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Every year, as the holidays come around, we feel the need to shout to the rooftops: “The best gifts for wine lovers are actual bottles of wine!” Because it’s true that more than anything, oenophiles want good wine, not dumb gadgets. Not a motorized bottle opener, not cheesy wine-themed word art, and not grape-shaped charms to hang on our glasses. And we definitely don’t want a gift basket with all of those things plus a bunch of random filler we’ll never touch. Nope, it’s wine we want. Good old-fashioned wine.
But here’s the hard part about wine gifts: Serious wine lovers generally only want wine that fits into a narrow category of specific personal preferences. And unless you’re willing to do some sleuthing—or happen to know as much as they do about winemaking regions, varietals, and vintages—it can be near impossible to figure out what bottle to buy for your wine-loving loved one.
The good news is that there’s a happy medium because it’s totally possible to buy a wine-adjacent gift that’s not an electronic opener, a farmhouse-chic wine sign, or a set of bedazzled glass charms. There are plenty of tools, totes, and edible gifts wine lovers will actually want and use—and we know this because we happen to be wine lovers ourselves.
So to help you find the perfect gift for the wine lover in your life, we rounded up the wine-related items we actually use, along with a few wine gifts we’d be thrilled to receive this year. We even included a set of not-cheesy felt wine glass markers along with suggestions for a few good bottles just in case you’re dead set on going that route.
Here are the 49 best gifts for wine lovers you can buy online this year, whether you want to spend $15 or $1,500.
A wine opener for old corks
This strange-looking wine opener is our favorite kind of gift: a speciality tool with a stocking stuffer price tag. Most serious wine drinkers have plenty of regular corkscrews, but sometimes traditional wine openers are too much for older, delicate corks which can crumble when stabbed and tugged—leading to tiny specs of cork in your glass. Enter the ah so-style wine opener. It slides around the wine cork rather than through it, allowing the cork to be gently wiggled out, and it spares the wine lover in your life from having to double strain a pricey bottle of actually-vintage vintage cabernet sauvignon.
Stocking stuffers for wine lovers
If you’re looking for a stocking stuffer for your favorite wine lover, there are plenty of wine gifts that fit into that category at just about every price point. Here you’ll find a sleek foil cutter, Italian pewter wine coasters for keeping drips off of the table, understated felt wine charms that are decidedly not cheesy, and a set of beautiful marble wine stoppers for very short-term preservation of still wine. For the friend who prefers sparkling wine but doesn’t always feel the need to finish an entire bottle, we’ve also included a stainless-steel bottle stopper that works better than any other Champagne stopper we’ve tried for preserving bubbles.
High-quality wine-pairing snacks
It’s almost guaranteed that anyone who loves fine wine appreciates good food, too, so send the wine lover in your life some of the good stuff—whether that’s a Francophile’s cheese assortment or a selection from a favorite producer. Or go really above and beyond and give them a cheese subscription that will help them put together a beautiful cheese board at least once a month. Throw in some charcuterie or caviar if you’re feeling generous—or opt for an oyster shipment for your friends who love crisp whites like Muscadet, fino Sherry, or Champagne. And though wine geeks often reach for something savory to pair with wine, for the oenophile with a sweet tooth, consider sending chocolate truffles that are made specifically to pair with Champagne.
Giftable wine glasses
In some ways, picking glassware for wine lovers is as tricky as picking out wine for wine lovers because most serious wine drinkers know what they want and already have what they need. But there are still a few wine glasses that will always be welcome, including the Zalto Denk’Art Universal Glass. Zalto makes some of our favorite stemmed glassware that truly heightens the wine-drinking experience. The shape concentrates the aromas and the delicate rim makes every sip feel much, much fancier. Of course, being so delicate, they’re also a little too easy to break—which is why any serious wine lover will appreciate a new Zalto glass (or six). For giftable wine glasses that are less pricey and less delicate—but still luxurious—consider handblown options from Glasvin or colorful glasses from Estelle Colored Glass.
A stylish Champagne bucket or wine chiller
Is there a classier Champagne chilling bucket than a vintage one? We say no, but it depends on your favorite wine lover’s personal style, and we like the vintage-inspired bucket below, too. Or perhaps they’re more into marble—in which case you have three gorgeous, highly giftable options below.
A versatile carafe
Good-looking glass carafes make perfect gifts for wine lovers because they’re just so versatile. A carafe of water on the table serves as a reminder to hydrate, but an empty one can double as a low-key wine decanter—and if nothing else it can be used as a vase in a pinch. And while most home wine-drinkers don’t need a complex wine preservation gadget like the Coravin, if your favorite wine lover is always looking for a way to save half a bottle of wine on a weeknight, consider the Savino Wine Preserver. It looks like a sleek, simple carafe but has a simple silicone-rimmed top that can keep wine fresh in the fridge for up to a week.
