Montesecondo Chianti Classico AND Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Tuscany, Italy
Wine: Sangiovese, Colorino, and Canaiolo; EVOO: frantoio, leccino, moraiolo, pendolino
Wine: 2006; EVOO: 2008
$35.99 (35% off this weekend)

The Gift Set... The oil alone used to be that expensive. It's like going home with a bottle of awesome Chianti for free. Even better,you can taste both all weekend, before you buy. And I predict you will purchase: Montesecondo's wares so are hard to resist that I took home two bottles of the olive oil on the day it arrived. A taste, and it's clear this is no retail ruse: Montesecondo is the authentic flavor of Tuscany. Condiments like thise are lifesavers tohave around as the holidays get closer and your house starts to fill up.Whether or not you recreate the traditional Italian Christmas Eve Feast of the Seven Fishes, or just use it to drizzle on your winter greens, it's special stuff. Hostess gift, too? If you bring this with you, your hosts will want you to move in permanently.

The Messana Family...in a previous life, Silvio & Catalina Messana were New Yorkers. Silvio's father started this beautiful farm in Tuscany in the 1960s, and in the '70s planted the vines that Silvio now tends. In the mid-'90s Silvio's mother fell ill, and he moved his family to Tuscany to be near her. This period also inspired Silvio to take over the vineyards his father had planted, and make greatwines that would honor their potential, and in 2000 he produced his first vintage. He, his wife Catalina, and their three sons live on this land in a lovely restored farmhouse, with the cellar and bottling room in the basement, just down a gravel drive from the small outbuilding that formerly housed farm animals but has been renovated to contain the winemaking facility.