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There are times when it's not appropriate to actually buy someone a bottle of wine--say, if that person lives out of state and the crazy shipping laws don't allow you to. But that's not to say you can't still feed their wine habit with an accessory gift. Funny that the wine industry has an entire related industry of accessories--most of which, like kitchen gadgets, are novel, but utterly useless--but some of them are actually fun and handy. Here are strategies for getting just the right gift for the...Novice: Anything wine-related is fair game, because the person probably just likes the idea of the "Italian villa" look in their home or the thought that they're sophisticated enough to have moved beyond frat-party beer and fruity mixed drinks. A wrought iron wine rack, a "Chateau Roberts" plaque, a cork board kit, or a T-shirt that says "I always feel better after I wine a little" will go over perfectly.
Enthusiast who is getting serious about wine: Think practical and useful items at this stage. This person needs to trade up her old K-Mart wine glasses for some more delicate stemware. Riedel is the top brand, and you can get a set anywhere from around $100 a glass to a little more than $10 a glass. Target carries an inexpensive but good-quality Riedel line that will buy you four basic red or white wine glasses for around $45. The new enthusiast could also use a decanter, vacuum bottle sealers, and Champagne stoppers.
Long-time collector: Realistically, this person has everything he needs, likely including a cellar. He's probably gotten every wine-type gift known to man, from Santa bottle stoppers (useless, but cute) to wine charms (useful only if you remember to get them out of the drawer). Skip the cutesy stuff and get something you know he'll use, like a gift subscription to Wine Spectator, Wine Enthusiast, or the Wine Advocate (which he probably already gets, in which case the subscription will be tacked on to his standing order) or a magazine he may not get, like Wine & Spirits or Food & Wine. Or buy him a wine book--new releases this year include The Battle for Wine & Love, The Billionaire's Vinegar, the updated World Atlas of Wine, 1001 Wines You Must Taste Before You Die, The Wine Snob's Dictionary, and The House of Mondavi.
Any best and worst wine accessory gifts to share?
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12-12-2008 @2:25PM Julie said... JulieNotes are a great wine gift, come have a look!
http://www.julienotes.com
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12-12-2008 @2:30PM ESC said... For my aunt and uncle, the SERIOUS WINE PEOPLE, who are also dog lovers (and share their home with 3 enourmous golden retrivers, last year I got them the Wine Dogs book - a gorgeous full color photograph book of the dogs that live at wineries in the US. There's a new edition this year (hmmm, is it tacky to get them the same gift two years in a row?), and you can find the books and things like caledars at amazon.
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12-12-2008 @2:31PM ESC said... no hyperlinks at slashfood? here is the amazon link, shrunk down to managable size: http://tinyurl.com/6htqlc
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12-12-2008 @2:34PM Greg said... I'd say that any gift that purports to improve the wine at the time of pouring (i.e. wine magnets, super aerators, breathable glasses) are a pretty bad idea for a wine nerd gift.
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12-12-2008 @4:54PM Big John said... Wow, your novice paragraph is pretty holier-than-thou. Ever stop to think that hey, a person may not have much experience with wine and doesn't know what to do?
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12-12-2008 @6:23PM Luis Antonio said... I'd add some introductory books to the first two segments, the one that really got me started was the Wine Bible and I always recommend that as a starting point with learning from your albariños to your zins.
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12-13-2008 @8:38AM Gretchen Roberts said... Big John, I didn't mean to be holier-than-thou. I have all that stuff in my house and love it!
Luis Antonio, good idea on adding books for the novice and enthusiast.
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12-14-2008 @2:52AM Greenish said... A great new wine related gift item to check out is the new 'two bottle bag' by Hero Bags. It's stylish and practical canvas tote that carries two bottles upright and without clinking. Added bonus is that it's made in America! On sale now at Hero Bags.com for $12.95 http://www.herobags.com
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