Holiday Wines 2025: Sparkling Stars, Crowd-Pleasers, NA Options & Wine Gifts That Impress, Ep 122

It’s officially the season of festive dinners, Friendsgiving gatherings, holiday parties, and “What wine should I bring?” moments. On this year’s Sip Sip Hooray Holiday Wine episode, the Two Marys share their top picks for the 2025 season—plus expert recommendations from winemakers across California and beyond.On the show today we've enlisted help from some friends of the pod to suggest the best wines for festive times. No doubt you've seen many holiday wine guides about what to drink with Thanksgiving and other holiday meals, or what to give friends and family. But we've got our own take on this and we hope to help you sort out what will make that magical pairing, that magical gift this holiday season.Check out our recommendations for sparkling wine, white wine, red wine, non-alcoholic wine, what to bring for Friendsgiving and wine related gifts to give.

“I wanted to connect people, my brand, to Colombia and to really just bring a more beautiful part of Colombia than what everybody knows Colombia for.” - Bibiana Gonzáles Rave, ⁠Cattleya Wines⁠New Sip Sip Hooray pod ep! The Marys chat with Bibiana González Rave, a force of nature in the world of wine.Bibiana’s first sip of wine at age 11 led to a life in wine. At age 14 she declared she would be a winemaker. Even though wine was not grown or made in her native Colombia, she was determined to pursue her teenage dream of becoming a winemaker. A detour to studying chemical engineering didn’t deter her.Bibiana followed a calling that led her across continents. She talked her way into a French enology school after 11 rejection letters, and built a career spanning nearly 30 harvests across France, South Africa, and California.Her wines pay homage to her Colombian roots while reflecting the soul of the California vineyards she works with. Bibiana is also a member of one of the most beloved wine families, the Pisonis, who produced coveted wines from California’s Santa Lucia Highlands. In fact, when she first met Gary Pisoni, her father-in-law to be, he read her astrological chart and made a bold prediction. We’ll get the behind-the-scenes story on all that. But Bibiana has her own voice behind her Cattleya label, and we’re thrilled she’s here to share her story today.

“I’m the only Colombian winemaker in the world, born and raised, trained, who is a grower and a winemaker as a job, man or woman. I wanted to connect people, my brand, to Colombia and to really just bring a more beautiful part of Colombia than what everybody knows Colombia for.” - Bibiana Gonzáles Rave, Cattleya WinesNew Sip Sip Hooray pod ep! The Marys chat with Bibiana González Rave, a force of nature in the world of wine — and the first Colombian-born, raised, and trained winemaker working in the United States. Link to listen in bio.Bibiana’s first sip of wine at age 11 led to a life in wine. At age 14 she declared she would be a winemaker. Even though wine is not grown or made in her native Colombia, she was determined to pursue her teenage dream of becoming a winemaker. A detour to studying chemical engineering didn’t deter her.Bibiana followed a calling that led her across continents. She talked her way into a French enology school after 11 rejection letters, and built a career spanning nearly 30 harvests across France, South Africa, and California.Her wines pay homage to her Colombian roots while reflecting the soul of the California vineyards she works with. Bibiana is also a member of one of the most beloved wine families, the Pisonis, who produced coveted wines from California’s Santa Lucia Highlands. In fact, when she first met Gary Pisoni, her father-in-law to be, he read her astrological chart and made a bold prediction. We’ll get the behind-the-scenes story on all that. But Bibiana has her own voice behind her Cattleya label, and we’re thrilled she’s here to share her story today.

"I tell people I haven't made my best wine yet" - Tom MaloneThe Marys are on location in Amador County in California’s Sierra Foothills!On the podcast today, plein air is a French term for painting outside in a natural environment. Well, you’d be hard-pressed to find a more picturesque spot to paint than our location today. We are at PleinAir Vineyards, one of Amador County’s newest wineries. This is a small, intimate winery started by husband and wife team Tom and Sarah Malone, with an eye for design and a taste for good wine. We’re excited to have Tom and his consulting winemaker Steve Leveque (whose pedigree includes Mondavi, Opus One, and Hall Wines) here to paint the picture of PleinAir for us.Tom and Sarah were in the home remodeling business, renovating houses with a French country flair. They bring that design aesthetic to their winery, filled with items Sarah finds combing through French markets, and the winery’s motto- Casual, Rustic, Elegant - reflects this.At PleinAir there’s a certain je ne sais quoi vibe here, inviting you to slow down and soak up the wine country lifestyle in chic style. So pop a cork, pour a glass and dream of enjoying wine plein air.

