gift ideas for Christmas – L’Express

Wolfberger Magnum Single Celebration

While Crémant d’Alsace is generally made from Pinot Blanc, the venerable house of Eguisheim chose the Auxerre grape variety for this blend of the 2015 and 2016 vintages. Sparkling with lightness, the wine is protected by a bottle coated with an elegant golden sheath which molds the generous shapes of the bottle. Tableware stylist Gaëlle Mancina stages it with golden ribbons, tied like napkin rings, placed on a white linen sheet as a tablecloth, next to porcelain plates. The magic of Christmas in Alsace. €29.95 (boutique.wolfberger.com)

Provençal Christmas at Domaine de Métifiot

Laurence and Benoit Bateman had the idea of ​​combining the colors and flavors of their Baux-de-Provence wines with those of candied fruits from Maison Lilamand, a true institution since 1866 in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence. A wonderful fig should combine divinely with the notes of spices, strawberry and small black fruits of the Red 2020, while the clementine will enhance the aromas of apricot, citrus and verbena of the White 2021. Terribly gourmand. 60 € (domainedemetifiot.fr)

Bestheim Olfactory Walk

The case houses a 2013 Crémant d’Alsace made from Pinot Blanc, as well as five mini-bottles of natural essences created by the Serena Galini perfume house in Strasbourg. These scents transcribe the journey of the wine from the limestone hill of Strangenberg, where the vines flourish, to the finished product, in the bottle. Fragrance No. 1 Dry Earth, with stony notes, precedes Vine Foot, with the rye scent characteristic of the site, Vine Flower, a blend of honeysuckle, orange blossom and citrus fruits, Grape Bunch, with acidic notes, and Aromas of crémant, where vanilla, acacia, toasted bread combine. Strips of test paper, like those used by perfumers, and a tasting book accompany the vials and the bottle of Crémant 2013 in the box, published in 1,170 copies. Delicately effervescent, brioche, fleshy, creamy, the wine stands out with a beautiful persistent freshness. €89 (bestheim.com)

Château L’Isle Fort Cuvée Précieuse 2019

Each of the six bottles of this high-end Bordeaux Supérieur, lined up in their elegant white box, bears a different label. In engraving, rooster, carp, chanterelles, poppy, dragonfly… evoke the fauna and flora that reign on the estate of Sylvie Douce and François Jeantet. 70 hectares of lakes, woods and meadows crossed by a river form a rich biotope. The flavors change regularly with the vintages of this nectar produced on two hectares. Enough to build a nice collection. €105

Château Latour-Martillac birdhouse box

With its box designed to be reused as a nest box, the Kressmann family wants to raise awareness of the many endangered animal species, including birds that no longer find sufficient shelter in gardens. However, they are essential for maintaining biodiversity, as Château Latour-Martillac, which built them, was able to observe.

Numerous shelters are dedicated to them on the Pessac-Léognan property. In this nest box, adorned with the graphic design of a great tit, nestles for the moment a bottle of the pretty 2019 vintage of the Grand Cru Classé of Graves. €69 (Cercledemartillac.com)

Château Haut-Batailley 2017

Works by Rabelais and Balzac, Tales by Perrault, Fables by La Fontaine, and even the Bible… Gustave Doré illustrated more than a hundred works in the 19th century. The supple and precise line of his beautiful imagination inspired the motif that stands out on the box of this Médoc classified growth, bearing the image of the Tour l’Aspic. Emblematic, it was erected in 1875 on the wine estate, also marking the entry into the Pauillac vineyard. The gold-illuminated box holds a bottle of Château Haut-Batailley 2017, accompanied by the second wine, Verso, from the same vintage. If the great wine, finely tannic and harmonious, will become more complex with time, its little brother, delicious and fruity, can already be fully appreciated. 85 € (milesima.fr

The luxury leather goods manufacturer and the Reims champagne house have put together a principle that binds them: giving time time. Its imprint is among the main ingredients of the success of their achievements. Two approaches to French elegance, symbolized by this harmonious set composed of a full-grain leather card holder (signed by the two houses) and a bottle of the Brut cuvée. €89 (abele1757.com)

Canard-Duchêne V 2012 Brut Nature

This vintage was created in honor of Victor Canard, co-founder with his wife Léonie Duchêne of the house located in Ludes, in the Montagne de Reims. Made from pinot noir and meunier, the wine marked by ripe raspberry is accompanied by an artisanal candle with a fruity scent and a stopper. 95 € (canard-duchene.fr)

