Here we compared three wine accessories and how they affected the taste and aroma of wine.

Vinturi Wine Aerator
Clef Du Vin
The Wine Clip

First we needed a control, so we poured a glass without the benefit of any accessories.  Next we used the Vinturi Wine Aerator, funneling the wine through this device to open its potential.  Then we poured with Clef Du Vin dipped into the glass for four brief seconds.  What a difference!  Then finally we attached The Wine Clip to the bottle for our last glass in the experiment.  With all four glasses ready for tasting, the four of us passed the glasses around.  All of us could immediately identify the glass poured without any wine gadgets and the improvement to the wine was apparent . “It’s like night and day,” commented Sean.  In the end, I concluded: Why wait an hour for wine to decant or years to age when you can instantly improve the flavor and bouquet of wine with one of these gadgets?

Vinturi Wine Aerator

When compared to the others, the Vinturi stood out with the most positive and unique effect to the wine tasting experience.  The Vinturi opens the wine, making it more flavorful and full of aromas without changing the wine’s personality, using air to open the complex makeup of the wine.

The Vinturi effect on wine has a smooth and soft enhancement to the wine similar to the Clef Du Vin and The Wine Clip.  We would recommend using this wine gadget on all wines young, old and even your favorite wine that tastes great the minute it is poured from the bottle.

Clef du Vin

The Clef Du Vin works differently than the Vinturi Wine Aerator.  They both oxidize the wine but the Clef du Vin doesn’t add air to the wine like the Vinturi.  It is composed of a metal alloy that acts like a catalyst; activating then accelerating the oxidation process.  The chemistry of the metal alloy modifies the connections of carbon, sulphur, and hydrogen which modifies the tannin structure, as well as the taste and aroma of wine.  It instantly speeds up the aromatic development of the wine’s flavors and softens the wine’s structure.

Our test group selected the wine glass dipped with the Clef du Vin as the most discernible glass of wine.  The aromas and flavor of the wine were drastically changed for the better.  The change was so obvious that it worried me for using this wine tool on my favorite wines in the future.  And so, Sean and I conducted another test using the Clef on one of our favorite wines–Grey Wolf Cellar’s The Big Bad Wolf.  To our surprise, the results were repeated.

Whereas the Vinturi works well on all wines, the Clef du Vin works best on wines that age well. Don’t be surprised if the effect of the Clef du Vin flattens the taste of your wine. This may occur if you are dipping the Clef into a bottle that is recommended for drinking in a year or two max.  To fully appreciate the Clef du Vin use a good young wine that can appreciate over time.

The Clef du Vin is used frequently by connoisseurs with wine cellars.  Most wineries will tell you the recommended years for laying a bottle down.  However, if you do not have this information use the Clef on one of the bottles from the cases you are planning to store. For each dip into the wine, the wine ages by one year. So if the wine improves within 3-6 dips, then store your wine for 3-6 years.

The Wine Clip

The Wine Clip is also very different in the process of improving the taste of the wine.  This wine tool uses the principles of magnetism to improve wine.  It is believed that the use of The Wine Clip breaks up the tannins in wine resulting in a softer and smoother glass of wine.  The Wine Clip also draws more oxygen to the wine when being poured.  The magnetically susceptible oxygen is then attracted to a magnetic field which produces aeration.

The improved difference when compared to the glass unaffected by the wine accessories was clearly noticeable. However, the aromas and flavor weren’t improved to the intensity of the Clef du Vin but were close.

It’s Not Too Late!! If you’re located on the East Coast you’re in luck. We have an assortment of best sellers that can still reach you in time for Christmas. For our West Coast wine lovers, you’ll need to expedite your order for 2 day shipping on these best selling wine gifts.

Here are just a few of our on sale, ready to go best selling wine gifts:

Wine Travel Case With Glasses

This wine bag can comes with two glasses in velvet foam forms, a corkscrew and foil cutter. All the essentials to drinking wine on your outdoor adventure. Just add a delicious bottle of wine to our wine and glass carrier for the perfect wine gift!