A helpful tote for traveling with wine
Know a wine drinker who makes a point of bringing home new finds from every trip? The ISTA-certified wine bag below is the perfect gift that will ensure their bottles travels safely and securely. And for the friend who always brings over something special to enjoy with dinner, consider the cute over-the-shoulder bag below. It’s stylish, comfortable to carry, holds two bottles of wine without allowing them to clank together, and is sure to become their new favorite wine tote. For keeping wine cool on the go, the clear sleeves below are like portable, totable ice packs for chilling bottles of Champagne, Chardonnay, or rosé and they’re popular in tiny Paris cafés.
A cool-looking wine rack
If the wine lover in your life always seems to have a few bottles that don’t have a home, consider gifting a cool-looking wine rack that won’t take up too much space. A collapsible rack can be put together to hold surplus bottles in a pinch and put away when not in use, while a sturdy, stylish three-bottle holder is compact enough to live just about anywhere.
A fun wine book
Even the most knowledgeable oenophile can always learn something new about wine, which is why a wine book makes a great gift. For the friend who loves bubbles, consider Sparkling Wine for Modern Times, from wine writer Zachary Sussman. This 2021 title explores sparkling wine traditions all over the world, providing bottle recommendations, highlighting up-and-coming growing regions, and diving into the history of Champagne, Prosecco, Lambrusco, pét-nat, and more sparkling wines.
A new wine fridge
Serious wine lovers might invest in off-site storage for long-term cellaring, but if they don’t have built-ins, they still could probably still use a wine chiller for home use. This year, consider gifting a special fridge designed to hold all (or at least some) of your wine lover’s best bottles at optimal temperatures. A dual-zone fridge can even hold different types of wine at different temperatures.
An insulated wine tumbler
An insulated wine tumbler isn’t for everyone, but it’s definitely a great gift for the wine lover who’s always on the go. We prefer this style in the shape of a stemless wine glass for enjoying a crisp white or rosé at a cookout or when hanging outside by the fire.
A highly-rated aerator
An aerator is admittedly not the prettiest way to present a beautiful vintage, but aerating wine can enhance its more pleasing flavors while helping to accelerate the evaporation of sulfites and ethanol. For someone who’s gotten very into reds lately, but is still new enough to not have an aerator of their own, this affordable model is a great way for any wine lover to start using an aerator at home.
A wine subscription that’s actually good
In general, we don’t recommend many wine subscription services or multi-brand wine clubs. But, we trust our sommelier friends at Parcelle Wine to pick great bottles for you. Choose a 1-, 3-, 6-, or 12-month subscription as a holiday gift for the wine connoisseurs in your life, and expect a gift set of three great bottles to arrive each month (and invite yourself over for a wine-tasting one of those months).
A bottle of good wine
As we’ve mentioned, buying wine for a wine lover is tricky, but it’s not impossible. If you’re going to buy a red wine gift, you’ll definitely want to do some subtle sleuthing first. Does your giftee’s taste tend to lean Italian or French? Or are they more into California or Portugal? Do they only drink Pinot Noir or Cabernet? Or hardly ever either of those? The same is true of white wine as well—if their dinner parties are always stocked with natural wines from Australia or offbeat bottles from Jerez, you should go that way too. Below you’ll find a few options worth considering once you’ve sussed out the situation.
And here’s a not-so-secret tip about rosé: Some of the best bottles arrive toward the end of the summer and won’t be in stock next spring when pink wine begins to feel especially appealing. Any wine lover would be happy to have some summery Tempier rosé in their wine fridge, ready and waiting. Keep an eye out for Chateau Pradeaux’s Bandol luscious and complex rosé in your local shops too. (But know this: When they’re gone, they’re gone, until next year, at least.)
A fun wine flight
It’s too late in the holiday season for your giftee to enjoy a wine advent calendar (at least the way it’s intended, anyway), but you can still give the gift of little bottles with a curated flight of eight 187-milliliter bottles. This collection includes a Montepulciano, a pinot grigio, a bordeaux rouge, a Sangiovese rosé, a verdicchio, a barbera, a white Côtes du Rhône, and a bordeaux—and if there’s anything inside they don’t love, not much will go to waste.
A tool for a new party trick
Okay, we realize this gift isn’t exactly practical and it certainly isn’t something you should buy for just any wine drinker. But for the eccentric Champagne lover who likes to put on a good show and seems to already have everything money can buy, you might consider an extravagant but also kind of amazing Champagne saber from cookware brand Made In.
Looking for more gift ideas? Check out more of our gift guides below:
