Still, I understand that you can’t blow all your cash on lil’ ol’ you -- at least not until Dec. 26 or so. That’s why this chardonnay is such a perfect purchase.

While you need good wine this week, subtly won’t cut it. You need a wine that says, “I am yummy, and you don’t need to dig or have the nose of a bloodhound to notice.”

The first unsubtle thing about this wine is its sinus-clearing alcohol level, which is well above 14%. Next, it has oak and vanilla for days.

But, it’s not just a tropical fruit and butter bomb. The fruit here has rich pear that even approaches fig, but is kept lively with a little peach and some citrus. And the finish lasts through most of the 12 days of Christmas.

If you’re dreaming of a white that pairs all the decadence of a California chardonnay with some real winemaking skill AND an a price tag that allows you to buy other people presents, too, your gift just came early.

Cheers,
TSW

I hear you. You say you don’t have time to shop for wine because you’ve got too much last-minute Christmas shopping to do.

I say: You need to shop for wine because you have last-minute shopping to do.

Nothing is worse than coming home after some holiday hand-to-hand combat at the mega-mall and having mediocre wine waiting for you.

When you’ve spent the day doing the shopping triathlon – consisting of: the 100-meter dash toward the last Tickle-Me-Right-Here-Yes-Oh-Yes-That’s-It-Elmo; the one-hour stand-in-a-line-for-a-register, where everyone ahead of you has something that needs to be retuned; and archery – coming home to a lousy bottle of wine could push you right over the edge and out of the seasonal spirit (or into the spirits, which would likely impair your ability to wrap presents).

In all likelihood, whatever you have lying around the house just ain’t good enough this week.