You know the most wonderful time of the year is upon us when the shopping malls put up their decorations, the red and green packages of coffee appear on the shelves at your neighborhood Starbucks, and holiday catalogs start arriving in the mail.
Many of the traditional catalogs have given way to e-commerce, but a number endure and entice me each year with a selection of gifts that span the spectrum from fun to practical. Some even include a handful of wine-themed gifts.
Let’s be honest: The best possible gift for a wine lover would be a bottle (or 12) of wine, and you can find many enticing options in the Vinesse wine shop. You’ll even find a selection of hand-selected gifts there sure to be fun and useful for any wine lover.
The Signals catalog, which is curated for and sent to fans and friends of Public Television, adds some whimsy to the gift-giving equation with personalized pour glasses that include lines for a person’s name, a long pour and a short pour.
Yes, the person’s name is placed along what would otherwise be considered a “high pour” line, with absolutely no room for swirling.
A similarly designed glass includes pour lines designated as, from bottom to top, “100 calories,” “150 calories,” “200 calories” and “Who Cares.”
These are fun ways to support Public Television, and the catalog also is available online at signals.com.
A creative way to save a favorite (empty) bottle… and get some practical use out of it… is with the Bottlelight from the Acorn catalog.
The top of the Bottlelight looks like a cork, while the bottom in an LED. Simply give it a twist, drop it into the neck of a bottle, and you have a unique lamp.
Acorn also offers the Brix Chocolate for Wine Gift Set. Dr. Nick Proia, an Ohio physician, loves to pair wine with food, but prefers to avoid cheese. Chocolate? Now that’s another story, since it shares antioxidant qualities with wine.
So the doctor blended his own chocolates and offers them in a set of four 4-ounce bars, complete with wine pairing suggestions.
If you can’t put your hands on a catalog, check out acornonline.com.
Then take a quick look at the calendar. The holidays will be here before you know it, which means the time to shop is now!
