A good wine trip requires very little. A bad wine trip is ruined by the wrong decision at the wrong moment — the broken corkscrew at the Airbnb, the shirt that can’t be worn to dinner, the wine purchase that has nowhere to go. This is the list that prevents those moments.
The Wine Gear
An emergency corkscrew. If your accommodation doesn’t have one — and many Airbnbs don’t, for reasons no one has ever satisfactorily explained — you’ll need to open your first bottle with a butter knife and the resulting frustration will color your evening. A cheap waiter-style corkscrew weighs 100 grams and costs $10. There is no excuse.
A wine bag or two. For carrying purchases home, and for carrying a bottle to a picnic. The neoprene sleeve style is versatile enough for both uses and takes up almost no space.
A wine glass or two. If you’re serious about wine, the glasses at most rental properties are not adequate. A single good glass — or two, if you’re sharing — can transform a hotel room bottle into an experience. Look for something unbreakable or accept the risk. Zalto makes the most elegant travel wine glasses available; otherwise a basic ISO tasting glass works well.
A small flashlight. Cellar tours are dark. The light from a phone is not adequate and holding a phone means you can’t take photos or hold your glass. A small LED keychain light solves this.
The Clothing
One jacket that works for everything. A good leather jacket, a structured blazer, or a cashmere layer that can be worn over a shirt in the evening and folded into a bag during the day. You need one thing that handles dinner and the vineyard walk without requiring a change.
Two pairs of shoes maximum. The first pair: comfortable, leather, suitable for gravel paths and dinner tables. The second pair: something for the pool or beach if your trip includes that. If it doesn’t, one pair is enough.
Linen shirts. Two or three. They pack small, they breathe in heat, they don’t need to be ironed, and they look better after wearing. White, light blue, and one in a darker neutral are the three to bring.
Dark jeans or trousers. One pair. They work for dinner, for the vineyard walk, for everything. Light-colored jeans show wine stains permanently and show dust immediately.
The Things That Save the Trip
A portable phone charger. Tasting rooms are not always near outlets, and the camera on your phone will die faster than you expect. A small power bank is one of those things you don’t think about until you need it.
** ibuprofen.** Tasting involves more wine than a normal dinner, and doing this for multiple days in a row requires some chemical assistance. Take it before bed, not in the morning.
An empty duffel bag. Pack this empty in your checked luggage. It is for the wine you’ll inevitably buy and won’t be able to fit in your suitcase. Most wineries will ship for you, but sometimes you want to carry your purchases home yourself.
What Not to Pack
Anything formal. Anything with a logo. More than two pairs of shoes. More than two bags. The packing mistake people make most often in wine country is bringing too much stuff, which means they’re thinking about their luggage instead of the wine.
