Hey guys!
Holiday season is here, and we wanted to share a few things we’re excited about; from fun gift ideas to bottles sizes for holiday parties, and a producer we’ve been loving. Hope you enjoy 🍷
Holiday Gift Ideas for Your Favorite Wine Lover 🎁
A wine gift guide for the holidays this year
We’re not exactly pros at making gift guides, but if we had to choose a few things for someone who loves wine, these would be our picks:
1.) Lab Equipment Decanter
These are some of our favorite vessels to use as decanters. They’re durable, dishwasher-friendly, and incredibly easy to store, plus they give you a little flashback to chemistry class.
2.) Opinel Corkscrew Knife Combo
Our dad showed us these knives years ago, back before COVID, and we’ve been hooked ever since. They’re incredibly well-made and come from Savoie, one of our favorite regions in France. When I went to the Jura back in March, practically every single winemaker had one. Now that there’s a version that doubles as a wine key, it feels like the perfect gift. You can slice cheese and open a bottle of wine in one go.
3.) Spilled: Natural Winemakers Stories & Recipes
Probably our favorite wine book release of the year. Part recipe book, part journal, part gallery, Spilled has a little bit of everything, and it makes a great read for anyone who loves wine.
4.) Le Chat Noir Poster
In general, I’ve been loving Art Deco posters lately, and Le Chat Noir is a personal favorite. My brother has a huge one hanging in his apartment, and it really makes the place feel like a cozy 1920s cocktail bar.
5.) Knit Wine Bottle Cover
These make a really fun gift for the blind taster in your life. If you’re handy with a crochet hook you could probably make one yourself, but there are plenty of great options on Etsy, Amazon, and beyond.
Pictured: Knit Bottle Cover by @neomicrochet IG
A Guide to Bottle Sizes ⬆
A necessary guide with the holidays right around the corner
Now that the holidays are here, there’s never been a better time to pick up a few large format bottles. They’re perfect for bigger gatherings; they’re part wine, part party trick. Here’s a quick rundown of the sizes you’ll see most often:
Pictured: Wine Bottle Sizes. Image by Wall Street Journal
Half-Bottle 375 mL Size:
A fun, practical option when you don’t want to commit to a full bottle. A half-bottle gives you about 2-3 glasses and is perfect for dessert wines, weeknights, or trying something special.
Pictured: 375 mL Bottle
Standard 750 mL Size:
Your everyday bottle. Holds 5-6 glasses and is the universal size for most still and sparkling wines. Easy to store, easy to share, and the baseline for how all other bottle formats are measured.
Magnum 1.5L Size:
The go-to size for a group of 3-4. A magnum equals two standard bottles, about 10-12 glasses, and the larger volume helps the wine age more slowly and more gracefully. Plenty of people swear that wines taste better in magnum, which I agree with. The perfect size for a dinner party.
Pictured: 1.5L Bottles
Jeroboam 3L Size:
This is where it starts to get fun. This bottle size can be quite a statement. It holds four standard bottles or about 20-24 glasses. In Bordeaux, this is sometimes called a Double Magnum; in Champagne and some other regions, it’s called a Jeroboam. Either way, it’s built for a crowd.
Pictured: 3L Bottle
Methuselah/Imperial 6L Size:
One step up from the Jeroboam, a this holds eight standard bottles (or about 40-48 glasses) of wine. It’s iconic in Champagne for special releases and shows up in Burgundy and Bordeaux for top-tier wines meant to age. I don’t think I’ve ever actually had wine from a bottle this big, and you sometimes need a whole rig to pour it, it’s that heavy. If you’re opening one, make sure you’ve got a crowd.
Whatever size bottle you end up opening this holiday season, we hope it’s a great one. A fun idea we do every holiday season; hand out a chalk marker and have everyone sign the bottle at the end of the night, it makes for a memorable party favor.
Producer Highlight ⭐
One of our favorite parts of wine is the discovery: we’re constantly being put on to new regions, producers, and cuvées from our friends. We’ll never be able to try EVERY wine, but we want to take a moment to mention some producers that excite us!
Niepoort 🍷
Location: Porto, Douro, Portugal 📍
Pictured: Douro, Portugal. Image by Bottlerocket
In the world of Portuguese wine, few names feel as enduring or influential as Niepoort. Based in Porto and still family-run since the mid-19th century, the estate is now led by Dirk Niepoort, one of the country’s most recognizable and forward-thinking figures. Born into a long Port tradition, he made his first vintage in the late 1980s and has since helped expand the family’s reach into dry wines across the Douro and Dão. Even with that growth, Port remains the soul of the house.
Pictured: Niepoort Family. Image by Vinello
What truly sets Niepoort apart is its longstanding collaboration with the Nogueira family, who have overseen the blending and aging of the Ports from the very beginning. Now in its fifth generation, with Rodrigo Nogueira guiding the cellar work, they manage the historic operation where the wines age slowly over years and decades. After fermentation, the young wines rest until spring, when a small tasting committee decides their direction: toward the fresher, fruity Ruby styles or the more structured, long-aging Tawny side, which includes the 10 and 20 year bottlings.
Pictured: Niepoort Lineup. Image by Dhall & Nash Fine Wines
In a landscape where only a handful of Port houses remain family-owned, Niepoort stands out as a bridge between history and the present. The house is rooted in tradition yet always evolving and always committed to the craft.
Pictured: “Nat Cool” by Niepoort. Image by Astor Wines
Our first encounter with Niepoort came early in our wine journey. Their “Nat Cool” line, which are affordable 1L bottles you’ll often spot at local shops, quickly became a go-to for us. Months later, we realized they’re even more revered for their Port than their regular wines. They’re a true legacy producer in the world of Port, and if you ever get the chance to try one of their wines, it’s absolutely worth it.
Wine Club Updates 🍷 📦
Can’t believe it’s already December! Hope you’ve been enjoying the selections so far. We’re really excited about this month’s lineup and can’t wait for you to try them out. If you have any questions or run into anything at all, you can reach out to [email protected]
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That’s it for today! Heading on an exciting trip to Bangkok and Singapore early this month and can’t wait to share my experiences with you all.
Thank so much for reading, and as always, drink responsibly! 🥂