Last-Minute Father’s Day Gift Ideas: 10 Bottles of Wine to Make Your Father Euphoric!
The big day, March 19, 2023, is approaching, and again this year you don’t know what to give your dear father.
Is there anything good in Amazon’s offerings except razors, polyester ties, or the 10,000-recipe manual for the air fryer?
Before falling back on vouchers for a Botox treatment or an afternoon at the spa, wait a moment.
Maybe we can help.
How, in the name of God, is it possible to give a heartfelt and appreciated gift without spending a fortune and risking buying trivial junk that will end up in a storeroom?
Problem solved; we took care of it, drawing up a small shopping list and recommending some excellent bottles of wine to consider as a gift.
Obviously, they are all good-quality bottles, but not too expensive—a maximum of 30 euros. Indeed, you can buy almost all of these bottles for less than $30. No Château Lafite Rothschild or Conterno’s Salmanazar, after all, it’s just Father’s Day. They’re not celebrating 50 years of marriage or the discovery of laser hair removal for eyebrows.
Let’s say that they are suggestions for making a very interesting but not too demanding gift, what we can define as a solid wine that is not afraid of any challenge. And if you get invited to dinner, you will surely drink excellent wine. Hey, you brought it—great choice!
Roero Valfaccenda vintage 2019
The Barolo is good, the Barbaresco immense and imaginative, but, especially when it comes to gifts and value for money, remember that Roero is an incredible wine, not only for its finesse but also for the ridiculous prices at which it is sold. This Nebbiolo is a wide-ranging wine that manages to embrace the most typical aromas of the Piedmont hills. It is leaner and more dynamic than Barolo and Barbaresco, but it certainly has no less depth. Elegant, austere, but full of juice and endowed with such fine tannins that you can also serve it as an aperitif or meditation wine and not only accompany it with large truffle-based dishes or risottos.
Friulano Castellada 2011
A wine to buy with your eyes closed, every year, without fear. La Castellada is the queen of Oslavia’s orange wines and has helped to create not only the myth of Ribolla Gialla but also the comeback of macerated wines, when the hipster slogan “Either natural wine or beeswax for the beard” had never yet been pronounced. The Tocai della Castellada is a splendid wine, full of balsamic and resinous aromas, complex and full-bodied, but always sunny in its development. There’s no end to the salt and elegance.Do not serve it at 10 degrees; it is not Pinot Grigio Santa Margherita.
Groll n´roll 2019: Les Vignes de Babass
A wine full of energy, pure and hard, that does not fold and shows off its fruity vehemence with pride. Not tame, with a slightly rustic tone, but full of taste. Red fruits with a disturbing charge, great freshness, and mineral power to support a delicate forest symphony There is a lot of pulp, but it is not rude and has an agile step, not to mention that you can combine it with a thousand dishes, even spicy Indian ones, thanks to the very smooth tannins. Unfiltered, unclarified, and free from added sulfite. Little peasant masterpiece. Thanks to this bottle, you will have the opportunity to taste a not exactly common grapevine and dispel the vulgar commonplace that in France only and always the usual grapevines are grown, while in Italy we have hundreds of them.
Mimosa 2018 Le Piane
A wine that we could define as enchanting if it weren’t such an affected expression that it makes one shiver But in reality, this nectar is enchanting, both for its immediate goodness and for the delayed-release finesse that catches you in the second goblet. You all know the Le Piane winery, queen of Boca, a Piedmontese micro-zone where the mountain is the master. And at these peaks over 500 meters above sea level, only unrepeatable works can grow. The scents are pungent and subtle, sharp and icy. Scents of wood, licorice, pepper, and orange But everything is declined lightly, without force. Already, the color is transparent. On the palate, it is rock and silk; the berries seem to bite into them. For 20–22 euros, you can’t ask for more from this blend of Croatina, Vespolina, and Nebbiolo. If you find even older vintages, they are welcome; it holds up quietly, and there is plenty of vitality and depth.
Gronda di Calafata
A cheeky white, nervous, and full of citrus and flowers that chase each other in a salty whirlwind. It’s not a depth bomb, but it knows how to make everyone love it. There is lots of pulp, aromatic richness, size, and leanness that jumps from flower to flower. Are there perfect wines? No, but there is the perfect wine for the right moment, and with this bottle, you will never go wrong. It will appeal to newbies, who will find it pleasant and sincere, but also to expert palates, who will praise its natural drinkability and uncompromising verticality.
Briscola and Tresette Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo, San Biagio Winery
A rosé is an underrated gift: if served chilled, it is an excellent aperitif wine, but you can combine it with fish, seafood spaghetti, or even Chinese takeout. It has no limits; just don’t feed it red meat. And this one from the Podere San Biagio winery is a monster of drinkability. Lots of juice, never banal, full of floral scents and that intriguing marine charm. The body is slender, but the wild call of Montepulciano is never tame. A wine that is a rustic but successful synthesis between the Apennines and the sea. Merit of the Controguerra terroir, but also of a serious and attentive winemaker like Jacopo, still very young but already with his roots firmly planted in the Abruzzo soil.
Iastemma Canlibero
A precious and iconoclastic Falanghina that uproots and destroys the classic styles of white wines from Campania, all salt and lemon. This is deep, macerated, and oozing personality from every pore. Full of warmth, maturity, balsamic, and oxidative suggestions that wink at Georgian wines without renouncing the fleshy spontaneity of Falanghina, so rich in floral aromas Let’s say it’s a flash of lightning: add the third dimension, structure, and even a certain tannic edge to the classic Falanghina, without however distorting it. Incredible price for an excellent natural wine from Campania. 22–24 euros maximum.
Scaramusco Lambrusco Angol d’Amig 2019
Is it acceptable to give a Lambrusco Grapsarossa as a gift? A wine that costs 12 euros? Ok, there is a crisis in this period, but let’s not exaggerate with savings… And instead, dear wine lovers, this wine is a show! Pyrotechnic, rustic in its strong acidity, but always composed on an aromatic level. A sidereal fruit, slender and straight, it goes its own way frankly and without yielding in its search for purity. Forget the Lambrusco fruit juices from industrial cellars; this one is dry and whipping but has a full citrus taste that drives you crazy. Simple, but irresistible. 12 euros for a revolutionary wine is not much.
Pet-Nat Bambule S by Judith Beck
This wine went through a second fermentation in the bottle. It is a powerful wine that focuses on the freshness of the fruit, has a good structure, and smells of pleasant flowers. First it attacks you with unbelievable lashes, but then it opens up to a whole series of more evolved flavors due to the processing of the yeasts. Drinkability, finesse, aromatic cleanliness—nothing is missing. The price is also excellent: 25 euros.
Morei Teroldego Foradori
We end the review with a Teroldego from the Morei cru that was made with long maceration and spontaneous fermentation in amphora. It is a great example of an Italian red wine. Teroldego is usually fruity and rich, but this way of making the wine makes it even more expressive, making it even more greedy and enveloping while also making it less muscular, more austere, and almost rocky. The tannins are always strong, and the freshness is good but not very assertive. What is surprising, though, is how clean and minerally this mature wine tastes. No jam, just incredible finesse dictated by a game of contrasts between hard and soft parts. Ridiculous cost: 28 euros for a great wine from the Dolomites.