Christmas 2024 dinner party etiquette sees wine ditched in favour of high-end gourmet gifts

Forget wine or bubbles. Wise men and women are rocking up to Christmas dinner parties with high-end edible gifts ranging from gourmet olive oils and vinegars to flavoured salts and even tinned fish.

House & Garden magazine commerce editor Arabella Bowes recently asked whether “trendy olive oil is the new wine”, opining that a well-stocked pantry of gourmet goods has become a status symbol among foodies.

Meanwhile, US television chef Ina Garten suggested taking a bottle of wine to a dinner party could be seen as a presumptuous, even rude.

“(The host may) feel like they should serve it with the meal,” she warned during an on-stage conversation in mid-November.

“I don’t bring a particular course, like, I wouldn’t bring cheese because they feel like they need to serve the cheese with the dinner.”

While a bottle of vino soon disappears, a bottle of premium olive oil can be used with dinner and the remainder added to the host’s kitchen.

Local gourmet food stores such as Simon Johnson in Subiaco, Re Store in Leederville and the recently opened Margot’s in Northbridge are enjoying a brisk trade.

Perth marketing professionals and self-confessed foodies Kate Hedges and Pim Pattanasuk love giving gourmet food as gifts.

“Olive oils are a really creative and thoughtful gift,” Ms Hedges said. “When someone cooks and uses it, it’s a reminder of the present.”

She added that with some of her friends drinking less, bringing a bottle of wine to a gathering is no longer a no-brainer.

“I think it’s really important to consider their tastes.”

Ms Pattanasuk said olive oils and other quality ingredients are ideal presents for enthusiastic home cooks — and can be the gift that keeps on giving.

“If I get a meal out of it, I’m not going to say no,” she laughed.

Another one of this year’s hot items is caviar, according to Kellie Willcock, State manager for Calendar Cheese Co, which owns Simon Johnson.

Olive oils are a really creative and thoughtful gift.

Imported from Italy, China and the Netherlands, the delicacy sells from around $60 for a 10gm tin of fish eggs up to more than $1000 for a big container.

“It doesn’t have to be scary,” Ms Willcock said. “It’s affordable and there’s lots of different options.”

Other big sellers for Simon Johnson at this time of year include Italian Christmas cakes such as panettone and pandoro, which are beautifully packaged to save customers having to pay for gift wrapping.

Ms Willcock says she’s also seeing strong sales of tinned tuna, anchovies and sardines, while the Subiaco store also stocks hand-sliced and packaged Spanish jamon.

All the Subiaco store is missing is frankincense and myrrh.

Ms Willcock said Christmas sales are always strong at Simon Johnson, with no impact from the ebbs and flows of the economy.

“People are always looking for something special, different and unique,” Ms Willcock said. “This year is no different.”

Moreno Berti, manager of Leederville institution Re Store, said his Italian customers have always bought so-called gourmet products.

He said high-quality olive oils and other dressings were “stock standard” all year round for Italians.

Mr Berti added that while sales may dip mid-year due to an economic downturn, come Christmastime customers are happy to “let their hair down”.

While bottles of wine usually feature in gift baskets, Re Store has plenty of options for friends and family who aren’t drinkers.

Mr Berti has noticed increased demand for speciality items such as Himalayan salt in recent years.

He usually orders Christmas stock in April and May due to stock taking a long time to be shipped from Europe.

Some Easter-related products arrived too late this year due to the conflict in the Middle East and hold-ups at ports in South East Asia.

Northbridge wine bar Margot’s sells “super premium” items, including tinned seafood, out of its delicatessen.

Venue manager Caitin Tormay said the premium Angelachu anchovies from Spain, trout fillets in curry sauce and pickled octopus are among the best sellers.

“We’ve just kept ordering more because tinned fish has been one of the most popular products in the deli,” she said. “Lots of people taking them home to have on toast, or to bring over to a friend’s place.

“We get a lot of people saying they remind them of European travels and I think it’s been nice to evoke that.”