The Sauce Christmas Gift Guide
Actually useful stuff
Honestly, I’ve been a bit conflicted about sending out a gift guide. There are so many of them out there. Your inbox is probably full of them.
For the longest time, I asked for nothing for Christmas and was a bit Scrooge-like about buying for others. It felt too transactional — I buy a $30 gift for you, you do the same for me. What’s the point?
But I’ve mellowed over the last few years. I’ll never be a fan of consumerism for the sake of consumerism, but I do find joy in giving small, thoughtful gifts to people I love.
And honestly, I love looking through well-curated gift guides —the kookier and small-business focused, the better.
There is little getting around the fact that Christmas convention dictates you will probably have to buy something for someone, and a little inspiration can go a long way.
If that person is someone who loves a food or drink, this guide should come in very handy indeed.
Rules of the guide
Everything has to come from an independent source. I’ve got nothing in here from Target or Walmart. Instead I have got some beautiful things from artisanal producers in Portugal, France and elsewhere.
If like me you don’t live in the US, you may be sick of US-centric guides. My rule was to include items you can find in other countries as well as the US. I don’t want anyone feeling left out here.
CROCKERY
Portugal is famous for its ceramics and one of the most famous artisanal companies for beautiful, handpainted homeware is Casa Cubista. Happily, they have stockists all over the world so it doesn’t matter if you live in Portugal or Pennsylvania, you can get hold of their stuff.
Everything is hand-painted and I’ve especially fallen in love with this plate which is on my own Christmas list.
BOOKS
Ixta is one of those chefs who exploded onto the UK food scene after working with the wonderful Yotam Ottolenghi. Happily, my MIL bought me her recipe book for my birthday and I’ve recreated what feels like half the book already in my kitchen.
Any book that is going to help you buy better wine is a good book in my book:
Another birthday gift from my MIL, Joshua McFadden is a wizard with vegetables. With this book, your recipient will never get scurvy.
I don’t know how many times I’ve recommended Grape Olive Pig. Author Matt Goulding — a contemporary of Anthony Bourdain who wrote the forward for this book — must be one of the best food writers out there. This is an amble through Spain and Spanish food culture that will grab at your heartstrings like nothing else.
Spending time in San Sebastian earlier this year reminded how much I adore the food of the Basque Country. This recipe book has been on my shelf for years because it is so damn good.
Recipes need somewhere to live so you might as well give them a good home. I’ve been a fan of Leuchtturm’s notebooks for years
SUBSCRIPTIONS & ONLINE GIFTS
One of the biggest questions I get asked as a wine writer is if I can recommend decent wines.
Yes, yes I can. And in this book, I do.
This is my “little black book of wineries” and it is the sum of my career. A directory of every single winery in the world I love (and drink on the regular). There are over 400 wineries in the book situated all over the world — Austria to Australia.
This is an instant downloadable PDF and at $16 via Etsy, it’s a brilliant virtual stocking filler.
Three Substack subscriptions that will make your cooking — and life — all the better:
Emily Nunn’s Department of Salad
Alicia Kennedy’s “From The Desk of Alicia Kennedy”
And of course, The Sauce, by me!
Medium just gets better and better. The platform now has over one million paid subscribers and some incredible writers are writing about everything from technology to personal essays to food to working life.
There is only one word for Noble Rot — a British wine magazine — and that is cool. Cool writing, cool photography, cool people in charge. If you’ve got someone to buy for who is into wine, this is the gift for them.
WINE
Out of all wines in the world, how do I choose just nine of them to feature here?
They have to be available in numerous different markets. All these are sold by the amazing Leon and Son in New York (who ships to much of the US) but they are also all available in the UK and EU.
I have to know them. Well. All of these I either sold in my own store or personally drink on the regular. Or both!
They have to be delicious. Believe me, every single one is a banger.
Prices by Leon & Son, New York (prices will differ in different markets). From left to right:
White
Domaine Goisot Bourgogne Aligote, Burgundy, France ($23) | Donhoff Riesling Trocken “Schlossbockelheim”, Nahe, Germany ($39.99) | Versante Nord, Sicily, Italy ($36) | Domaine de la Soufrandiere Pouilly Vinzelles, Burgundy, France ($69)
Red
Fabien Jouves “Tu Vin Plus Aux Soirees,” Cahors, France ($21.99) | Le Ragnaie “Troncone,” Tuscany, Italy ($24.99) | Envinate “Lousas,” Ribera Sacra, Spain ($42) | Fratelli Alessandria Barolo, Piedmont, France ($75) | Lopez de Heredia Vina Tondonia 2001 Reserva, Rioja, Spain ($114)
GLASSWARE
I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again, one glass is all you need.
Personally, I own the Spiegelau glass on the left, but I love the Schott Zweisel glass on the right too, and they’re a little cheaper.
Stockists are around the world, just Google to find one near you.
On the left: Spiegelau Definition universal glass
On the right: Schott Zweisel all round wine glass
