Twas less than 2 weeks until Christmas. The boats are still stuck off the docks and the stores are running low. And now you are looking for gift ideas that can still make it in time for Christmas. Wine collectors and whisky collectors probably already have some great toys and accessories for their collections, but a lot of new people became wine and whisky fans during and after the pandemic.

Collectors Dashboard usually features high-end whisky and high-end wine sales from auctions or specialty limited edition releases when we address this crowd. This is a different sort — 10 Last Minute Holiday Gift Ideas for Whisky Collectors & Wine Collectors.

Let’s jump right in… and these are in no ranked order!

COOL WINE GIFTS

1) JUST ONE GLASS TONIGHT… – Coravin is the standard in wine preservation. It allows you to take a glass of wine out of the bottle without opening the bottle. It’s perfect for those $75 and $100+ bottles of wine you might just want a glass from without having to kill the whole bottle. Coravin uses a needle to gently pass through corks without displacing cork material. As the wine is extracted it is replaced with pure Argon gas to prevent oxygen from ever touching that wine that would otherwise go from “investment grade” to “college grade.” The base price is listed at $99.99 for the hand held and can go up to $500 or more. Order by Dec. 12 for 12/25 delivery at the Coravin site.

2) WINE PRESERVERS & CHILLERS – OK, so many wine collectors and oenophiles already have a mere 1-bottle system. Why not have four of your precious bottles protected from all that oxygen that will make them go “college grade” on you. The Somm du Vin 4-Bottle Wine Preserver and Chiller keeps open bottles of any wine fresh for up to ten days. The double style features two connected 2-bottle Somm du Vin units with two plugs. Each storage zone can individually be set to 46° F, 54°F or 61°F for storing and servicing reds, whites and rosé. Just keep in mind that there needs to be at least two (2) inches of space on the sides and four (4) inches on the back and top for proper circulation and cooling performance. The layout accommodates most 750ml bottles. We saw this one at WineEnthusiast for $899.00, imaged by Wine Enthusiast.

3) WINE CELLAR ANYONE? – Now that you have become a die-hard fan of fine wine, it’s time to set up that wine room or wine area to show off and enjoy your wine. Wine Cellar Innovations makes incredible wine cellars and similar set-ups. These can come with glass wine cellar entryways with metal wine cellar entrances, wooden doors, great racks and lighting. It’s all worth it if you are already a wine collector. You don’t have to go for broke, but it looks like you can spend almost as much as any budget would want to here. Image by Wine Cellar Innovations.

4) WINE COOLER(S) – If your new wine collector doesn’t want to buy a full cellar, Wine Enthusiast also offers a 32-bottle wine cooler that can hold your most precious wines and allow them to age as they are supposed to. Its price is $489.00, or less than $16.00 to keep any bottle for a lifetime of your top 32 choices ready for you to drink. Image by Wine Enthusiast.

5) LAST MINUTE WINE CHOICES – Your wine collector already knows about good wine hopefully. And if they do like wine, the only wines they don’t like as gifts are those sub-$20 and sub-$30 bottles meant for the rest of us. But not all great wines cost $75 or $100 on up. Some cost less than $30 and $40. WineSpectator has its top 100 of 2021’s most exciting wine — and we also reviewed some of the great bargains that can be found as affordable on Wine Enthusiast’s top 100 list.

COOL WHISKY DRINKER GIFTS

6) WHISKY & SMOKING SET-UPS – The Crafthouse by Fortessa cocktail smoking box is something you see in steakhouses, but rarely in your home bar. Why not? For $299.95 you can get a rare steakhouse experience with smoked cocktails via your own personal smoke box to infuse cocktails with a savory smoke flavor. Oh, and for your last minute food items you can add some smokiness to your food with it as well. Imaged at Williams-Sonoma.

7) AROMA KITS – You know about wine smells, but did you learn to identify the aromas in your whisky? This set is the Master Whiskey Aroma Kit for $449.00. The set comes with 88 various whiskey aromas, and it comes with a board game and whiskey aroma wheel. Learning to identify 88 aromas isn’t an easy feat, but here are some lime, mango, apple, cherry, blackcurrant, cut grass, malt, biscuit, tobacco, tar, tree moss, black pepper and dozens more. Image by Aromaster.

8) PERSONALIZED DECANTER SET — HomeWetBar.com offers you a rather impressive personalized whisky decanter set. Use it for serving or just for display (or both!). The set includes a decanter, 4 glasses, and a serving tray. It can be engraved with two lines of text and it can have a year engraved as well. The Carson decanter measures 8.5″ x 3.5″ and holds 26 ounces of your libation, and the glasses will hold up to 10 ounces in case the holidays just really drive you into a serious session. Imaged at HomeWetBar.com.

9) LAST MINUTE WHISKIE CHOICES – Just like wine, that whisky lover isn’t going to turn a nose up at a bottle of whisky – or whiskey, or bourbon. Not as long as it’s good. Well, Whisky Advocate has its Top 20 whiskies of 2021 and the list is quite different from the 2020 Top 20 list. You know you aren’t getting off cheap on great whisky, but many aren’t going to break the bank either.

Well, that’s all. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of you wine and whisky lovers out there!