The carnivores on your list will love the gourmet meats from Paul Bertolli at Fra'Mani Handcrafted Salumi in Berkeley. Select a deep red, U-shaped salametto piccante (flavored with smoked paprika); the pink, juicy (and gently garlicky) salametto; or one of Bertolli's other products made with classic techniques and top-quality pork. –Margo True
Cost: Salumi assortment $80; gift boxes $150 and $275
Source: Fra'Mani (510/526-7000)

Beecher’s Handmade Cheese in Seattle offers a Northwest collection especially for Sunset readers. It includes a hunk of mild, blue Oregonzola; the prize-winning, cheddar-like Beecher’s Flagship; sea salt-dusted yellow Seastack from the coast; and firm, earthy Tumalo Tomme, aged on pine planks in the Cascades. –Margo True
Cost: $60
Source: Beecher’s Handmade Cheese (call for the Sunset collection 206/956-1964)

Lillie Belle Farms creates delightfully delicate, fully flavored chocolates, including our favorite: cayenne caramels decorated with sketches of butterflies. To the adventurous foodie, give Smokey Blue truffles, which combine smoked blue cheese (!) in luscious chocolate. A box of bonbons and ganaches makes another delicious offering.
Cost: $10-$48
Source: Lillie Belle Farms

CMB Sweets makes fabulous jams with a sense of humor. With flavors like kiwi-lime-ginger or apricot-habanero, and the funniest labels we've read in a while, who wouldn't want a delivery every month? Perfect for that person who doesn't need a thing ... except a spoonful of something sweet every morning.
Cost: $42/3 months; $86/6 months
Source: CMB Sweets through HonestFoods.com

The Woodbridge Grill gift crate comes packed with mesquite, applewood, and toasted oak smoking chips, a reusable magnetic smoking box that clings to the grill and keeps the chips where they belong, and a cedar grilling plank. We love playing with the distinct flavors embued by different woods in grilled food, and the online how-to video makes setup easy, even for beginners.
Cost: $30
Source: Woodbridge Grill

Big, young red wines taste considerably better if you decant them — but what if you just want a glassful? The Vinturi pulls oxygen through holes in its sides, aerating wine instantly (and sounding cool in the process). –Sara Schneider
Cost: $40
Source: Vinturi.com (800/975-7199)

Uncorking tannic Cabs early to let them breathe is futile — precious little oxygen gets through a bottle's neck. Our blind tests confirmed that tight reds open up in this glass. –Sara Schneider
Cost: $20–$27
Source: Bed Bath & Beyond (800/462-3966)

Vinotagz are reusable stem markers (that double as napkin rings) made of nontoxic silicone. They are sold in sets of six and come in a nifty storage case that fits over the neck of a wine bottle. Pick from geometric and botanical patterns available in retro and solid colors. Bring these to your next holiday gathering; they'll be around long after the wine is gone.
Cost: $14
Source: Velocity Art and Design

The Pek Preservino pumps inert argon gas through a bottle stopper; heavier than air, the argon blankets the wine, protecting it from oxidation. You don't have to resist the urge to open a great bottle for fear that what's left will go bad. Preserves wine at least 10 days in our tests. –Sara Schneider
Cost: $40 and $70
Source: Pek Preservation Systems (800/560-8860)

Consider it an exotic alternative to the usual hearty reds and sparkling wines enjoyed at holiday gatherings. Try Chikurin Taoyaka "Elegance" Junmai Daiginjo (which holds up well to the heft of a holiday meal), Kikusui Junmai Ginjo, or Watari Bune Junmai Daiginjo, which is made from a rare strain of rice. –Irene Edwards
Cost: about $30-$95
Source: True Sake (available by mail-order in many states; call 415/355-9555)

In his new book, Washington Wines [SPECIAL_CHAR {38}] Wineries: The Essential Guide (University of California Press, 2007), Paul Gregutt rates about a quarter of Washington's wineries using a thoughtful 100-point scale. It's a valuable resource for buying Washington wines and a great read about the visionaries who saw potential in the desert east of the Cascades. –Sara Schneider
Cost: $35
Source: Amazon.com and bookstores

Send a little Zen mail for the holidays in the shape of a bamboo plant and smooth stones in a glass vase. Take your pick of plants and containers, such as this architectural combination of square glass vessel with black stones. We feel calm just thinking about it! –Daniel Gregory
Cost: From $21
Source: Basic Green Box

We love candles as a quick and low-cost party gift. Bluewick's beautifully designed packaging makes it especially easy to keep a stock of these soy-based goodies for last-minute giving. We especially like the kalamansi fragrance from the Hinoki line; the sweet/citrus Zen scent is a surprise for the holidays.
Cost: $8 and $40
Source: Bluewick

A gift that makes you smile is worth giving. The Smoke House Incense Burner designed by Jan Harman is adorable. Fragrant smoke rises out of a hole in the house's roof. Big enough to burn one cone of incense at a time, the tiny house is made of solid beech and rests on a stainless steel base.
Cost: $36
Source: Velocity Art and Design

These elegantly packaged, aromatic soap and sachet samplers from Northern California's Juniper Ridge make great stocking-stuffers. Founder Hall Newbegin and his band of foragers comb the mountains and deserts of the West for wild-harvested trimmings that go into all of their eco-minded products. We're crazy about the Siskiyou Cedar, which brings to mind a majestic Northwest forest. –Irene Edwards
Cost: $28–$30
Source: Juniper Ridge (800/205-9499)

