This holiday season, rise above the noise of excess and gift with purpose by selecting presents that champion your values. Consider purchases that restore ecology, improve livelihood, and ensure animal welfare for farming communities. To support a sustainable and regenerative future, give clean and nourishing food and beverages.

The most popular certification that many notice is the USDA Organic Seal, which indicates that 95% or more of the ingredients are certified organic with no GMOs. However, there is a new certification, Regenerative Organic Certified. This distinction goes beyond the traditional organic standards by emphasizing the regeneration of soil health, animal welfare and social fairness.

One reason for the inconsistencies in the literature could stem from the fact that much of the previous research has traditionally treated alcohol as a single entity rather than separately measuring the effects of beer, cider, red wine, white wine, Champagne and spirits. Yet, even when broken down in this way, the research yields mixed messages. For example, one study has suggested that drinking more beer contributes to a higher waist-to-hip ratio.

A table that is equal parts welcoming and sustainable starts from the reclaimed wood up. It’s easy to green your winter table with simple eco-chic touches like an organic cotton runner or an upcycled centerpiece. Thoughtful elements made from sustainable materials, like reusable bamboo dinnerware or jute napkin rings, create a pleasing, neutral palette. And if you’re using recycled glass for your stemware, why not fill it with earth-friendly wine? Thanks to eco-conscious wineries that value sustainably grown fruit, what you pour may be the greenest element of your winter table.

In general, the best glasses to enhance the bigger and bolder flavors of most red wines should be taller and have a larger bowl than glasses meant for serving lighter or more delicate wines. Larger glasses allow a wine to breathe more and permit the wine’s flavors and aromas to develop more fully. For this reason, it’s also best to fill each glass only about one third full when serving red wines, to encourage more aeration.

For a main course, such as a seafood salad featuring crab, shrimp or lobster, or a salad using hearty ingredients like roasted corn, avocado or quinoa, you might want to choose a Provencal variety. Mathilde Chapoutier Provence Rosé uses a blend of Grenache, Cinsault and Syrah grapes. While the Grenache grapes add a fruity flavor with bright grapefruit and apricot notes, the Syrah grapes add more body and round out the texture. 

Travel to Northern Italy's Friuli region, where mountains overlook the Adriatic Sea, its coastline dotted with lagoons and long sandy beaches. Friulano is the predominant wine here because of the ideal growing conditions for this indigenous varietal. This Friulano comes from old vines located on Estate vineyards at 1,050 feet above sea level, with cool nights and warm days, ideal for producing wines with excellent acidity and elegance.

The Big Easy White offers an amazing array of tropical fruits, showing the complexity and charm the Cape has to offer. This wine is crafted with 100 percent Chenin Blanc, and has an easy-drinking, unwooded style. Its big appeal is due to its flavors being pleasant, refreshing and approachable. The tropical palate is richly textured with hints of wild herbs and Indian spice, adding complexity and good depth. 

As Millennials make their move out of college and into the workforce, their drinking habits also change. They opt for the sophistication often associated with wine—as well as cocktails and craft brews—over the party favors of liquor and mass-produced beers.  In addition, Millennials apparently do not need a special occasion to drink wine; rather, they find drinking wine to be a social activity as well as a relaxing one, such as when cooking or watching television.  The reverberation of this is that while Millennials are paying less for wine than their Boomers counterpart because of socioeconomic reasons.

Despite a promising start, the rest of this film feels very much like a PR piece for potential investors. Which perhaps isn’t surprising: directed by Sky Pinnick, the producer is Kirk Ermisch, CEO of Southern Wine Group, a Latin American wine importer. Vineyards are beautiful, Mendoza seems like a fun and vibrant city, and it is nice that so many winemakers featured are given the space to talk about wine in their own words—other than a few notes that flash on the screen, the vintners basically tell the story.