Wine gift

Choosing wine for a gift is a point of stress for many people, but it shouldn’t be. Adam Lechmere sets out ground rules to buying for oenophile friends

One of the drawbacks – if I can call it that – of being a wine writer is that you don’t get given wine any more. This sounds like a whinge, but it’s not meant to: I am sent hundreds of bottles a year, some splendid, some less so, by wine producers and their PR machines. But here I’m talking about the civilian side of things – the dinner guests who turn up with nothing but a box of Roses (the chocolates, that is…) saying ‘Oh, we wouldn’t dare bring you wine…’

Of course, you don’t want to pitch up with just anything from the corner shop (if in doubt, get Campo Viejo Rioja. Every mini-mart in Europe has to carry it, by law, and it is never disappointing), but we wine writers do love to be brought a bottle now and again. But what should you choose?

First, fi nd out what your wine-loving friend likes and see if you can play on that theme. For example, I love the reds of the south of France – the hot, juicy garrigue fl avours of Languedoc
– so something special from there, say the Domaine Peyre Rose Clos Syrah Léone, would be a wonderful gift for me if you were looking to splash out.

Rarity is another criteria to consider when looking for gifts. Peyre Rose wines are diffi cult to fi nd; its owners don’t exactly court publicity, and don’t need to – wine merchants seek them out. Their wines are also expensive, but rarity doesn’t always need to come with a huge price tag.

Recently I met Stephanie Toole, who makes some of Australia’s finest riesling, shiraz and cabernet at Mount Horrocks in the Clare Valley and for the past 20 years has restricted production to roughly 4,500 cases a year. I have recommended her exceptional semillon below. A bottle of that opened before Christmas lunch would be just perfect.

Toole has just planted a hectare or two of Sicilian native nero d’avola (she went to Etna recently and noticed similarities to Clare). Winemakers love to experiment: you’ll find tempranillo and sangiovese in Australia, albariño in Santa Cruz, pinot noir in Minervois – I’ve recommended an intriguing New Zealand montepulciano below.

If you want to show your friend you have discernment as well as taste, a well-chosen Bordeaux is perfect. The trick is to go for slightly less-fêted estates. Try a bottle of St Julien third growth Château Lagrange 2005, which retails at around the £35 mark. While 2005 is one of the greatest vintages of the past 25 years, Lagrange – a very fi ne property – can’t command the prices of its more exalted neighbours.