Paul Goerg The Parcellaires

Founded in 1950, the Vertus winegrowers’ house, premier cru of the Côte des Blancs, has the habit of harvesting separately the different plots of the XX hectares of its members. It is logical that it goes further through its two 100% Chardonnay vintages from the 2018 harvest, representative of the diversity of the terroirs and altitudes of the vintage. Planted mid-slopes, the vines of Monts Ferrés produce a taut and mineral wine, while those of La Justice, located lower down, produce a rich and fruity champagne. To discover. 150 € ([email protected])

In this box, the renowned d’Urville house, in the Côte des Bar (Aube), invites you to an unusual comparative tasting between two bottles of the Carte d’Or vintage having different experiences after disgorging. One remained in the darkness of the Cistercian cellars, while the other was submerged 31 meters deep, in the bay of Lannion (Côtes-d’Armor). An underwater stay of 646 days, from which she emerged covered in shells. Does the marine environment, which is less oxidizing for wine, offer better storage conditions? You have to taste it to find out! 185 € (champagne-drappier.com)

Perrier-Jouët Belle Époque 2015

Nestled in the box designed by Fernando Laposse, the prestigious vintage from the Perrier-Jouët house is escorted by two flutes engraved with an anemone. The Mexican designer has built his notoriety on his deep connection with nature: he transforms plant fibers such as sisal, loofah, corn leaves into refined design objects, etc. In the material of the white case, the artist has inlaid flowers which form a slight relief to the touch. They release their pollen painted gold, collected by insects and birds which appear in soft, pastel green. Bucolic. €219 (milesima.fr)

The famous Scottish tailor Campbell’s of Beauly and the nugget of Aÿ, driven by the same quest for excellence and imbued with tradition, have combined their know-how to design the ideal accessory for nomadic tasting. This real recycled jerrycan, individually handmade in the United Kingdom, contains two bottles of Brut Régence and four signature glasses created in Italy for the champagne house.

€455 ([email protected])

This Advent calendar is an excellent way to discover the riches of the rum planet. From Martinique to Cuba, via Vietnam and Panama, an initiatory journey in 24 stages through the subtle variations of sugar cane brandy. €109 (dugasclubexpert.fr)

French whiskey Advent calendar

Tricolor whiskey celebrates its 40th anniversary! Having become a category in its own right, it offers an astonishing diversity marked by its production regions in all regions of France. This box of 24 two-centiliter bottles is a unique opportunity to discover the big names. €99 (whisky.fr)

Since 2019, Takuma Inagawa and cellar master Shoya Imai have been making sake using French products in their Paris-based brewery. This box offers their three new creations, the result of the careful extraction of the aromas of Golden Japan plums, yuzu and blackcurrant, all grown in France. Each of these fruits has been macerated in a spirit obtained by distillation of the lees of Wakaze sake, obtained from Camargue rice. An introduction to Japanese refinement. 90 € (wakaze-sake.com)

This incredible box set is centered around gin which has somewhat revolutionized the category with its crazy experiments (cucumber and rose), but always mastered. The bottle is accompanied by a complete tea service (teapot, six cups and six saucers) with the coat of arms of the house. So British! €200 (whisky.fr)

Talisker 10 years old (45.8%)

A gust of sea spray emerges from the glass when you taste this legendary single malt from the Isle of Skye, beaten by winds and waves. This monument of peated whiskeys conveys a roaring power in the mouth, peppery, ash, iodized and saline notes. In this Flavors of Scotland box, two tasting glasses accompany it. €57 (Nicolas)

The Balvenie Caribbean Cask 14 years

This Speyside single malt was matured in West Indian rum barrels for four to six months, after a long stay in traditional oak barrels. A rounded whiskey with an assertive fruity character. Comes with two tasting glasses. €99 (The Irish Counter)

Jaisalmer Indian Craft Gin

This artisanal gin is made in Rajasthan from eleven botanicals, seven of which come from India. Among these, vetiver, cubeb berries and black tea leaves each bring their contribution to an aromatic edifice full of pep. Notes of spices and citrus fruits to be enjoyed in the glasses made from Jaisalmer clay contained in this “Golden Mirage” case. €47 (whisky.fr)