Finding the best gift for a wine lover is notoriously difficult. We are picky people who love something complex, intimidating, and totally subjective to taste. When my friends and family learned how much I love wine, I started to get all sorts of knick-knacks, trinkets, and random gifts (most famously a giant red high heel/wine bottle holder). If you have a wine snob in your life, don’t sweat it. I’ve got a few fool-proof gift ideas for any wine lover…and a few tips on what not to give them.
Gift Guide for Wine Lovers
These are some of the most reliable gifts for any wine lover, on any budget. From stocking stuffers to splurge, I promise your wine lover will use these gifts!
Wine Away
This stain-removing spray is designed to get red wine out of clothes and carpet. It uses orange oil so it actually smells pretty good too! When I was a sommelier, we always kept a bottle in the cellar for guests (and for our own spills). It for real works.
WineAway, $14 for a 12 oz spray
Repour
Repour is my favorite wine saver. You use it as you would a wine stopper, but it eliminates oxygen from your opened wine bottle. This keeps your wine fresh for up to 2 months. It’s recyclable, cost-effective, and works on any closure type. For more info on wine savers, check out our post on wine preservation.
Repour Wine Saver $17.99 for a 10-pack
Durand
The Durand is a super classy splurge for wine lovers who drink old or rare bottles. It’s a wine opener that has a corkscrew and a clamp so that you can gently lift an old cork out of vintage wine without breaking it. This is definitely a gift for a wine connoisseur and not an everyday drinker, but if you give it to the right person they might get excited enough to open up a 1982 Château Latour with you ;).
Wine of the Month Club
Another one that is sure to satisfy any wine lover. Palate Club matches wines to your taste, so we also take the work out of figuring out which wines they’re like (remember, wine people are picky!). Send them a blind tasting kit with 4 half bottles so they can create a personal wine profile and find wines that match their taste.
Palate Club Blind Tasting Kit, $59
What Not to Gift a Wine Lover
There are some things that wine snobs get gifted way too often. I added this list to make sure the wine lover in your life loves your gift, and that it doesn’t end up in a junk drawer.
Wine Stoppers
These seem really cute and useful, but they’re not. They make it hard to store wine and rarely get used. I’ve been gifted way to many over the years and almost never use them! Even worse is getting a set…if I have multiple bottles open, I’m using the Repour!
Wine Bottle Opener
Unless it’s a special device for opening up fancy bottles like the Durand, we’ve got it lol. Also, this is the thing that every wine tasting event gives away. It’s a useful gift, but it’s pretty much guaranteed that any wine lover has like 10 of these already.
Stemless or Decorative Glassware
Stemless glassware may be trendy, but unless your wine snob asks for it, don’t expect that they’ll think it’s cool. Actually, stemless glassware gets fingerprints all over it and makes your wine warm—not great for fine wine! In face, the best glassware is clear and often has a big bowl. Sommelier & Chef makes great everyday stemware. Zaltos is the baller choice.
Final Thoughts on Wine Gifts
One of the riskiest gifts for a wine lover is wine! Tastes can be subjective so unless you know what they like, it’s best to choose practical gifts that almost any wine lover will love and actually use. Choose function over style. Finally, make sure you’re there when they pop something nice to celebrate the occasion!! (…and if you want to keep it classy, read more about drinking in moderation during the holidays).
-AT
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