Water 2 Wine uncorks an alternative gift idea

Water 2 Wine features its low-sulfite wine

The holidays are enough to drive anyone to drink -- so this year, why not help everyone out by giving wine? For $250, Water 2 Wine will help you craft a case of 28 bottles with custom labels -- which breaks down to about $9 a bottle.

"Most of the time, gifts of chocolates and crackers go straight to the office kitchen," says Water 2 Wine general manager Sarah Witte, "but the alcohol always makes it to the right person."

Water 2 Wine is a fully functioning winery located at 8130 South University Boulevard, Unit 110, in Centennial. The winery features over a hundred varieties of wines from thirteen countries; because all the wines are fermented on site, they contain fewer sulfites than most brands, meaning less chance of a hangover in the morning. "The FDA requires sulfites to be at 350 ppm a bottle when shipped but since we usually don't ship our product, we only use 18 ppm per bottle," explains Witte. "So our product is more likened to barrel tasting."

Despite the economic downturn, business has been good. "Didn't you hear, we aren't participating in the recession," Witte jokes. "Right now, we are putting in client batches on a daily basis. Some people will spend $60 a month on a gym membership and some people would rather spend that money making their own wine."

Although making the wine is part of the fun, it's optional at Water 2 Wine. "We want people to participate but they don't have to," Witte says. "We help as little or much as you need."

And it's not too early to start making your gift-giving plans. Wine needs to ferment for 45 days before it can be bottled; if you started your batch today, it would be ready for bottling the day after Thanksgiving.

Happy holidays!