WINE merchants will not thank me for saying so, but at Christmas, predictability, mind numbing as a hangover, seems to settle over the trade. Out come the classics - the ports and clarets, the Burgundies and champagnes - alongside themed sets (Spanish Stars, Australian Aces). The whole concept of wine presents is strait jacketed - usually into an expensive wooden box. Where's the thrill of discovery wine lovers crave?
Unless you're prepared to spend a large sum on one of the great classics (in a good vintage), I think most wine fans would prefer an intriguing, carefully chosen bottle to a familiar big name.
And, generally speaking, they'd run a mile from any kind of themed presentation selection, (which, would surely contain something they didn't like). What is needed to make their eyes light up further something slightly unusual which they may not have tasted before, or a wine with insider cachet the sort of thing aficionados rave about and wine merchants barely sell.
At the lower end of the price scale, there are some small, Christmassy bottles around which make nifty stocking fillers.
As for the fancy boxes why not stand out from the crowd by devising an original presentation package of your own? You could, for instance, encase the chosen bottle in a rolled cop of Decanter magazine (Irish subscription £46). You could wrap three bottles in gold and silver tissue paper and lay them in Oxfam's rushwork Bangladeshi filing tray, (£4.95) - useful, later, for tasting notes. Also in Oxfam are colourful Pakistani slipper socks (£4.95 in to one of which might be slipped a bottle of Amarone for cosy late night consumption . . . Think for five minutes and you'll come up with a stream of ideas, far more innovative and personal than a mass produced box.
There are plenty of other good wine gifts apart from bottles, of course. Few people ever seem to have quite enough glasses (drinking as a hobby being a fragile business), or exactly the sort of glasses they would like. Books about wine are generally welcome, too, except in cases where the recipient gets five copies of the same thing. If there's any risk of that, I hope you can pluck some alternative ideas from the lists below.
10 OF THE BEST ... BOTTLES
ABOUT £5
Calem Vintage Character Port for Two (Foleys, Grogans and offlicences, £3.69-£3.99, Dunnes Stores six packs only, £21.99):
What a smart stocking filler idea this quarter bottle is! There's a Calem Fine Rubyport at a lower price, but it's worth the extra 70p for a step up in quality.
Christmas Pudding Wine, Zimmermann Grueff Auslese NV (Roches, Molloys, Verlings, Bennetts Howth, Londis Malahide, Callans Dundalk, Old Stand Mullingar and other outlets, about £5.99).
I'm not convinced about this with plum pud, but it would be lovely with a Christmas ice cream orangy light fruity dessert - and it comes in the tallest, most elegant bottle you'll see this season.
ABOUT £10
d'Arenberg The Dry Dam Riesling 1996 (Vintry, Carvills, Farm Produce, Supervalus Raheny & Deansgrange, Village Vine Howth and other outlets, £7.99 £8.50).
Riesling is seriously stylish, among wine, lovers, with the New World winning over new converts. This tangy, almost sherbetty Australian just the thing to close an overworked Christmas palate.
Trimbach Gewurztraminer 1993 (many off licences, usually £9.99).
Good Alsace Gewurztraminer is another sure fire hit with wine buffs. The recipient can even enjoy arguing about whether or not to drink it with the Christmas smoked salmon ... See Bottle Of The Week.
Quinta do Poco do Lobo Bairrada, Caves S. Joao, 1987 (Superquinn, £10.99):
An absolute treat, and perhaps a revelation to anybody still inclined to view Portuguese red wines as coarse and tannic or New Worldly and anonymous. Made by one of the country's leading traditional wineries, this single quinta Bairrada is refined, almost delicate, with wonderful sweet fruit and layers of flavour.
ABOUT £15
Domaine Muller Pinot Gris: 1993 (Mitchells, £14.95):
Austria, Europe's great undiscovered treasury of wine, has just begun to show Ireland how accomplished it can be. Here's a dazzling white, smooth and subtly spicy, with flavours of ginger and lemon that go on and on. Buy two and keep one!
Domaine du Petit yal Bonnezeaux 1995 (Terroirs, £15.99):
Dessert wine - now there's a major favourite. And this is far more unusual than all too obvious Musat de Beaumes de Venise. Smooth, unctuous Chenin Blancbased nectar from the Coteaux de Layon.
Masi Amarone della Valpolicella Classico 1993 (some Superquinns, Dublin Wine Co Malahide, Foleys, Cooneys, Lynchs Glanmire, SuperValu Eyre Square Galway and other outlets, £14-14.50). It's rare to meet a wine lover who doesn't have a weakness for Amarone, the Veneto's famous (and potent) speciality, made from air dried grapes. Masi's is a Christmas cracker.
ABOUT £20-£25
Cristom Pinot Noir Reserve, Willamette Valley, 1993 (McCabes, £22).
New World Pinot is another hot topic among wine enthusiasts, with Oregon producing some of the finest (and admittedly most expensive) examples. This one offers wonderful aromas and flavours to unravel. A seductive delight.
Torres Gran Coronas Mas la Plana 1989 (McCabes, Verlings, Deveneys and many good off licences, about £25, also Direct Wine Sipents, Belfast).
Yes it is a classic but in the claret and Burgundy rush Spain's most impressive reds are sometimes over looked. The famous black label from Miguel Torres has fantastic depth and power.
BEST ... GLASSES & GLASSWARE
Stylish all rounder: the Primavera Rosso has a tall straight stem, a generous bowl and glass that's neither too thick nor too nerve shatteringly thin (£13 for two, widely available).
Champagne and sparkling wine bargain, a tall, classically elegant flute (Habitat, £2.50).
Essential equipment: at classes all over the country, people are learning to taste wine using the narrow 150 glasses which curve in to trap aromas. Very presentable they are, too - not to say cheap. (Stock and some other outlets, £2.50 each; box of 6, £15).
Creme de la creme: even cynics admit that the glasses designed by Georg Riedel in specific shapes to suit different wines are taste enhancers. Why don't you and your beloved give each other a Sommelier Grand Cru Burgundy or Bordeaux glass, so that you can sip together in ecstasy (Mitchells, £39.50)?
Most striking decanter - but only for water: a tall, stoppered carafe in stunning aquamarine blue glass by Schott Zwiesel (Verlings, £12).
BEST... OTHER IDEAS.
Clever corkscrews: the Screwpull range really is hard to beat - easy on effort and, non violent to corks (widely available, starting price around £10).
Snazzy jewellery handmade in Ireland for a range of adornments which, includes a pretty silver brooch in the form of a glass (£45) and matching cufflinks (£80).
Savings scheme: the Frizzo isn't just an utilitarian stopper to keep the bubbles, in champagne or sparkling wine, but a thing of striking beauty - a cone of shiny steel topped with a jewel like perspex ball (Kitchen Complements, £16.50)
Class act: with wine appreciation classes all the rage, most enthusiastic imbibers would enjoy the present of a course. The Wine Development Board (tel 01 280 4666) runs them at all levels in 11 regional centres and five Dublin locations (from £95 for six weeks, gift vouchers available).
Home tuition: if I had a VCR, I'd watch Jancis Robinson's Wine Course, from the BBC2 series last year, over and over again. Interviews with some of the most intriguing figures in the wine world and a visual feast. Not yet in some major video outlets, but Verlings have it (double cassette, £20).