From Our Family to Yours,
Buon Natale!
It’s hard to believe the holiday season is upon us once again!
As the holiday season approaches, we extend our warmest wishes to you and your loved ones with a heartfelt "Buon Natale!" This Italian greeting encapsulates the spirit of Christmas, a time when families come together to celebrate traditions, share in the joy of giving, and create cherished memories. It's a season of love, warmth, and togetherness, where the essence of family and community takes center stage.
Thank you for supporting our store and our family during the holiday season. We’ve loved seeing your faces, catching up and being able to offer personalized suggestions for your holiday dinners or gatherings. You truly are an extension of our family.
Whether you're gathering around a festive table full of delectable dishes or simply basking in the glow of twinkling lights and laughter, we hope your holiday season is filled with love, happiness, and the magic of Buon Natale.
Shop In Festive Style
This Season celebrate the holiday season with our new Festive Reusable Burlap Bag, a holiday twist on our popular Vincenzo's Classic burlap bags. It can serve as a fantastic gift bag, or maybe think about filling it with your loved ones' favourite Vincenzo's treats. It is available for purchase online in our Holiday Favourites Section.
The Gift of Good Taste.
If you’ve been invited to a Holiday celebration this month, don’t show up empty-handed. Celebrate the season of giving with our Holiday Gift Basket, a delightful assortment of gourmet treats and festive surprises that will bring joy and warmth to your loved ones' hearts. From rich chocolates to savoury snacks, this thoughtfully curated basket is the perfect way to spread holiday cheer, whether you’re bringing it as a hostess gift to your holiday gathering or as a corporate gift.
Our Holiday Gift Baskets sells very quickly, so be sure to drop by for instore pick up OR order yours online as soon as possible!
Corporate Services
Our corporate services are thoughtfully arranged gift baskets crafted to say ‘thank you’ or ‘congratulations’ in the most sincere and meaningful way possible.
These gift baskets serve as a powerful tool for cultivating and strengthening professional relationships. Our corporate services aim to elevate your business interactions to a level of sophistication and thoughtfulness that resonates with your clients, partners, and colleagues. We understand that in the corporate world, gestures of appreciation and gratitude go a long way, and our offerings are designed to make a lasting impression.
We are happy to include items such as wine or corporate marketing items.
We can create gift baskets for every occasion, from celebrating a promotion, maternity leave or retirement.
We look forward to helping you with all your corporate gift-giving needs this holiday season and beyond! Contact us at 519-741-1437 and ask to speak to our Basket Designer or email us at [email protected] to start customizing your gift basket.
Delicious Italian and Spanish Baked Goods
Indulge in the delectable world of Italian baked goods during the holidays. From the sweet, fruit-studded Panettone to the star-shaped delight of Pandoro, these traditional treats bring a touch of Italian warmth and flavour to your festive celebrations, and all available at Vincenzo's.
Panettone - Panettone is perhaps the most iconic Italian Christmas dessert. It's a sweet, yeasted bread filled with candied fruits, citrus zest, and raisins. Panettone is typically enjoyed throughout December and is often given as a gift.
Pandoro - Pandoro is another popular Christmas sweet bread, particularly in Northern Italy. It is a golden, star-shaped cake dusted with powdered sugar, resembling a Christmas tree. Pandoro is often served with a warm vanilla sauce.
Torrone - Torrone is a nougat candy that comes in various flavours and is studded with almonds or other nuts. It's a sweet treat that is often exchanged as gifts during the holiday season.
Crostoli: Crostoli are a type of crispy fried Italian pastry. Crostoli are made of basic ingredients such as flour, eggs, sugar, brandy, butter, vanilla, and a pinch of salt The dough is rolled thinly and cut into strips, which are then deep-fried and dusted with sugar. Crostoli are so light and flaky that they just melt in your mouth. Usually made during Lent, Vincenzo’s has a special Christmas Crostoli available over the holidays. Make sure to drop by to pick up, as they sell fast!
Cannoli - Cannoli are popular Italian pastries made from a crispy fried dough shell filled with creamy ricotta cheese and chocolate chip filling. They are a delightful addition to the Christmas dessert table.
Turron - Turron is a quintessential Spanish Christmas sweet. It's a nougat candy made with honey, sugar, and almonds (or other nuts). Turron comes in various flavors and textures, with the two main types being "Turron de Jijona" (soft) and "Turron de Alicante" (hard and crunchy).
Polvorones and Mantecados - Polvorones and Mantecados are crumbly shortbread-like cookies that are very popular during the holiday season. They are often made with ingredients like almonds, sugar, flour, and lard, resulting in a melt-in-your-mouth texture. These cookies are often enjoyed with a warm cup of hot chocolate.
Marzipan Figures: Marzipan, a sweet confection made from almonds and sugar, is used to create intricate figures and shapes during the holiday season. These marzipan figurines, often shaped like fruits, animals, or miniature nativity scenes, are not only delicious but also serve as decorative elements for Christmas displays.
