When to Bring Wine as a Hostess Gift

Cindybin looks like she NEEDS a drink!

Cindybin-shut up. We'll drink what we want.

My "Morning After Basket" usually contains a bunch of used condoms and my underwear. Enjoy, ladies.

I prefer to bring champagne. It spices things up a bit and besides the host usually has wine at home already. Hence the term "House Wine". Stay thirsty my friends!

I love cakebread wine, its not cheap and not overly expensive. I think it's a wine you share on a special occasion so I don't expect it to be drank that night.

LOL @ Cindybin. Not sure if you are serious or just being funny....but the post made me laugh...

I think somebody needs to get Cindybin a drink. Relax a little. Sheesh.

A little mind-altering every now and again can be a good thing, especially for people who need to open up their world view a bit and not tell the rest of the world what they can or cannot do.

BTW, recent studies show that people who abstain from alcohol altogether are more likely to die sooner than people who drink one glass of alcohol (regardless of type) per day. Really.

Oh, for heaven sake, Cindybin. Chill. Allow people to make choices on their own, with thoughtfulness and kindness in their heart. Your belief is respected; it just isn't everyone's.

Whatever. The whole point is to think OUTSIDE the same old same old of a bottle of wine thata the hostess then feels obligated to serve and/or does not fit their palate. Get them anything creative that you think they will like. One of the best gifts we received last week was a beautiful potted mum-nice for Fall and probably less than $10.00.

Wow, Cindy! I think that you need to just "breathe" and maybe have some decaf green tea ... But for me, I'll have my glass of wine after a hard day of work and a workout at the gym ... Cheers!

Cindybin, go back to the loony-bin. So I suppose you think the recent studies from the University of Texas, and also Harvard, that are based on scientific fact that say that women who imbibe outlive their peers is bunk? I say, "POP OPEN THAT BOTTLE OF RED!"

Cindybin, get a life.

I can't believe this!!! We should NEVER bring wine or any other booze!! Haven't you people read a single thing I've written over the years?? I have ranted about alcohol for YEARS on the Internet! Alcohol is a TOXIN. It poisons cells! Even in low doses, alcohol significantly increases the risk of breast cancer in women, along with liver and rectum cancer. Alcohol damages women's brain cells faster than men's. Yahoo has run stories about this! Haven't you people read any of these things?? And even if alcohol were healthy, just the fact that it is a mind-altering drug makes it wrong! You wouldn't smoke pot, would you? Heaven's no, because "drugs are bad" and you have better morals than that. But alcohol is a drug!! Just because it's legal doesn't make it right! I have chastised pot smokers online for years, trying to get them to see why using drugs is wrong. It's like talking to a wall. They'll say accusingly to me, "Yeah, but I bet you drink WINE." They want to prove me a hypocrite. I have to assure them that I do NOT drink wine or any other booze, that we shouldn't use alcohol or smoke pot! But those pot smokers have a point! A casual booze drinker is no better than a casual pot-smoker, except they aren't breaking the law! They're after the same psychoactive effect, that "buzz" one gets from a mind-altering drug. And that is not good! A grown adult should set an example and NOT DRINK! A grown adult should be WELL PAST the age where they want to use a drug to relax and unwind, enjoy life, socialize, celebrate, etc. What a thing to do! When my dad died a few years ago, we were cleaning out his house and found all this wine he and my mother used to drink before their health deterioriated. We threw it all out! No way were WE going to consume this chemical, and we don't hate anybody enough to give it away, so down the drain it went, bottles and bottles of it! Nobody should use alcohol! Oh this just makes me so mad. I have spent HOURS writing to wineries, trying to get them to realize what a bad example they set by manufacturing alcohol, and then articles like this undo everything I try to do! and don't give me the excuse, "Jesus drank wine." I'm so sick of hearing that! Nobody is drinking wine or any other booze to be more like Jesus! They're drinking it for the EFFECT, that "buzz" one gets from a mind-altering drug! Besides, times were different back then, and in many cases the water was unsafe and they had to drink wine. Also, the wine back then was more like grape juice--not as we know it today. Also, don't give me the excuse, "Everything in moderation." That's like saying it's okay to smoke pot in moderation! We shouldn't use alcohol at all!! GROW UP!! Set an example! And then people use the excuse, "Red wine is good for your heart", blah blah blah. Well studies show you'd have to drink hundreds of bottles a day to get any benefit, and it's only common sense that any supposed benefit is in the GRAPES, not the alcohol! Again, alcohol is a toxin! But as I said, even if alcohol were healthy, just the fact that it's a mind-altering drug makes it wrong! We shouldn't drink wine or any other booze--this is good morals and just plain common sense! Oh it makes me so mad when I see articles like this, and all these comments where people are acting like drinking booze is just the greatest thing. Haven't you read any of my many blog articles and rants over the years?? Again, people need to grow up and set an example and NOT use alcohol!!!

I'll take a bottle of wine as a hostess gift over eggs, jam or fruit any day!

Gifting with a bottle of wine should not make a host or hostess feel obliged to "open it then and there." It should be given and received as a token of the celebration, not an instruction to include it then and there. In fact, even carrying a decent bottle of wine around somewhat shakes it up. Those who enjoy wines and the pleasure, in moderation, wines can add to a meal with friends and family, probably know already that wine is a kind of living thing. Let bottles rest. Open with care to let it, as all seem to say in chorus: "breathe." Then, be gentle with the portion poured into each glass. Even a bit can go a long way to add to the flavor and delight of a meal with those whose company you enjoy. ---Most of all wine is not for chug-a-lug.---Pour more only as needed, or wanted. Wine is for savoring not slugging down. --Seems every host or hostess enjoys adding a bottle "for next time, perhaps" when it is considered still: a gift in good taste.

I love receiving a bottle and I love giving a bottle. The fun with wine is that there's so many kinds. You can pick the specific flavor they prefer and find one with a kooky label they'd find amusing. If your host/hostess prefers beer, I hop over to Binny's and find some fun beers in flavors they'd like. If you're host doesn't drink alcohol, I bring homemade baked goods or ask what they'd like me to bring.

I think a bottle of wine is a perfectly fine hostess gift. Do we really need to make an entire gift basket? Really? Perhaps if you've been invited for an entire weekend, but not just for a dinner. Personally, we like to bring both a bouquet of flowers (picked especially for the hostess, depending on her tastes) and a bottle of wine or particular liquor for the host (also depending on his tastes). And while some may call that cliche, it's always been well received and appreciated. You are basically saying thank you for their hospitality, there's no reason to go completely overboard. However, if you know of something else that would appeal to their interests, go for it!

I'm with Kim! Bring the wine and if I'm THAT curious about it, I'll open it with you. (Or just tell me it needs to breath for a few moments, and I'll open it right there.)

looking for a good steak and chicken dinner with out spending a lot of money on sides

Kim- cheers and here, here!