The Only Wine You Need This Holiday Season

Whether the intention is pure hedonism, culinary prestige, avoidance, social lubrication, social buffering or all of the above, it’s very likely that you’ll find a bottle of wine amidst your holiday spread this season (non alc or otherwise). 

That said, there are certain stipulations to heed when it comes to bottle selection. For one thing, your wine of choice ought to hold up to the decadence of indulgent sweet potato, glazed ham, elaborate cheese spreads, pie or whatever other holiday fare you’re into. Moreover, it should please the broader crowd—the likes of whom tend to be varied in age and taste, between rigidly devoted, lifelong Barefoot chardonnay drinkers (hey, wine is wine), others waxing poetic about Premier Cru bottles well outside of your price range and perhaps people who brought and are poised to polish off a personal bottle. 

To that end, there are a few things we know for sure: For one, a magnum is in order. For another, wine will always go fast at a holiday table, so no need to shell out on the allocated white Burgundy. Instead, we’re looking for a bang-for-your-buck crowdpleaser—like this magnum of 2024 Gros Bisou red from Domaine Mosse, which you can find for around $60 to $75. It’s a red field blend of Malbec, Grolleau and Gamay from the Loire Valley that’s light enough to sate the “I don’t drink red” constituent, and full bodied enough for the Cab Dads. “Its profile has crunchy red fruit, and bright acidity. It’s so easy-drinking, it’ll definitely have people saying they wish you’d gotten two bottles for the table,” says Mariano Garay, wine director at New York’s Corima. It’ll mingle just as naturally with a gravy-laden turkey as it will a wedge of brie.