A game changer for enjoying wine one glass at a time.“I wanted the freedom to drink whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted.” – Coravin inventor Greg Lambrecht.How do you open a bottle of wine without committing to finishing it before it goes bad? That question led Greg Lambrecht, a medical device entrepreneur, to invent Coravin - a groundbreaking system that lets you pour a glass without pulling the cork.Greg combined medical technology with a passion for wine to change the way we drink. From the original idea, developed in his kitchen, to the latest innovations like Coravin Sparkling, Greg shares his story of perseverance, problem-solving, and a mission to give wine lovers freedom by the glass.With nearly two million units sold to date since debuting in 2011, Coravin is so popular that the company says a glass of wine preserved with Coravin is poured every second of every day. That’s impressive. Coravin has even become a verb and an adjective. For example, you might say, “I’ll Coravin this wine,” or “That bottle’s Coravined." This wine technology company continues to innovate, developing tools for Coravinning screw cap wines, or even easier to use systems, like the Pivot+ that works with any type of bottle closure. We’re excited to hear Greg’s stories behind the scenes of these groundbreaking products and to find out what’s on the horizon.

If you're a fan of the podcast you know that we're all about simplifying and demystifying the world of wine to make it more accessible and appealing for all of us. That’s also the goal of Wine Folly, a multi-platform blend of information for wine education, entertainment, and enjoyment. Our guest today is Madeline Puckette, the co-founder and chief design officer of Wine Folly. She made a career of guiding people through the maze of wine appellations, varietals, tasting notes, and price points. And she does it all with panache and an ultra relatable appeal. Madeline's an author, a sommelier, an educator, and a wine expert. With Wine Folly, she gives wine lovers at every level more confidence to enjoy what they drink. Wine shouldn't be precious, and we agree. And that's why Madeline is the perfect guest for our pod. We'll hear her perspective on the wine world and what trends you can expect to see. We're delighted she’s joining us to share her story of building a blog, a website, and a wine venture that is folly in name only.

For this episode, the Marys are on location with Rob Sinton, winemaker at El Dorado County’s Starfield Vineyards. This is where the grapes meet the sky, as they say, thanks to high altitude vineyards reaching upwards of 2400 to 3000 feet in elevation.Here at Starfield Vineyards, you gaze at the vineyard views surrounded by evergreens in every direction. This mountain terroir gives El Dorado wines their distinct herbal and spicy flavor, or Sierra spice, as it's called in these parts, a flavor profile that makes them stand out among other California wines. We're so excited to be speaking with Rob Sinton at this gorgeous property set with lakes and miles of walking trails, where you can soak up the wine country experience and enjoy some darn good wines. Starfield is also the dream of Rob and his father Tom, whose love of wine led them on a quest to find the best place to grow Rhone and Italian varietals. Their search sent them into the Sierra Foothills and El Dorado County. Today Rob is not only making wine, he’s reinventing wine labels using solargraphy, championing forgotten grapes, and even creating his own vermouths.We’re sure that once you hear Rob’s story, you’ll want to plan a visit to this and other wineries in the mountainous El Dorado wine country.

We love a good wine comeback story where the little guy wins!On today's show, a story that stopped the wine world in its tracks and made seemingly everyone cheer. It's a "Let's Hear It For The Little Guy" tale, a David versus Goliath story with a dreams do come true plot. We're talking with James Hall, founding winemaker of the illustrious Patz & Hall Winery California’s Sonoma County. He's the guy who pulled off the unimaginable when he bought back his winery from one of wine's biggest conglomerates. James is here today to share his story and his wines with us, and to catch us up on how things are going since the buyback more than a year ago.

We’re on location in California’s Amador County in the Sierra Foothills. Meet Scott Harvey, one of the pioneers in this wine region. Scott has been making wine in the Amador County AVA at his namesake winery Scott Harvey Wines since the late 1970s, making a name for himself with celebrated Zinfandels and Barberas. We're excited to be with Scott at his namesake winery in the Shenandoah Valley, and we can't wait to share his story with you. We're sitting here with Scott overlooking beautiful vineyards on gently rolling hills. Now Scott is known for Barbera and Zinfandel but he will always have a specific German variety in his lineup and we'll get the inside scoop on why and the story behind the label of his vineyard 1869 Zinfandel. Yes, you heard it right, 1869.Scott takes us on a journey from his German winemaking roots and family heritage to his hands-on, terroir-driven approach in the Shenandoah Valley AVA. Plus, we’ll learn the role his wife Janaplays - she even has her own label - and why Amador County is one of California’s best-kept wine secrets.

Two women with a love of wine, the Earth, and chemistry are at the heart of our show today. Their story is a blend of Native American and Spanish culture, but it is rooted in a love of family and belief in dreams. They are Tara Gomez and Mireia Taribó of Camins2Dreams Winery in Lompoc, California.These winemaking wives share their journey from different continents to one shared dream. Tara is the first Native American woman winemaker, and Mireia is a Catalan chemist-turned-vintner. Wine brought them together, meeting as interns at J. Lohr in Paso Robles, to launching a winery that honors underrepresented grapes, tribal traditions, organic farming, and the LGBTQIA2S+ community. And, they’ve been known to roller skate in their Lompoc winery.We know you’ll love getting to know Tara and Mireia, so pop the cork, pour a glass and enjoy hearing their story.