Pick wines like a pro for this Autumn and Holiday season! Expert wine suggestions

Autumn is officially on, and you know what? I couldn't be more happy. This is the time of year for crisp days and cool nights. Throw the flannel back on, get outside with your friends, eating great food, and of course, drinking good wine. It's also the season for celebrating, and we've got the holidays coming up, so that means we're going to be giving and receiving lots of gifts. So today, on behalf of WineGuardian, I'm going to give you five of my personal favorite wines that are excellent for this time of year, things that you can either serve at home or take to a or give as gifts. So let's go on over to the cabinet and pull a couple of wines. First and foremost, as we approach Halloween, I think that you should know about Port wine from Portugal. It's one of my favorites, and one of the reasons why it works so well for Halloween is because it's sweet and it pairs well with desserts, especially chocolate. Port can be confusing because it comes in a range of styles, but for the sake of this video, we'll keep it simple, and I'll give you the three main styles that you want to look for, ruby, tawny, and vintage. Ruby Port, which I have here in my glass, is the youngest version, and it's the freshest and most fiery, to use a term. A lot of people say it's almost like cherries flambé in a glass, so you can imagine when you pair it up with chocolate. It's like one of those chocolate covered cherry cordial candies. Pair it up with a peanut butter cup like this, and it's like an adult PB&J. It's amazing. And tawny Port is aged in barrels, so it's a little older and more oxidized. You get more savory flavors like toffee, caramel, and butterscotch, and for that reason, it's amazing with things like apple and pecan pie. And the great news about those two styles of Port is that they're super affordable. Both of those bottles were around $20, but if you want to go higher, you can. For a really elevated gift, there's a vintage Port. Vintage Ports are only made in specified years when the grape quality is extra high. Therefore, they're rare and much more expensive. Something like this will set you back about $100 a bottle. In Portugal, it's tradition to buy somebody's birth year and give it to them as a gift. So if any of you out there wants to get me a 1972, I wouldn't complain about that. So you can see why Port wine is where you're going to want to grab your bag of Halloween candy and just have lots of fun. I know this time of year conjures up images of soul-warming red wines, but there's always a place at the table for white wines, and for that reason, I'm going to make a recommendation. Most of you already know Pinot Grigio. After all, it's the most famous white wine in the world. But did you know that it has a classy alter ego known as Pinot Gris? So then what's the difference between Pinot Grigio and Pinot Gris? Well, Pinot Gris actually came first. It originates in Burgundy, France. French Pinot Gris sort of blends two worlds together, so you get that light freshness from the Italian counterpart. It's great with oysters and shellfish, but it is a little bit more full-bodied and perfumed too, so therefore it works well with things like honey-baked ham and also fattier cuts of fish. And during the holidays, if you want to add a touch of sweetness in there, you can actually pair it up with things like pecan pie or apple pie, and it would work perfectly. Some of the best French Pinot Gris comes from regions like Burgundy and Alsace, but they are making it into New World now, and one place where it's really doing well is Oregon. As I was saying, this is my favorite time of year, and if there's one wine that captures the essence of the autumn better than any other, I think it's Pinot Noir. If you love the smell of smoke in the air, falling leaves on the ground, earth, all the flavors that you find on the harvest table, you'll get all of those in a great glass of Pinot Noir. A young Pinot Noir like this one here is going to be nice and light and fresh. You get this beautiful potpourri of red fruits, and then as Pinot Noir ages, it starts to get really earthy. Some people will say it even smells a little bit like the forest and even mushroom. So if you're getting Thanksgiving vibes off of this, you're not wrong. And for that reason, Pinot Noir is excellent with everything that you're going to find on the Contrary to popular belief, there are actually affordable burgundies out there. They come at what they call the village level. So this is just a simple, rustic, everyday kind of drink. Excellent Pinot Noir is made in the New World. One of my favorite places is the state of Oregon. You're going to find some really high quality versions from the Willamette Valley. So all of us have a friend or two that seemingly has been everywhere and done everything, has everything. So what kind of wine makes a good gift for the person who seems to have it all? This one here. This is Spanish Mencia. It comes from the Galicia region, which is in the northwestern corner, right above Portugal. Like many parts of Europe, around the turn of the century, people were leaving the poorer parts of the country for the more prominent cities and towns. And in the process, they left behind their grapes and their vines. So for almost a century, this one here went unnoticed. So Mencia or Mencia, as they call it, is a big, bold red wine. Along the lines of a Cabernet Sauvignon, maybe slightly softer, more like a Merlot, I guess. And it's very age-worthy too. So you can put it in your cellar and keep it for a long time. And as you would expect with a bold red wine like Mencia, it's going to be great with your grilled meats, burgers and steaks, hot dogs around the campfire with your friends, and probably even some s'mores. Now, the great news is because Mencia is still relatively obscure, you can get it for an affordable price. So you'll pay about $15 to $20 for an everyday drinker, something great to take to a party. But if you are looking for a special gift for that person who seems to have everything, there are some more upscale producers out there that will command top dollar. No celebration and no party would be complete without a little sparkling wine, right? And we all know about Champagne already, so we're not going to talk about that today. Instead, I want to share my latest obsession with you, something called French Cremant. Now, French Champagne hogs up all the attention as the world's most celebrated sparkling wine, but there are other regions of the country that make sparkling wine as well. Technically, they're not allowed to call it Champagne, so over the years, they've come up with different terms. Cremant describes the creamy texture of the sparkling wine. And to me, what makes Cremant so spectacular is the fact that it's made to the same high standards as Champagne, but only about one-third of the price. Just like high-quality French Champagne, Cremant is made from hand-selected grapes that are fermented in the bottle and then aged for several years. And because it's so light, frothy, and refreshing in the mouth, it's great for elevating heavy foods. So things that are high in fat, especially fried foods, and also salty foods. And for that reason, Cremant is an excellent wine for starters and appetizers. Now, every region that makes Cremant uses a different set of grapes, so you're going to get a different flavor from each one. And my personal favorite and my expert tip to you is to look for Cremant de Bourgogne. That's Burgundy. And the reason why is because they use two of the same grapes that are used in fine French Champagne. So when you buy a Cremant de Bourgogne, you're essentially getting a fine Champagne for a fraction of the price. Let's be honest, this time of year can be pretty stressful. So hopefully my tips in this video have helped lighten the load a little bit by giving you some great options for the season. So this video was relatively top line, but if you're looking for more detail and maybe even some specific wines to buy, I cover all of that in the accompanying article that I wrote for Wine Guardian. I'll leave the link below this video so you can check that out too. All right, everybody. Thanks for hanging with me today. I'm Marc Supsic on behalf of Wine Guardian. We wish you an amazing autumn and a joyous holiday season. Cheers.