Jazz up a kitchen with Dish towels. This handy gift set of two towels is sure to get well used throughout the year — and will get well admired between dish drying. The retro/modern design is screen-printed twice (20 in. by 28 in.; 100 percent cotton).
Cost: $19
Source: Mateo Ilasco

Make an evening in the garden even more festive with these colorful lanterns that turn themselves on. A 10-inch-diameter globe of durable nylon, the Soji Solar Lantern contains a small photovoltaic panel, a rechargeable battery, and two LED lightbulbs. When darkness falls, a built-in sensor turns on the lights, which glow for up to eight hours.
Cost: $16
Source: Allsop Home and Garden (866/425-5767)

Moth orchids ( Phalaenopsis) are classic orchids that normally flower in winter and grow well in an east-facing window. The trick to making them rebloom is to feed weekly with orchid food. –Jim McCausland
Cost: $15–$45
Sources: Orchidaceae in the Northwest (509/525-9566) or Norman's Orchids in Southern California (888/467-2443)

Nikon Monarch 8x42 binoculars bring you startlingly close to birds on the feeder, swallowtails dancing over the flowers, and blue-eyed darners patrolling the lawn for mosquitoes. Pair these with Jeff Glassberg's wonderfully photographed field guide, Butterflies through Binoculars: The West (Oxford University Press, New York, 2001), and you'll be a butterfly maven in no time. –Jim McCausland
Cost: Binoculars about $300; book about $25
Source: B&H Photo Video (800/952-1815); Amazon.com

Here's a great gift for folks who have garden dreams and no place to plant. The EarthBox is a self-watering container for vegetables, herbs, or flowers. Its water reservoir keeps soil moist, while a plastic cover minimizes evaporation. Your friend or family member can simply fill it with potting mix, granular fertilizer, and seedlings at the beginning of the growing season, keep the reservoir full, then marvel as the plants mature. The narrow design fits on small balconies or patios. –Elizabeth Jardina
Cost: $48
Source: EarthBox

We love these sturdy, colorful totes made from recycled plastic water bottles. The medium and large sizes are perfect for taking to the farmers' market or harvesting goodies from the garden; the small one makes a fun lunch pail or casual purse. –Julie Chai
Cost: $10–$14
Source: Mongo Mongo

Get your gardening friend an expandable, multi-compartment container that sits in the trunk of her car, where it will keep plants upright during transport. Box Tidy can hold a variety of plants up to the 3-gallon size. Between trips to the nursey, it folds flat in seconds. –Jim McCausland
Cost: $15
Source: Kinsman Company (800/733-4146)

Lesche Digging Tool & Sod Cutter (also called Hori Hori Ultimate) is nothing less than the ugliest and best weeder on the planet. An American adaptation of the hori, it has a hilt so you won't hurt yourself, a saw edge for cutting sod, and an offset blade so you can get remarkable leverage on rocks and roots. The steel is absolutely unbendable. –Jim McCausland
Cost: $50
Source: Smith & Speed Mercantile (360/376-1006)

Felco pruners cost a little more than most, but what a gift for a gardener. We've used them for years to prune everything from bare-root trees and roses to daisies and marigolds. Model 7 features a rotating handle that saves wear and tear on your hands. Spare parts and blades are available (you can practically rebuild them if need be), but with care they'll last a lifetime. –Margaret Sloan
Cost: $58
Source: The Felco Store

These are some of the best all-around gloves we've found. They last for years, and their stretchy fabric and durability makes them good for fine gardening as well as heavy pruning and cleanup. They come in women's and men's sizes for a great fit. –Julie Chai
Cost: $28
Source: West County Gardener

We also like the original Foxgloves gloves for light gardening. They have a nice tight fit so your hands and nails stay clean, and the stretchy knit fabric keeps them flexible. Wearing them is the next best thing to bare hands. And their bright colors make them easy to find after you've put them down. –Sharon Cohoon
Cost: $25
Source: Foxgloves

Bionic rose gloves are the most deliciously comfortable leather gloves ever. Gauntlets protect even your forearms from thorns when you're reaching into rose canes or berry vines to prune. –Jim McCausland
Cost: $45
Source: Bionic Gloves (877/524-6642)

Give a bit of horticultural history: a framed 95-year-old seed packet from Seed Art, a company in Glen Ellen, California. These vividly lithographed packets from the William D. Burt Seed Company were discovered a decade ago when the company's building was bulldozed. Sealed from the elements, the unused seed packets are in pristine condition and show varieties of vegetables and flowers now considered heirlooms. –Elizabeth Jardina
Cost: $39, framed
Source: Seed Art (call to order 707/996-8208)

The L.L.Bean Personal Organizer toiletry bag is up there with your old college sweatshirt, a favorite pair of slippers, or the chipped mug you can't give up — it's a keeper. It's sturdy, made to hang well from hotel towel racks and tree branches, ingenious, and available in 4 sizes. –Samantha Schoech
Cost: From $20
Source: L.L.Bean

Share the beauty and history of a glorious mountain range that cuts through Los Angeles, California. Sunset writer Matthew Jaffe tells the mountains' story, accompanied by stunning photographs by Tom Gamache. The Santa Monica Mountains: Range on the Edge (Angel City Press, Los Angeles, 2007) is 208 pages filled with 140 images. Read more
Cost: $40
Source: Amazon.com