Karafe Wine Game

It’s back in stock! The fun wine tasting game that will make you a wine connoisseur after just a few games. This wine board game was recommended by Wine Spectator as gifts your wine loving friends can use. Play with chips, funny money, real estate cards and trivia questions. Enjoy wine with friends and become more knowledgable on wine.

Wine Country Recipe Album

Our wine themed recipe card book is a best seller this holiday season. It comes with clear plastic pocket pages so our messy cooks can enjoy easy cleaning. The recipe card book has tabbed dividers with kitchen tips. You can add to this 3 ring binder since it’s not bound. You’re not restricted to 3×5 or 4×6 recipe cards because it can store both!

Clef Du Vin Pocket Professional

This unique wine tool is made from a metal alloy that really makes your wine taste better. The alloy gradually modifies the wine’s properties by accelerating oxidation. Easily dip it inot hte wine and wala!  your wine has just been aged which is equivalent to one year of aging.

Equine Embossed Metal Faux Leather Wall Wine Holder & Stemware Rack

Hang this wall mounted wine rack in your kitchen to display 5 bottles of wine. The stemware rack located at the bottom of the wine rack can hang 4 wine glasses. This is a useful and artistic way to store your wine and required accessories.

Take a peek at our stocking stuffer gift ideas for your wine enthusiast. Christmas gift ideas under $25.00!  These are our most popular gifts early shoppers are buying for their loved ones. The holidays are fast approaching. It’s never too early to start shopping. Skip the craze of store shopping and shop online.

Great Gift Ideas for Your Wine Lover

1.  Wine Light Flame Protector Set

A wine gift that recycles a wine bottle and turns it into a wine candle. Lamp oil is not included. You can buy a bottle of lamp oil at a local store for about $2-3.00. Our wine bottle oil lamp gift idea is a best seller! One year there was an ice store up north. Power was out for weeks. We had many orders for our wine bottle oil lamp flame protector gifts set. They can stay lit for hours!

2.  Melted Wine Bottle Serving Bowl

Another ecofriendly wine gift idea! An artist recycles wine bottles into usable bowls. You can set your melted wine bottle serving bowl on the counter to display your fruit, use it as a serving tray, dipping bowl or cigar ash tray. This wine bottle bowl comes in two sizes. Be sure to order the oversized melted bowl early. These sell out frequently. This bowl is made from a  Jeroboam bottle which is equivalent to four bottles. It is huge!

3.  Mulled Wine Spices

Wine country’s secret blend. Infuses wine and cider with fragrances of flowers and herbs.

Directions: 1 bottle of any red or white wine, 12oz. water, Brown sugar to taste (1/4-1/2 cup) 1 Wine Country Mulling Spice bag. Remove card from spice bag leaving cork for flotation. Put ingredients in crock pot. Simmer slowly; do not boil, for at least an hour – the longer the better.

4.  Not a Margarita…But a Wine-A-Rita

A perfect and refreshing blend of wine and a frozen drink. The mix is one flavor and may be blended with your favorite red or white wine. Try Merlot for a full bodied drink, White Zinfandel for a lighter taste, or a fruit wine for a sweeter treat. The options are never ending. For a non-alcoholic drink, mix with fruit juice, we love the blends in the refrigerator section.

5.  Wine Journal with Label Removers

Use this wine journal as a guide, a record book, and an organizer—an all-in-one album for wine lovers. Enjoy your wine!

• Sections for reds, whites, and specialty wines
• Quotes that celebrate wine throughout
• Envelope with 15 wine label removers

6.  Wine Bottle Puzzle

Do you need to get a gift for a person who has just about everything? Wine puzzles make a great gift for your wine enthusiast. Not only does our puzzle make a great converstaion piece, but it is great for a rainy day at the beach or wine picnic game. Test your logic and ingenuity by taking a stab at our wine bottle puzzle. Should be solvable even after a few glasses of wine!

