Seek recommendation on wine for 50th wedding anniversary gift
 

A relative of mine will be visiting from HKG to celebrate his 50th wedding anniversary late next month and his family members residing in the US will organize a luncheon. I’m unsure of what kind of gift will be suitable and thought perhaps some good quality red wine could serve the purpose – due to health benefits of red wine. I’m a dummy in wine tasting (e.g., I don’t mind drinking cheap wines that UA serve on domestic flights), so I come here to seek your input on good quality red wines (and perhaps with some name recognition) that my elderly relative would appreciate. Thanks.

Why red wine over champagne?

I suppose Champagne would suit the party itself, and I was looking at this:
http://www.wine.com/Red-Envelope-Win...oduct_id=96535
Any other suggestions or better places to order?

However I also want get a few bottles of red wine, b/c health benefits of red wine and I myself like drinking wine over Champagne.

i think you will need about 1 bottle for every 4, maybe 6 in a stretch. for a single red, i would look at a good pinot from california, or central otega. if there are more than 6-8 people, i would think both a red and a white approaprate unless you know the guests care for only red.

I think the OP is looking for a gift ... not something to serve at the lunch?

One of the gifts that we gave my parents for a big wedding anniversary was a custom-etched wine bottle from Goosecross Cellars. The bottle was beautiful and the wine was good too.

You may want to consider something which was made the year they were married. If they like books, a book published in 1962 (First Edition) would be nice. Try searching on ABEbooks.com

Firstly, Champagne is wine.

Secondly, 1 bottle for 4 or even six sounds like a very sad lunch.
1 bottle for 2 at the minimum.

so, champagne is wine??? so what. op says he no like champagne.

op says wedding party for couple married 50 years. i presume they and the majority of the party in their 70's. most people in their 70's do not slug down half a bottle of wine.

the only 62 (if that is the correct year) champagne i can think of is RD. huge bucks. for 1962, almost has to be red and european, and expensive and not appreciated by most.

OP said he prefers wine to Champagne. I was correcting that.

The couple may be 70, but the celebrating party most certainly are not all of that age. Its better to have too much wine than too little.

Finally this concept of matching the vintage to the year of event is tacky. Better to spend the money on a nice more recent wine.

It's a gift, not to be served at a function.

The "health benefits of red wine" come into play when drinking red wine regularly (yet moderately) over an extended period of time. If the couple doesn't regularly drink good red wine, then don't waste your money on an expensive bottle. How much are you looking to spend and what do they normally drink? I suggested champagne because it is generally considered to be appropriate for a celebration and you can get easy name recognition within a reasonable price (e.g. Krug, Dom).

Have cheap but acceptable wine at the lunch and buy them an expensive botle to take home for them to enjoy together and privately.

Drinking a present youself - with others - isn't a present.

If they don't drink red wine regularly, they're not going to enjoy a particularly good one. As a gift, I'd suggest getting a nice dessert wine for them to share, as even non-wine drinkers often really enjoy them. Mrs. PVDProf isn't a big wine drinker--and almost never reds--but she had no problem enjoying the half bottle of Yquem a friend gave us as a wedding gift. If you want to be a little showy with it, a good wine shop will be able to put you on some aged Sauternes in any generous price range; there are quite enjoyable examples from the New World for less.

First question is: what is your budget?

Second question is: What do they like? Just because you like wine over champagne does not mean they have the same tastes. In my experience, non-wine drinkers will prefer sweeter and more approachable wines as opposed to a wine lover's "good wine".

Third question is: Do you expect them to take the wine back to HKG? It may not be the most security-friendly gift.

I think it's hard to go wrong with champagne; the symbolism is appreciated even if the wine chosen isn't perfect, or the couple are not 'wine drinkers'. If you have the budget, go with a big prestige name like Dom Perignon, which usually comes in an impressive gift box. Otherwise, choose a $20-50 bottle from the grocery store. Check Sam's Club or Costco rather than red envelope for a price savings. ;)

Thanks everyone, you've given me a lot to think about and I will also check in with his younger sister about their preference. Just to clarify, his son is organizing the lunch party so I wasn't thinking of bring lots of champagne/wine to the party itself - don't want be viewed as stealing his thunder ;) The couple will be staying in the US for several weeks so my initial thought was to order some nice wine or champagne to ship to their residence (he is in high 70's & close to 80 yrs old, doesn't drink hard alcohol and probably can only drink a little wine at a time). I don't have a set budget (can go up to 500 or 1K if needed); he is the head of their family & I'm the youngest among his generation (with >>35 yr in age difference) so I need be respectful but not extravaganza.