Wine as a Christmas gift: how to choose the right bottle

A bottle of wine is always a welcome Christmas gift: a well-chosen bottle speaks of conviviality, care and taste, and it gets shared at the table during the holidays. Choosing the right one is not always easy, though. Here is our advice on finding the wine to give to friends, family and colleagues, with the wines of Cantina Museo Albea, the winery of Alberobello in the heart of Puglia.

How to choose a wine to give

Start from the taste of the person receiving it. Do they prefer fruity wines or drier ones? Young reds or reds aged in wood? Do they enjoy sparkling wine? Answering these questions narrows the choice straight away.

Think about the occasion. For Christmas Eve dinner, traditionally based on fish, a fresh white or a sparkling wine is perfect. For Christmas lunch, with rich first courses and meat, you need a structured red. For the toast and dessert, sparkling wine.

Set a budget. A good wine to give does not have to be expensive: further down you will find our suggestions by price range.

A fine red wine to give

For lovers of serious reds, Lui is our most precious gift: a Nero di Troia from the Iconica range, aged 10 months in barriques, intense and long, with notes of violet and liquorice. The 2017 vintage was awarded 5 grappoli by the Bibenda 2020 guide.

Sol is a Primitivo from Gioia del Colle made with partly dried grapes and aged 15 months in barriques: sour cherry, dried figs and vanilla, with a velvety finish. 9cento is a Negroamaro made with dried grapes, almost opaque in the glass and with great structure, perfect with full-flavoured meat and aged cheeses, and able to improve over the years. For an elegant Primitivo there is Petranera, aged 6 months in barriques and 5 in the bottle.

A white for Christmas Eve dinner

Lei is a structured white, aged 8 months in barriques and 6 in the bottle: the nose starts spicy and then opens onto floral and fruity notes, and the palate is silky and smooth. For a fresher gift, Il Selva, a Locorotondo DOC Superiore, is floral and mineral, ideal with fish and seafood. The Verdeca Valle d'Itria from the Due Trulli range smells of green apple and pineapple and is perfect as an aperitif.

Sparkling wines for the toast

There is no Christmas without a toast. Odegitria is our traditional-method sparkling wine: it rests 48 months on its lees and smells of yellow-fleshed fruit, from plum to pineapple and citron. Ruffiano is a brut made from Fiano, with a fine perlage, fresh and fruity. R'osé is a brut rosé sparkling wine made from Uva di Troia, with fresh minerality.

Gift ideas for every budget

Up to 15 euros. All the wines in the Due Trulli range, devoted to Puglia's native grapes: Verdeca, Primitivo, Negroamaro, Nero di Troia and Susumaniello rosé. Or Il Selva, Ruffiano, R'osé, Comeluna and Petrarosa.

Between 15 and 20 euros. The Primitivo di Manduria DOC, Petranera, the Susumaniello red, Lei, Gran Maestoso, awarded at the Asia Wine Trophy 2023, 9cento and Signature Cuvée.

Over 20 euros. Odegitria, Sol and Lui, the most important wines of our winery.

The price ranges refer to our online shop and may change: you will find the current price on each wine's page.

Several bottles in one gift

An idea that always works is to give several wines together, so the recipient can discover different styles. For example, a Verdeca, a Susumaniello rosé and a Nero di Troia from the Due Trulli range, for a short journey through Puglia's native grapes, or a white, a red and a sparkling wine to cover every moment of the holidays.

A gift to experience

If the person you are buying for loves discovering wine country, you can plan a visit together to our winery and the Wine Museum in Alberobello, with a tasting of our wines.

Whether it is a serious red, a fresh white or a sparkling wine, every bottle is the right way to raise a glass together over the holidays. Merry Christmas from Cantina Museo Albea.