Top 5 Party & Gift Wines for the 2011 Holiday Season

   ZACHARYS & AURA
East Meadow Shopping Center
www.zacharyspartys.com   (516) 794-9770

With the holidays right around the corner, you’re schedule is sure to fill up with holiday parties, gatherings and dinners in the next few weeks. Don’t show up empty handed! Here are the top 5 party and gift wines in red, white and sparkling variety provided by Epicurious. 

Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2009 (About $13/bottle): This New Zealand wine is one of the most consistently delicious and refreshing whites on store shelves. The fruit is gently pressed and the juice is cold-settled to retain its freshness. It has a vibrant, zesty flavor with enticing notes of passion fruit and lime. Serve it chilled at 50-55 degrees.

Louis Jadot Chardonnay 2008 (About $18/bottle): This voluptuous white made from Chardonnay grapes offers notes of ripe apples, pears, vanilla and toast. Made in the top region of Burgundy, the wine is a blend from several vineyards. On ehalf of the wine is vinified and aged in oak barrels to give it that rich, buttery roundness, while the other half is made in stainless-steel tanks to retain the fruit flavors. 

Benziger Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 (About $18/bottle): The brooding dark fruit and earthy notes in this wine are naughty and nice! This classic belnd of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc comes from mountain ranches of Sonoma County. It has the elegant structure, refinement and finesse that you’d expect in a black-tie wine, plus the solidity and weight to accompany more robust dishes and conversations. 

Shingleback Shiraz 2006 (About $25/bottle): The Australian wine has incredible depth of flavor, lots of pepper, black cherry and blackberry, but remains balances and elegant. It’s no fruit bomb, but rather one of Down Under’s finer examples of a Shiraz, making this a wonderful gift for those who may have been hooked on cheaper stuff previously. 

Pol Roger Non-Vintage Champagne (About $45/bottle): There is nothing more festive than a glass of Champagne during the holidays! This Champagne is a blend of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, so it has the full-bodied heft to pair well with all the robust flavors of the classic holiday dinners. 

AURA celebrates Ladies Night every Thursday with sushi and a show! Ladies can enjoy open bar from 9-10pm with free wine and champagne and half price sushi from 9-12. For more information visit the AURA tab on the Zacharys & Aura Facebook page.