Whether you’re drinking a fruity red, a dry white or a home-made mulled, there’s no doubt that there’s nothing quite like a fine wine at Christmas time. The spirit of Christmas is felt in those very moments when you’re wrapped up in the warm, at home with family and friends sharing great food and drink without a care in the world. For the wine lover, Christmas is also a great time to experiment using different wines for social gatherings and also to use in new and exciting recipes. So if you’ve got a partner, family member or friend who you know fancies themselves as a bit of a wine connoisseur, there isn’t a better time of the year to treat them to a great wine gift.
When looking for wine gifts this winter, remember you don’t have to stick strictly to wine racks or wine glasses. Check some of the items below for a look at some superb, innovative gifts that will put smiles on the faces of all wine lovers this Christmas.
Wine Coolers
With so much wine flowing at Christmas, it’s important to find a way of keeping it fresh. It’s likely that your fridge at home will already be overflowing with food and drink so you may struggle finding the extra space for wine bottles. This is where wine coolers come in. White, rosé and sparkling wine are all best served chilled and keeping bottles in a wine cooler will help ensure they remain at the optimal temperature. Cheap wine coolers can be bought online or in a number of high street stores and come in a variety of sizes and so it should be easy to find one that fits comfortably in your kitchen.
Electric Corkscrew Gift Sets
You’ll be popping plenty of bottles this Christmas, so instead of risking that embarrassing moment of not being able pull the cork out of the bottle, find a an electric corkscrew that will do all of the work for you. Electric corkscrew gift sets range from novelty to funky and are great stocking filler. Buying one may even save you a few broken lampshades!
iPad2
iPad2’s are going to be in demand for people of all ages this Christmas and there are some wonderful apps available which make this a great wine gift idea. The AG (Approach Guides) wine app for example, allows users to make informed decisions about their next wine purchase by outlining information from a huge number of wine regions and across a variety of grape choices. Another great app is IntoWine which provides users recommendations for wines to compliment specific occasions and food dishes. There are sure to be several iPad2 deals in the lead up to this Christmas, make sure it’s you that’s wishing somebody ‘Appy Christmas!
E-Readers
Most kitchens have relatively limited space available after all your appliances are installed. You may find lots of recipe and wine books tucked away in the corner of the kitchen or hidden on top of shelving units. What use are they there? An e-reader will allow wine lovers to take their favourite books on the go and learn more about their favourite wines through their favourite blogs and newspaper articles. E-readers can be conveniently referenced from when cooking too. You could even take this a step further and pre-load the e-reader with some of the best wine e-books such as ‘Hugh Johnson’s Pocket Wine 2011’.
Wine Tasting Experience
Wine tasting experiences allow for a friend or family member to truly taste some great wines and vintages from across the world and that they previously may never have been able to experience. They will be greeted and talked through the best wine tasting methods by a wine expert and will be able to truly learn what makes a fine bottle of wine. There are also vineyard tours which allow wine lovers to witness the whole process, from grape to glass. Experts will be able to teach which wines compliment which meals and how to best choose wines for all occasions.
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