Vincenzo's offers a wide selection of holiday favorites from around the world, including items like Figgy Pudding and Mulled Wine spice bags. You can find some of these seasonal treats listed on our website under the "Holiday Favourites" section.
We carry all of these delicious baked goods in-store, so be sure to shop online or come by for a visit!
This Holiday Season, Keep These Staples on Hand
This holiday season, ensure your festivities are filled with flavour by keeping Italian prosciutto and rich Stilton cheese on hand. Whether enjoyed together on a charcuterie board or incorporated into your favourite holiday recipes, these gourmet staples are sure to elevate your culinary experience.
Stilton Cheese - The perfect Stilton from Colston Bassett should be a rich cream colour with blue veining spread throughout. The texture of the cheese is smooth and creamy, with a mellow flavour and no sharp acidic taste from the blue. The cheese is best eaten at around 12 weeks but this varies from cheese to cheese as each one is unique. Melt-in-the-mouth perfection is what Colston Bassett delivers. Always popular at Christmas, Stilton is a versatile cheese, whether it be enjoyed on a festive cheeseboard or paired with sweet dishes.
Prosciutto di Parma - The real Italian Prosciutto! Cured with air, salt, and nothing else, the rosy-hued Prosciutto di Parma is widely considered to be the world's best ham.
Zampone and Cotechino - In Northern Italy, particularly in the region of Emilia-Romagna, it's common to serve zampone and cotechino. These are types of sausage, with zampone being stuffed into a pig's trotter and cotechino being a spiced sausage. They are typically served with lentils, symbolizing good luck for the upcoming year.
Novello 23 Gasull (oli nou) from Spain - Arrived!! Limited supply and sells out quickly. "NEW season" GASULL Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Spain, known as Novello 23 or Oli Nou, which marks the first taste of the 2023 harvest. Rushed by air to our store, this unfiltered olive oil of the Arbequina varietal promises a clean, fruity flavour and the freshest essence from the beginning of this year's harvest. A fifth-generation family-run production with a history dating back to 1835, this limited-time offering is akin to the "Beaujolais Nouveau" of the olive oil world and has received international acclaim, making it a consumer favourite. Available to order online or pick up in store. But Hurry!
Celebrate, Without the Hangover!
Celebrate this holiday season without the worry of a hangover by indulging in a delightful array of non-alcoholic drinks. From mocktails and sparkling juices to an assortment of alcohol-free wines, these beverages offer all the flavour and festivity without the next-day regrets. Here are some of our customer’s favourites:
Seedlip Non-Alcoholic Spirit - Spirit Spice 94 is a complex blend of aromatic, Jamaican All Spice Berry & Cardamom distillates with two barks and a bright citrus peel finish.
Carl Jung Sparkling Wine - This is a zesty sparkling White non-alcoholic wine outstanding for toasting or combined with salads and cheese. A perfect alternative, without the headache.
Dillons Tonic Cocktail Syrup - Introducing a new-to-us artisan tonic syrup, thoughtfully crafted with premium ingredients like citrus peels, gentian, cinchona, and juniper, sweetened with organic cane sugar, and designed to be the ideal companion for your next Gin+Tonic, offering a harmonious blend of bitterness and sweetness to enhance the flavours of your gin.
Dillons Wormwood Bitters - Crafted using wormwood grown in our distillery garden along with other natural botanicals. Great to use in a classic cocktail such as a Sazerac or Corpse Reviver #2 in place of Absinthe.
Our Holiday Hours Are Changing
The holidays season is always a hectic one. To accommodate everyone’s busy schedules and the increased demand for shopping, we will now be open on Sundays in December.
Our new holiday hours:
Weekdays: 8:30am to 8:00pm
Saturday: 8:00am to 6:00pm
Open Sunday (December 3, 10,): 11:00am to 4:00pm
Open Sunday (December 17th) 10am-5pm
Open Christmas Eve- Sunday (December 24): 9:00am to 2:00pm
Closed: December 25 and 26
Closed: Sunday Dec 31st, New Years Eve
On The Blog: Beloved Christmas Traditions in Italy and Spain
This month, on the blog, we’re sharing the rich and diverse Christmas traditions of Italy and Spain. From elaborate nativity scenes to mouthwatering holiday feasts, discover the unique customs, festive foods, and cultural nuances that make Christmas in these Mediterranean countries a truly enchanting experience. Whether you're planning to immerse yourself in these traditions or simply seeking to broaden your cultural horizons, this blog provides an engaging glimpse into the heartwarming celebrations of Italy and Spain during the holiday season.
Read the full blog post, "Christmas Traditions from Italy and Spain."
Visit our store, located in the heart of Uptown Waterloo at 150 Caroline Street South (in the Bauer Buildings) or shop online for your holiday staples. We carry local products from around the world and have done so proudly since 1967. From pantry staples like pasta and canned goods, fresh meat and cheeses, desserts to home goods and gift baskets and you’re sure to leave our store with a basket full of delicious food for your holiday gifts and gatherings.
We can’t wait to see you!
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