Great holiday gift ideas for Petaluma food lovers
The best of the holiday traditions celebrate family and friends, and all that we have to be thankful for. However, for most, there is at least a small amount of anxiety attached to the thought of having to buy gifts for friends, family, co-workers and maybe even clients. Few gifts bridge the gap between cultures, genders and generations as well as those that relate to food.
Whether looking to share your favorite local jams, hot sauces and locally brewed or fermented libation, or wanting to pass along your favorite cookbook or a gift certificate to a great restaurant, Petaluma has everything you could hope for. From cheese making kits to charcuterie and from pickling supplies to Petaluma pint glasses, a few hours spent walking around downtown will help you stuff all the stockings on your hearth.
Wine, beer and spirits
Wine is the most obvious gift and is readily available throughout Petaluma, but which one to choose? Usually on sale in the fall, as the new releases are coming online, anything from a Petaluma GAP winery is sure to brighten the holidays.
This is also where wine club memberships come in handy because we receive email updates from our local favorites. As a member of local wine clubs, such as Barber Cellars, Keller Estate, McEvoy Ranch, Sonoma Portworks and Adobe Road Winery, members not only benefit from all the free members-only event invites, but also are the first to hear about wine sales.
If you really want to impress, a wine club membership is a great gift. With many local options available, one can scale this gift to match any budget. Personally, we get a huge amount of enjoyment out of our Barber Cellars membership because the tasting room keeps our personally engraved glass on hand, always ready for the free refill upon every visit.
We also receive discounts throughout the year, as well as a heads up for their special events, such as their cheese maker nights, gallery events and live music. Equally nice are the never ending invites we receive to special members-only events at Keller Estate's beautiful facility.
Another great spot is Sonoma Portworks, which offers tastings of their wide variety of elixirs, which include sherry, aperitif, ports, grappa and their excellent Sonomic Red and Gold, which are perfect atop everything from salads to deserts.
If you are looking to just grab a bottle, I recommend visiting Vine & Barrel, Charley's Deli & Liquor or Wilibees Wines & Spirits. Each has a great selection and knowledgeable people on staff to help you make your selection.
We regularly visit Vine & Barrel's $10 and under section, which is constantly being updated with great inexpensive alternatives from around the globe.
Gift options for the beer lovers among us are virtually infinite. Most of our local breweries now offer a good number of their beers in bottles and cans, which is a great start. Few things are more festive than a selection of beers that span a particularly brewery's entire line. Currently, Petaluma Hills Brewing Company has a majority of their beers available at the taproom in 22-ounce bottles, which is the perfect size for sharing or for a brewery specific tasting.
Most breweries now offer growlers too, which is a great gift for someone who you know to be particular to a specific local beer or brewery. Another unique gift is to get the beer lover in your bunch a pint glass from each of our local breweries. A Petaluma pint glass collection is hard to beat.
If your friends or family members enjoy a particular bar or brewery, check to see if that establishment has a “leave a drink” board. McNear's Saloon's, Jamison's Roaring Donkey and Petaluma Hills Brewing Company all offer such services. This is a fun way of tipping your hat to your neighbor, giving them something you know they will appreciate, while also supporting our local bars and brewers.
Several distilleries have also popped up in Petaluma recently. A visit to the aisles of Charley's Deli & Liquor, Wilibees Wine & Spirits and Petaluma Market will expose shoppers to everything available from Petaluma's own Sonoma Coast Spirits, Griffo Distillery and Stillwater Spirits. And in short order, Barber Cellars will introduce their single-malt rye to their great selection of wines.
Restaurants and food experiences
One of the best ways to share your love of food with others is to buy them a gift certificate to your favorite restaurant. Personally, I like to take people out as a gift. The more people around the table means a greater chance that you will get to share and taste all the menu items. Whether visiting a new place or an old haunt, it is always a unique experience to share a meal with someone else.
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