Whether you celebrate Valentine’s Day, Galentine’s Day or just love love these are a few fabulous wines and love stories to spread the romance this season. Start your evening festivities off with a cocktail, pop open the bubbly, move onto the chardonnay and finish off with a fabulous bottle of red wine! We all know some of you may have left your Vday gift shopping to the last minute but you can’t go wrong with wine!
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Here are some wines to gift for Valentine’s Day
Frexienet Sparkling Cava Cordon Negro
Celebrate life with a bottle of Freixenet bubbles. What started as a love story in Spain in 1889 with the marriage of Pedro Ferrer and Dolores Sala Vivé, heiress to the Sala wine emporium turned into a wine empire. The couple were completely complementary to each other and with Dolores’s in-depth knowledge of winemaking, combined with Pedro’s vision and entrepreneurship, these two love birds made the bold decision to turn from still winemaking to the complexity of producing Traditional Method Cava sparkling wine. Pedro grew up in a vineyard called La Freixeneda or ‘Ash tree grove’ in Catalan and, as a result, he was nicknamed ‘el Freixenet’. Little did they know this nickname would just a century later be known all over the world. Making Freixenet taste even better the family made a number of breakthroughs that improved the quality of the sparkling wine. They were the first company in Spain to press grapes pneumatically, the first to use refrigerated tanks to control fermentation and are one of the leaders in developing their own yeast. All of these quality improvements found a home in the Freixenet’s world. In the 1970s the sparkling Cava, Cordon Negro, was launched in a sleek, sexy, black frosted bottle that just seemed to catch everyone’s eye and is an icon for sparkling wine. This fresh and fruity sparkler quickly became the world’s biggest-selling Cava – what a love story eh! Now, that’s something to celebrate! Plus, this wine comes in small, regular and magnum sizes.
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Stags’ Leap Cabernet Sauvignon
With the restored buildings, pastoral setting, and top-of-the-line winemaking facilities, Stags’ Leap is one of the most charming and high-quality wineries to visit in Napa Valley. If you haven’t been to Napa Valley it’s definitely one of the most romantic and quaint places to wine and dine your way to happiness. Robert Brittan and landscape designer Jonathan Plant developed the Apothecary and Sensory Garden that is currently on site, building it on the existing kitchen garden on the north side of the Manor House. A majority of the plants cultivated there evoke aromas and flavors of wines made on the estate so it’s more romantic to walk through the garden than it is to walk along a beach.
With a bit of lovely history, during the 1886 – 1909 Horace Chase, an eligible bachelor from Chicago, and Mary Ysabela “Minnie” Mizner, belle of society in the former state capital of Benicia, met at Napa Soda Springs Resort in the hills outside Napa. They fell in love and were married in 1888 at the Benicia home of Minnie’s father who had served as California State Senator for two terms in the 1860s and who later became an ambassador to Latin American countries. Shortly thereafter Horace and his uncle divided their 700 acre tract into two parcels and Horace became sole owner of the northwestern 365 acres of Stags Leap Vineyards. The Chases were known for their lavish hospitality and, in season, hosted the scions of San Francisco society during an era of great wealth stemming from gold and silver mining. During the winter, the Chases left Stags’ Leap and spent their winters in San Francisco attending opera, theater, receptions, Cotillion Club dances, and hunt balls at the Palace Hotel. Stags’s Leap is best decanted served with a tableside grilled tomahawk steak with all of the sides.
Fuzion Organic Chardonnay
Nothing says I love you like traveling to another country and Argentina is a place of love. Fuse your love for one another together with this incredible wine. Whether you’re in the city of Santiago learning to tango and eat great food, or visiting the beautiful wine country of Mendoza at the foothills of the Andes Mountains. This Fuzion Organic Chardonnay is the ideal companion with a creative exotic cheese board and the perfect date night in, compliment this organic wine choice with a certificate to redeem for a couples dance class, or even better sip slowly while dancing in your own living room together. Elevate your evening by pairing with lobster or crab for a pure and loveable decadent pairing.
Coyam Red Blend
If you love wine, you’ll love Chile! Venture down to the Southern Hemisphere of the Americas and fall in love with Chile’s diverse and gorgeous wines and a true sense of adventure! Located on the western edge of South America, Chile is an isolated paradise for grape growing. Bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Andes Mountains to the east, Patagonia ice fields to the south, and the Atacama desert to the north – it’s a truly wondrous and magical place making world-class wines. In fact, 83% of all wineries exported from Chile are Certified Sustainable so you can feel good about the wine you’re drinking and the people and region you’re supporting. Emiliana is the world’s largest organic vineyard, and this Coyam is a blend of supple Syrah and Chile’s Signature grape Carmenere.
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Ruffino Prosecco Rosé
With hints of rose petal, strawberry and red berries Ruffino Rosé will swoon any wine lover. Rosé Prosecco is a very new development from the region just only a couple years ago, before then pink prosecco was never a thing. The addition of a small amount of Pinot Noir makes this bottle of bubbly not only lavish and fascinating to look at but also truly delightful to sip, savour and share. If you’re up for a challenge, learn how to sabre and pair with fresh strawberries and a magical sunset alongside an Instagram worthy charcuterie board or baked salmon.
Wakefield Estate Shiraz
If you’re craving a date in the kitchen that also perks the imagination and takes your palate on a travel adventure, pick up a bottle of Wakefield Shiraz and spend an evening having a great dessert and wine pairing. Wakefield wines and Bondi-based Aussie Chef Guy Turland’s self-saucing chocolate pudding. An indulgent pairing and a fun recipe for date night!
Select Aperitivo
Head to Venice for a romantic Italian getaway with the perfect spritz cocktail. A wonderful way to lighten the mood, Select Aperitivo is a blend of 30 botanicals sourced from all over the world enhanced by individually macerated rhubarb roots and juniper berries, composed of five notes – floral, grassy, citrusy, balsamic, and spicy – and sweet/bitter/delicious. What a combination for a romantic cocktail!
Select Spritz Recipe
- 3 parts prosecco
- 2 parts Select Aperitivo
- 1 splash of soda
Stir gently and garnish with a green olive.
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