Plenty of variety - more than 1,000 handpicked wines. Plenty of enthusiasm - they can chat animatedly for hours about them all. No pretentiousness, though. Not a scrap of rubbish. Redmonds of Ranelagh solves Christmas present problems with a potent mixture of good judgment and good cheer. Last Christmas Eve one customer parted with £600 in three minutes flat, thrilled to seize on four bottles of Chateau LynchBages and four of Chateau Palmer after a quick chat about the best year to choose for immediate consumption. But although the classiest labels are here - MoutonRothschild, Penfolds Grange, Guigal's famous single vineyard CoteRoties, all in a profusion of vintages - there's nothing remotely snobbish about this family-run off-licence. The Redmond brothers, Jimmy and Aidan, spend as much time helping a student decide on a suitable gift at £6.99 as they do nurturing lavish spenders.
Which bottles sell best as presents? "Champagne is far and away our biggest single-bottle sale," says Jimmy Redmond. Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label Brut NV (£24.99) is the best seller overall - and it deserves to be, I think, offering consistent quality and finesse at not too steep a price. "The other thing we notice is that people with money to spend incline towards the classics of Bordeaux and Burgundy - and they usually know exactly what they want." This being so, I asked Redmonds to come up with half a dozen more offbeat suggestions - bottles bound to make a wine buff reach for the corkscrew. Whether you decide to make the trip to Ranelagh or not, it's an eye-opening, palate-whetting selection:
Chardonnay Grande Cuvee, Vin de Pays d'Oc, Laroche, 1997 (£7.59; also available from McCabes Merrion, Vintry Rathgar, Cheers-Gibneys Malahide, Bennetts Howth, Galvins Cork, Noble Rot Navan, Old Stand Mullingar, Ardkeen Waterford and other outlets). Shows what a Chablis winemaker can do in the sunny south of France. "A lovely, warmclimate white wine with well-integrated oak - great for Christmas foods," Jimmy Redmond says.
Domaine de Clairac Marsanne, Vin de Pays de l'Herault, 1994 (£9.79; also Good Food Store Ballsbridge, Treats Kenmare, Quay Co-op Cork and some other outlets). Decidedly different - a mature organic white wine which slowly reveals deliciously intense flavours. "Great body and length, but it doesn't swamp you."
Hochar Pere et Fils, Lebanon, 1994 (£9.59). The approachable second label of Lebanon's most highly acclaimed wine estate. "It's Chateau Musar in kids' clothing," Redmond says, "but there's no mistaking its origins."
Arnaldo B. Etchart, Cafayate, 1993 (£11.39; also Superquinn, some SuperValus and many independent off-licences). This beautifully concentrated, alluring red shows just how good Argentina can be at delivering wines of real quality. A great buy at the price.
Meerlust Rubicon, Stellenbosch, 1994 (£19.79). "Simply stunning," is the Redmond assessment of one of South Africa's most highly rated reds. "It's big, rich, complex, with Old World elegance." Hear, hear.
Seregho Alighieri Vaio Armaron Amarone della Valpoli cella 1988/1990 Amarone at its best - captivating with its endlessly unfolding flavours. As Jimmy Redmond says, "It just keeps giving you more and more." Superb.
Redmonds, 25 Ranelagh Road, Dublin 6, tel 01 4971739; fax 01 4978553.