1 Wine Dude

Think Inside The (Wine) Box Giveaway: Personalized Wine Gift Holiday Edition2 min read

Posted on by 1WineDude

Ok, peeps – just in time (and plenty of it) for the holidays, we’ve got another giveaway coming at ya!

 

This week, one lucky commenter will be selected at random to win a pretty spiffy personalized wine gift box (a $45 retail value) from www.personalizedwineboxes.com!

Pictured at left, these wine gift boxes look pretty darn spiffy, and could make a very nice edition to your holiday gift list ( even if, like me, you primarily considered something like this a gift to yourself… you selfish little thing, you…).

Anyway…

Here’s the deal: In one week, I will randomly select a winner from the comments who will be able to design their own personalized wine box! The only catch being that you need to live in the U.S. (I’ve also been asked to add the disclaimer “wine not included” – but if you couldn’t figure that one out on your own then you have problems deeper than can be solved with wine alone).

Our comment topic? What’s the coolest ‘wine gift’ you’ve ever received?  Shout ‘em out!

To get us started here’s my pick…

Back in 2002, I received a rather cool wine-related gift: a tastevin (purchased, I believe, in Georgetown).

A matter of (very) brief explanation: the tastevin is the (somewhat ancient-ish) tool used by sommeliers to taste wine in dark wine cellars; it was usually constructed from metal and worn about the neck with a chain.

In the case of my gift, there is a coin inside the basin (which is the focus of the old, crappy digital pics inset to the left and the right), dated 1484 (the reverse side has inscriptions in Latin and what appear to me to to be runes, though I’ve never had time to perform any serious research on what the hell all of those might signify).

Of course, it’s a matter of conjecture when the tastevin was made (or even if the coin is, in actuality, from 1484 or was created much later).

In other words, we don’t know exactly where it’s from, or quite when it was made, or even when the coin inside it was made, but for me all of that doesn’t detract one iota from the absolute coolness factor of this thing.

And before you ask: No, I’ve never actually used it for its original, intended purpose (tasting wine in the dark)!

Cheers!

(image: personalizedwineboxes.com)

26 thoughts on “Think Inside The (Wine) Box Giveaway: Personalized Wine Gift Holiday Edition2 min read”

  2. You will pick a comment at random?

    What's your methodology for that? ;)

    Best wine gift: a bottle of White Zinfandel.
    I do believe that it is the thought that counts…

    1. Thom – really? :)

      Ah, the random comment methodology:
      – I use a random number generator in a spreadsheet with the parameters (low / high) of the comment count for comments.
      – We factor out any comment by the Admin. (those would be my comments, and I'm ineligible! :)
      – The winning comment is the number returned by the random generation (and yes, I'm aware of bugs with those in MS Excel for example where the function always returns the same result and the proper workarounds are in place for that, blah-blah-blah).

      Cheers!

  3. The best wine gift I ever got was the bronze counter top estate bottle opener. I have had it and used it for about 19 years now and everyone that visits and sees it n use wants one for their house too. Thanks to my darling wife for this wonderful gift and tool

    1. John – those strike me as the kind of gifts that, when you see a picture of it you think "ah, I wouldn't want one of those" and then when you actually use one it's more like "I MUST have this!" :)

      1. Very True, looks complicated, but actually very simple, and much better than the rabbit, battery operated and almost any other except the old reliable waiter handheld.if you know how to work it.

  6. My brother gave us a doormat that says "We only drink fine California wine. Did you bring any?" Tacky, but it makes me laugh and it's at our front door. I don't know that I'd exactly call it cool, though…

  7. Back when I was in college…a friend gave me a bottle of Lancers. My introduction to wine…..and I bought many more bottles before moving on to other wine!

  9. Having been a bibiophile long before I was certified wine geek, most of the best wine-related gifts I’ve received have been books about wine. That way I get to double-dip my pleasures — reading, learning and wine, all at the same time. I especially like long out-of-print books about the topic, as it gives me a sense of history about where we’ve been, how we’ve gotten to where we are now,and where we might be headed in the future.

  11. Thanks for the link, Julie – lots of discounts going around this weekend.

    Sadly, being in PA I'm also not going to be receiving that sampler anytime soon!

  12. One of the nicest wine gifts I got was a vintage wine stopper that my great grandmother had used at her wedding… it is in great condition, and I hope keep the tradition alive by using it for anniversaries and milestone events in the family.

  13. Hey wine dude. guess what I found at my local antique store? This very same tastevin but mine looks a whole lot more antique than yours showing much wear on the coin. Interested? Email me for more info…and photos. Leslie

  14. The best wine gift I've ever received was a handy little foil remover. You just give it a twist and there you go!

  15. Best wine gift I ever received…..was a bottle of wine my husband brought back from Italy…it was the best red…even had a few seeds in the bottle. HA!

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