Mother's Day Gift Ideas You Can Really "Sip" Into
Mother’s Day is just days away. Still stumped for gift ideas? We’ve got you. Our Mother’s Day collection is full to the brim with great bottles that are perfect for sharing, sending, and even collecting. Be sure to check out our complete Mother’s Day Collection and our special offer― buy any two bottles in the collection and get 5% off, or three bottles for 10% off). After all, Mom deserves the best!
Slaying Expectations: “Jeanne d’Arc” Chenin Blanc 2020
First up, this lovely Chenin Blanc from Hobo Wine Company. It would be easy enough to stan this wine on label and namesake alone but it has the added benefit of being absolutely delicious. Sourced from Merritt Island in the Sacramento river delta, this is a minimum intervention wine, sustainably farmed with little to no added sulphur except right before bottling. An orange wine, the Jeanne d’Arc spends 6 days macerating with the skins which help develop a round, generous texture. This is a complex and pretty orange wine, with notes of golden apple and citrus peel, lemon curd and white peach. This is a perfect partner to braised scallops, grilled seafood, pasta, pork and more.
Brooklyn Born Bubbles for Mom: Stuyvesant Champagne Brut Rosé NV
Let’s face it, Brooklyn moms are the coolest, and this bottle is perfect. Marvina Robinson’s love affair with Champagne began during her college days. She and her friends would often pool their limited funds to purchase a bottle from a local shop not far from her childhood home in Brooklyn. They would toast each other and proudly sip out of their plastic cups. The cups may have changed, but Marvina’s love for the juice continued. After working in finance for some years, she launched the critically acclaimed Stuyvesant Champagne, becoming one of the few African American women to do so. Salmon-colored, dry, and crisp, this bubbly is made from about 58% Pinot Noir, 22% Pinot Meunier and 20% Chardonnay. Hints of cherry blossom and raspberry on the nose give way to fleshy red currant and cherries on the palate, with a long and refreshing finish.
Who Run the World? Moms: Olga Raffault “ Les Picasses” Chinon 2015
Among winemaking nerds, Olga Raffault is a shorthand for classic, elegant, and powerful Chinon. This comes from the wine’s roots: The estate was founded in 1947 by Olga and her husband Pierre, as a passion project. When Pierre died just before their first harvest, Olga, then a young mother of two small children, found herself having to learn how to run a vineyard on her own. But that’s what moms do, right? They get it done! With the help of her sole employee, WWII German refugee Ernst Zenninger, she created a legendary estate. Today, Olga’s daughter Sylvie runs the estate, which is certified organic. This 100% Cabernet Franc is a testament to that legacy. The nose is bright and fruity, with notes of black cherry, raspberry, fresh tobacco, and forest floor. Medium-bodied with a smooth and savory mouthfeel, the wine finishes long and unforgettably.
Hills to Climb: Mom’s Work Is Never Done
Guardoilvento Etna Bianco 2019, Campore Etna Bianco 2019, Camarda Vino Bianco 2019
Motherhood feels like an uphill battle sometimes. We get it, and have 3 great wines from Sicily to help celebrate the unending efforts of moms around the world.
To say the Caciorgna family lives off their land seems like an understatement. In addition to winemaking, the family also has a small farm complete with farm animals and vegetable gardens that they use to support their family, they even grow their own feed for the animals. They never use any chemical treatments and always work in harmony with nature, citing the natural beauty of Sicily as inspiration. On the nose, aromatic citrus with delicate florals and hints of flint and graphite. Fresh and delicately floral on the nose, with notes of flint, graphite, and smoke, the Guardoilvento Etna Bianco 2019 is lively and balanced on the palate. It’s so easy to drink, you might forget the great winemaking at work. Pair with light pastas, grilled fish and shellfish, veggie mains, and more. Organic.
Quality and ethical production are at the center of this young and dynamic company, run by Maria Pia and Cristina Madaudo, attentive to the environment and the consumer. Raised among the rows of the family business, the Madaudo sisters listened to the secrets of their grandfather acquiring experience in winemaking, before taking over production. Camporè Etna Bianco 2019 is a crisp and fruity straw-colored blend of Carricante and Cataratto is a testament to their attention to detail and loaded with bright fruit, balanced acidity, hints of smoke, and a flinty minerality. It’s perfect for seafood and stoop-sipping alike.
Camarda was founded in Passopisciaro, Sicily, during the 1960s. The methods used in the vineyards are those of ancient tradition, passed down through the family. The pruning, ploughing, tying and harvesting all take place manually and it is this connectedness to the product and process that facilitates the passion and commitment that separates Camarda from others in the field. Made from 90 year-old vines grown on volcanic soils, Camarda Vino Bianco 2019 is a white blend composed mostly of Carricante with a touch of Minnella. Lovely minerality mixed with a subtle herbaceousness complements the fruit notes nicely. Expect white fruits and citrus to shine on the palate, flecked with smoke and a lengthy mineral finish.
