How to Choose?! Recommended Wines to Bring According to the Occasion

How do you choose wines to bring to a friend's house for a home party or as a gift? Choosing a host gift wine is often considered surprisingly challenging, not only for people who don't usually drink wine, but even for wine lovers. This time, I'd like to share some of the criteria I keep in mind, along with a few wines that were well received.

If you know the purpose of the gathering or the menu in advance, selecting a wine to match it is a smart approach.
Even for home parties, occasions range from hiring a visiting chef for a full-course French meal to a relaxed, cozy "drinking at home" setting.

That said, you won't know the exact price of the food, so there's no need to overthink it.
If you feel that "it sounds like a fairly proper meal," for French wines, look for "AOP" on the label, and for Italian wines, "DOCG." You can consult with a shop clerk to choose your preferred red or white from among those.
For Japanese wine as well, there is a Geographical Indication mark called "GI," which serves as a guide when searching for wines that let you taste the unique character of that region. If you know the ingredients for the dinner, looking for a wine from the same region is also an interesting option.

In addition, various wine competitions are held in Japan—such as those featuring wineries selected by the Winery Award Council, or the Sakura Awards judged by female wine professionals—so award-winning wines from these competitions can easily be expected to suit many people's tastes.

On the other hand, if you think, "Is this more of a casual home-drinking vibe?", wines that are fun, lively, and easy to sip are best!
In those cases, I've recently been choosing rosé or orange wines.
Japanese rosé and orange wines tend not to be overly heavy while offering a pleasant touch of umami, making them relatively easy to pair with a wide variety of dishes.
The other day, I was invited to make and eat Thai curry together while nibbling on prosciutto, so
Coco Farm & Winery's Koshu F.O.S. orange wine was what I brought along.

Sometimes the purpose of the gathering is someone's celebration or anniversary.
When that happens, you might look for a related wine... maybe the birth year? But depending on the vintage, it might not be at a price you can casually bring to a home party, and it's difficult to find in the first place.

Recently, I had dinner with neighbor friends who enjoy wine together as a family.
I thought bringing something casual as usual would be fine, but it turned out to be their daughter's 3rd birthday.
For a 3-year-old, a wine from that vintage is a realistic price. However, I didn't have time to go shop for one, so as I searched online, I ended up finding a service that lets you easily create custom wine bottles called Snap Wine.

Snap Wine https://snapwine.jp/

A convenient service that lets you create custom wine labels using your favorite photos—from either your smartphone or computer—and purchase the wine directly online.
While there are various services like this out there, Snap Wine is exceptionally fast, and super easy!
Let me share my experience with this impressively fast and simple process.

With just these few steps, all that's left is to wait for your wine to arrive.
Choosing photos and frames feels just like making an Instagram post and is lots of fun, plus I found plenty of stamps I'd love to try out next time.
Next, maybe I'll create a "Thank You" wine personalized with the name of someone who has helped me.
It could also be great to prepare one for a Christmas party or New Year's family gathering.

And the wine ordered on Monday arrived on Thursday!
This time it was shipped in four business days, but if you're in a rush, they even offer super express same-day shipping (for orders placed by 12:00 PM).
It's a fantastic service, especially for busy people.

And as for the wine...
It's adorable. It turned out so cute even to my eyes, so my parents will definitely love it!

Sparkling wine for the toast,Episode Zero from Bee's Knees VineyardsWhen a good moment presented itself, I presented them with the wine featuring their daughter's custom label. Not only the parents but also the little girl herself were full of curiosity. The mom even said, "It feels like a waste to drink it!" and they were so delighted! They said that after enjoying it, they would wash the empty bottle clean and display it. As the giver, it made me feel happy too.

If you're going to bring wine, you'll want to bring something a bit thoughtful. If the day you share a wine happens to be an anniversary or a moment when you want to express gratitude to a friend, without overthinking the contents, a wine like this with a photo on it is a great idea. Furthermore, if you're considering a gift that's a step above, selecting a wine vintage from the recipient's birth year is also a stylish touch. Finding vintage wines can be quite difficult, but you can search for them on Snap Wine!

Snap Vintage http://snapvintagewine.com/

Furthermore, when I looked into this service, it seems it can be used for various other types of alcohol besides wine as well.

For those who prefer spirits,
Snap Whisky https://snapwhisky.jp/
Snap Shochu https://snapbottle.jp/
Snap Liquor https://snapliquor.com/

Sake and beer, too.
Snap Sake https://snapsake.jp/
Snap Umeshu https://snapume.jp/
Snap Beer https://snapbeer.jp/
Snap Canned Beer https://snapcanbeer.com/
Snap Bottled Beer https://snapbinbeer.com/

Even if you don't drink alcohol, no problem at all!
Snap Non-Alcoholic https://snapnonalc.com/
Snap Juice https://snapjuice.jp/

With a wide variety of drinks available, this service lets you quickly and easily create custom labels.
It is so convenient that I'll probably get hooked on using it whenever I look for gift wines from now on.
Since the selection of drinks on offer keeps growing, perhaps the lineup of Japanese wine will also expand in the future.
If you're ever wondering what wine to bring to a wine gathering, definitely give it a try!