I love the holidays, it's the pace I can't stand. Take this short list along when you go shopping and keep it relaxed.

Gifts of wine
- J. Lohr Chardonnay (about $10, everywhere), classy label, best served with a gold bow on it.
- '97 Sanford Pinot Noir ($20 and up, Brookline Liquor Mart and others), top quality Californian, big bites of cherry.
- '97 Coppola Diamond Series Zinfandel (about $18, Bauer and others), super old vines fruit, great concentration, Best Wine by a Film Maker in '99.

A whiter shade
- '97 Trimbach Pinot Blanc (about $11, Marty's and others), lovely for the chardonnay shocked, great with seafood.
- NV Gruet Brut and Blanc de Noir (about $13, Bermans, Beacon Beverage, and others), New Mexico fruit, great carbonation, lean and focused.
- '97 Trimbach Gewurztraminer (about $17, Mall in Cambridge and others), apricot, honey, rain, and flowers fill the glass.

Dinner wines
- '97 Carmenet Dynamite Merlot (about $22, Andover Liquors and others), the name says it all, a two megaton merlot.
- '95 Pedroncelli Chardonnay, Frank Johnson Vineyard Reserve (on sale, normally about $14, The Wine Press, BLM and others), ripe, mineral rich spring water flavor, great with food.
- '97 Hannah Pinot Noir (about $20, Gordon's and others), Russian River pinot noir, red fruit, very likeable, good with strangers.

Triple play
- Rosemount 3-Pack: '98 Show Reserve Chardonnay (about $22), '96 Mountain Blue Shiraz Cabernet (about $16), '96 Traditional (about $20), available at Martignetti's and others.