7.  VinoAir Wine Aerator

The VinOAir Wine Aerator takes 3 of our best wine accessories – wine aerator, wine pourer and dripless stopper and creates 1 great wine tool.

How does the VinoAir Wine Aerator compare to other aerators?

The vinOair was tested by several San Francisco Bay Area chefs/restaurant owners prior during its development. TheVinoAir scored high in all blind taste tests and was a favorite over the currently best selling Vinturi due to the ability to leave the aerator in the bottle and not risk drips on the table as the aerator is moved to another glass ­ and it was not necessary to hold the aerator steady over either a glass or a decanter. The VinoAir also scored high marks over the Nuance Wine Finer based on the speed of pour ­ the Nuance is much slower. The solid food grade plastic of the VinoAir was found superior to the silicon of the Nuance as it did not retain any aroma from the pouring.

8.  Wine Friendship Plate

Handcrafted in the USA from Statesmetal. This lovely wine friendship plate says:

9.  Santa & Reindeer Plush Stemware Coasters

Drinkwear…. for the foot of your glass!

Set of two Stemware Coasters with nifty straps keep them firmly attached to the bottom of your glass while you wander and mingle. Slip a wearable coaster onto the foot of your glass, it will stay with you as you mingle, protect your tabletop and identify your glass…with style.

You can use them for wine, martini, Pilsner, hot chocolate, coffee and margarita glasses.

10.  Wine a Bit, You’ll Feel Better Flag

Wave our best selling wine flag outside your house. This fun wine flag gives great advice. Wine a Bit Applique Flag is double sided.

Most people are skeptical when they hear about decanting their wine with an aerator. Seriously, how can a gadget change the taste of wine? Now, before you look at an aerator as some magical contraption that‘s hardly worth the investment, ask yourself this; do you toast the bread to make your sandwiches tastier? Do you wait for fruit to ripen? If so, then you should also decant your wine or aerate it with a wine aerator.

I’m sure you’ve heard that decanting a bottle of wine by pouring it into a wine decanter and waiting for a few hours will make wine taste better. This process allows the wine to breathe. When wine breathes it mixes with air causing the wine to open with aromas. The initial aromas of a freshly uncorked bottle of wine can be stale. Some people call this bottle stink. Allowing the wine to breathe eliminates the aroma; which also improves the wine’s flavor by greatly softening the tannins. The reduction of tannins creates a smoother glass of wine.

A wine aerator is similar to decanting wine, but better for those of us who don‘t have time to wait for decanting. This innovative wine gadget speeds up the aeration process in decanting wine instantly; thereby, improving the taste of a youthful wine even more quickly than a decanter.

The feedback we receive on these products is amazing. Just the other day a customer called to order more for holiday gifts and said, “it actually works very, very well!”. So, try one today. Conduct a taste test between a glass of wine poured through an aerator and one that isn‘t. You’ll notice the distinction between the flavors.

How it works….

Cooks Illustrated reviewed both the Nuance Wine Finer and the Vinturi Wine Aerator. A blind taste test produced high recommendations for both wine aerators. Nuance Wine Finer said this about their product, “tasters unanimously agreed that our aerator stood out for markedly improving flavor and aroma, increasing fruitiness, opening up the wine’s bouquet, and smoothing harsh notes.” Both innovative wine aerators will change a sip of wine into a more enjoyable tasting.

Nuance Wine Finer

Watch this video of  how the nuance wine finer works.

Vinturi Wine Aerator

A high recommendation went to the Vinturi Wine Aerator as well. This comparison comment was given from Cooks Illustrated’s review, “while it’s messier to use than models that attach to the bottle, this device brought out a ‘bright and strong’ aroma and ‘more fruit flavor.’” The makers of this ingenious aerator just recently (Oct. 2009), came out with the Vinturi Tower which makes this wine aerator less messy to use. Here’s how it works:

Be sure to order your Vinturi Tower early this holiday season. It’s been a popular product that has been difficult to keep on our shelves.