Matt and Carolina’s episode on Sip Sip Hooray!
- WINE BOTTLE GIFT SETS
• Justin Vineyards & Winery 2021 ISOSCELES in Triangle Box with Wine Glasses $125
• Justin Vineyards & Winery The Sweetest Gift $90 – housemade Justin chocolate truffles and 2022 Justification Cabernet Franc Merlot blend.
• Laurent-Perrier La Cuvee Brut & Perfect Treats Basket $109 at Wine.com
• Valdemar Estates Signature Paella Gift $149. Recipe for seafood paella comes with kit. For Valdemar family chicken and chorizo recipe see below.
• Xander Soren Wines Holiday Sampler Pinot Noir 3-pack $195. Use code SIPSIP to bypass membership requirement to order this gift.
Includes 2019 Central Coast Cuvée, 2020 XANDER Santa Barbara and 2020 Olivet Lane Vineyard, Russian River Valley
- GLASVIN WINE DECANTER AND CHAMPAGNE GLASSES – all are dishwasher safe. Use code SIPSIPHOORAY10% at checkout for 10% off.• The Decanter $75• The Champagne $79
9. SKINCARE
• Vintner’s Daughter Active Botanical Serum $19
10. STOCKING STUFFERS
• Whimsical Animal Wine Pourers from Menagerie $34.95
• Merlot Infused Coffee Beans from Common Goods $22
• Vintner’s Kitchen Wine Rub Gift Box $25 set of 6 rubs
• Skordo Wine Pairing Sea Salts Set $36 for set of 4
Valdemar Family Chicken and Chorizo Paella Recipe
“While this is not a traditional Valencian paella, we serve this at Valdemar Estates in Walla Walla. We encourage all to add ingredients they prefer, either vegetables or meats. Paella is meant to be enjoyed by friends and family and served with a great bottle of wine!” – Jesús Martínez Bujanda Mora as done at Valdemar Estates
Yield: 4 servings
Olive oil
1-2 pounds boneless, skin-on chicken thighs (about 4 pieces)
Green beans (ideally snow peas)
Chorizo, cut in 1⁄4 inch pieces
1 cup Sofrito or Salmorreta
Chicken broth
11⁄4 – 13⁄4 cups of rice*
1⁄4 teaspoon Saffron
Rosemary sprigs (for garnish)
Step 1
Preheat oven to 350°. Set a 16-inch paella pan over flame until it is very hot and add atablespoon of olive oil. Pat chicken dry and place in the pan, skin side down, until very crispy. Flip and cook a couple more minutes until browned. Remove the pieces and place on an oven-safe pan and transfer to the oven to finish cooking, about 15-20 minutes.
Step 2
In same paella pan, add more oil if needed. Add the green beans and cook for around 4 minutes. Add chorizo and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add Sofrito or Salmorreta. Stir well and add the broth (see note). Add the saffron (break into dust) and warm the broth until there is an even boil all over the pan.
Step 3
Add the rice, moving ingredients as needed so it distributes evenly. Cook for 16-18 minutes. Fire should be strong during the first 10 minutes and then medium to finish the cooking, thiscan vary depending on the amount of broth you see in the pan. Cook until the broth evaporates and the rice is tender. Stir to mix the ingredients. Remove the chicken from the oven and slice. Place the chicken slices over the paella pan along with the rosemary (if using) and plate.
Serve with the Conde Valdemar Reserva 2016 or the Valdemar Estates Entre Nosotros Cabernet Sauvignon 2021.
*If using Matiz paella rice, use about 2 1/2 times broth vs rice. If using Bomba rice use 3 1/2 times broth vs rice.