Creative Wine Related Gift Ideas

The wine lover in your life is likely looking for wine related gifts for birthdays, Christmas, and anniversaries.  Instead of buying another bottle of Chardonnay or Port, you can bolster a loved one’s enthusiasm for wine with the right accessories. 

Stemware And Stemware Racks

Once you eliminate wine as a gift idea for your friends, your natural impulse will be to buy stemware.  A collection of stemware from Riedel or Spiegelau sold at International Wine Accessories© (http://www.iwawine.com) can be a great wine-related gift.  You can narrow your focus on stemware built specifically for Bordeaux and Burgundy through International Wine Accessories©.  If you want to keep this stemware safe from bumps and accidents, you can purchase a stemware rack that matches the wood finish of the home.  These racks hang stemware upside-down to facilitate spotless drying while protecting fragile glass from damage. 

Wine Totes, Trolleys, And Carriers

Wine enthusiasts like to share their bounty with the world, hauling bottles and accessories from place to place.  The use of makeshift carriers, flimsy cardboard boxes, and other hauling tools can put wine bottles in harm’s way.  You can help your friend protect these bottles by giving a wine tote, trolley, or carrier as a present.  A wine tote from Rhino Wine Gear© (http://www.rhinowinegear.com/) can be purchased in nylon or leather and carry a pair of bottles for picnics and outdoor events.  Wine trolleys are akin to suitcases with long retractable handles and wheels to facilitate rolling on flat surfaces.  Wine carriers are built from hard plastic and offer stable ground for wine bottles no matter how turbulent it is outside. 

Decanters And Decanter Accessories

The purpose of a decanter is to allow air to pass through wine, releasing the fruity or pungent aromas from hibernation.  A decanter makes a great wine-related gift because it can be used for special occasions throughout the year.  You can opt for squat or tall decanters in various sizes to accommodate most levels of wine consumption.  If your friend already has a decanter, you can invest in a stainless steel funnel to attach to the mouth of an open bottle.  The funnel allows an easy pour from bottle to decanter, protecting the precious liquid from outside elements.  You can find hundreds of decanters and funnels from a specialty online store like Decanters.com© (http://www.decanters.com/). 

Wine Cellars

Your spouse, sibling, or best friend may have a full range of wine accessories from past gift-giving occasions.  If you are willing to spend some serious money on a wine-related gift, you can invest in a wine cellar for your gift recipient.  A wine cellar is different from a refrigerator in that it features curved shelves for bottle storage and perfectly calibrated refrigeration to chill wine.  You should research the recipient’s storage needs before investing hundreds of dollars in this wine-related gift. 

The main variable in purchasing a wine cellar is the number of bottles owned by the recipient.  While a basic Avanti® cellar may hold 155 bottles, you may need to work with a custom builder like Wine Cellar Innovations© (http://www.winecellarinnovations.com/) for larger collections.  You can keep your wine cellar budget low by opting for cabinets and mini-cellars that can be integrated immediately into a basement.  If you want to take this wine-related gift to the next level, work with your gift recipient to find space for a room or built-in model that requires additional work. 

Bottle Tags And Diaries

You may be surprised at the high cost of wine related gifts, as you search for a birthday or holiday present.  A good standby for harried gift givers is a set of bottle tags from a wine retailer like K&L Wine Merchants© (http://www.klwines.com).  Wine bottle tags are used to note everything from vintages and locations to notes about taste for bottles that will not be consumed immediately.  You can choose from rounded and squared bottles along with various colors and decorative flourishes when buying tags.  A perfect complement to wine bottle tags is a diary for wine tastings, classes, and trips to vineyards.  Once your gift recipient has noted the qualities of a bottle in his diary, he can attach a tag before placing the bottle in a wine cellar.  The bottle tag and diary package can run less than $20, but will help your friend keep track of his adventures in wine tasting. 

Cork Bulletin Boards

An enthusiast of Ports, Champagnes, and other wines ends up with myriad corks and empty bottles.  After the bottles are saved or recycled, a wine lover may not know what to do with dozens of spent corks.  You can solve this problem with a cork bulletin board kit from WineVine Imports© (http://www.winevine-imports.com/Shadow-Box-Wine-Cork-Bulletin-Board-Kit-pr-975.html).  The typical cork bulletin board kit includes essential elements like a wooden frame, cork-friendly glue, and a backing board to mount the corks. 

You can present a cork bulletin board in myriad ways as a wine related gift to your friend.  If you select a cork board with a photo frame in the middle, you can collect corks from your various get-togethers and surround a photo of you and your friend within the provided frame.  You can provide the kit unassembled to your friend if they have a set of corks from special wines that need to be mounted carefully.  The flexibility of a cork bulletin board kit is ideal for acquaintances and family members who are looking for wine related gifts. 


Wine Tasting Kits

A final wine related gift that is perfect for any occasion is a wine tasting kit.  Wine.com© (http://www.wine.com) carries a Wine Party Tasting Kit from Chronicle Books© designed for up to six players.  The Wine Party Tasting Kit is geared to novice tasters who want to learn about the ins and outs of reds and whites.  Your friend will be able to host wine tastings after each wine-tasting trip to expose his friends and family to new vintages.  The Wine Party Tasting Kit includes a half-dozen bottle covers to conceal each bottle from participants.  The kit’s score pads, markers, and instruction booklet allow testers to demonstrate their knowledge of wines.  A wine tasting kit is great for work colleagues and old friends who are looking for relatively inexpensive gifts related to wine.