The Soul of the Holidays
A WineDineDeeDee Guide to Entertaining, Pouring, and Gathering
Make this holiday season feel as good as it tastes.
In The Soul of the Holidays: A WineDineDeeDee Guide to Entertaining, Pouring, and Gathering, DeeDee Johnson invites you to create celebrations filled with delicious food, thoughtful wine pairings, and meaningful connection.
With Southern warmth, humor, and lessons from her own table, DeeDee shares practical ways to take the stress out of hosting. From choosing bottles for your budget to planning your party countdown, this welcoming guide helps you prepare with confidence and enjoy the people you've gathered.
What's Inside
- Stock your holiday wine collection and estimate what you'll need.
- Serve wine with confidence, from glassware to temperature.
- Pair wines with the many flavors of a holiday meal.
- Plan ahead with a manageable entertaining timeline.
- Create inviting tablescapes, a festive wine station, and a warm welcome for every guest.
A companion to The Soul of Food and Wine, this book blends personal stories with approachable hosting advice for first-time entertainers and seasoned hosts alike.
Because the heart of a memorable gathering is the feeling your guests carry home.
Cook with Love. Pour with Intention. Taste with Soul.
Who to Gift It To
Everybody on your list has a seat at somebody's holiday table. Here is who will thank you for this one.
The First-Time Host
Hosting for the very first time this year? This book walks them through it, from the guest list to the last pour, so nobody is panicking in the kitchen at four o'clock.
The Wine Lover
For the friend who always shows up with a bottle. Now they will know exactly what to pour with every dish on the holiday plate.
The Hostess Who Has Everything
Skip the candle this year. Bring a book and a bottle, and I promise you will be invited back.
Momma and the Family Cook
For the one who has carried the holidays for years. Give her a plan, a pour, and permission to sit down and enjoy it.
Your Sorors and Book Club
Read it together, then plan a holiday gathering straight from its pages. Somebody bring the wine.
Yourself
Yes, you. Because this is the year you finally get to enjoy your own party.
Gift the Set
Wrap them up together and you are giving the whole table.
The Soul of Food and Wine brings the stories, the recipes, and the heart, all the way from Momma Nancy's kitchen to the world. The Soul of the Holidays brings the plan, the pours, and the confidence to host. Together, they are the gift that keeps your people coming back to the table long after the last ornament comes down.
The Holiday Set · Both Paperbacks
- Both books ship together for one $7 flat shipping charge.
- Holiday pricing runs through January 1, 2027. Order by December 10 for Christmas delivery.
- Ships to U.S. street addresses (no PO Boxes). Sending a gift? Enter their address at checkout.
- Buying just one? Single copies and eBooks are at Barnes & Noble: The Soul of the Holidays or The Soul of Food and Wine.
✦ Meet me in November. I will have signed copies of both books at every one of my November events. See the dates →
The Soul of Food and Wine
A Southern Woman's Journey from Momma's Kitchen to the World
A Love Letter, Written From My Table to Yours
Let me tell you something about myself right up front, I am a Montgomery, Alabama girl to my core. I say that proudly, chest lifted, chin up, with the kind of quiet confidence that a good Sunday dinner gives you. Everything I know about food, wine, and hospitality started in my Momma Nancy's kitchen, where the kitchen was the center of the universe and wisdom was passed like a cast-iron skillet from one set of hands to the next.
This book is a love letter, plain and simple. A love letter to Montgomery, where my story begins. To Atlanta, where I built a life for fifteen years. To Alabaster, the place I call home now. And to Napa, New Orleans, and Jamaica, every place along the way where I tasted something that made my spirit say yes. It is the story of a Southern woman's journey from her Momma's kitchen to the world, and an invitation for you to come along.
I am here to tell you, this is more than a book of recipes and tasting notes. It is the soul of who I am, poured onto every page, seasoned with the same love my Momma seasoned her greens with. Whether you are pulling up a chair for the first time or you have been at my table for years, I wrote this book so you would feel like family by the last page.
Sample Excerpts
Let me tell you something about myself right up front, I am a Montgomery, Alabama girl to my core. I say that proudly, chest lifted, chin up, with the kind of quiet confidence that a good Sunday dinner gives you.
I fry this chicken when I want to say "I love you" without making a speech, when I want the kitchen to smell like home and the table to feel like a soft place to land.
That first sip was nothing short of a revelation, deep and velvety, with whispers of dark cherry, cedar, and something almost ancient, like the soil itself had a story to tell.
From the Table to Your Hands
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