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Christmas sorted: Wine gifts, large and small

Decanter Magazine, December 2022.

Whether it’s a few stocking fillers you’re looking for, or a lavish gift, Decanter’s editorial team has picked out 26 great present ideas for the wine lover in your life (or gift to self).

ADOPT A VINE WINE EXPERIENCE. The next best thing to owning your own vineyard – adopt between six and 36 vines in an organic vineyard chosen from a list of French regions and producers. There’s a welcome gift pack for Christmas Day, regular updates and photos, personalised bottle(s) at the end of the experience, and optional visits to the vineyard. From €169 gourmetodyssey.com.

Festive Foodie Gift Guide

France Magazine, December 2019.

Whet your appetite for Christmas with our round-up of gastronomic goodies, the perfect gift for them - or even a treat for you!

ADOPT-A-VINE. If you've ever fancied yourself as a vintner, get a taste for the job by adopting a vine and producing your own wine with Gourmet Odyssey.  Simply choose which part of France you'd like your own grapes from and you'll be on your way to getting those special bespoke bottles.

The best St Valentine's gifts for couples

Elle.fr (French language), 25 January 2019.

Weekend wine break, Gourmet Odyssey

Come and make your own vintage wine and follow the progress of your own vines in the organic vineyard of your choice. You can also personalise the wine bottles that are produced from your own adopted vines.

Adopt a Vine

LeFigaro.fr (French language), 13 November 2018.

Produce your own olive oil, honey, or make your own wine are something that we still dream about.

For those of you who don't have a spare 6 million euros to buy a hectare of grand cru vines in Burgundy, it's possible to sponsor some vines for a wine-making year for a much more modest sum.

Saint Valentine's : what gift to celebrate your love ?

France 3 Bourgogne Franche Comte (French language), 6 February 2017.

Rent vines and make your own wine!

An original gift for two.  With Gourmet Odyssey, discover the St Valentine's Wine Experience gift pack.  In making your own vintage of wine, your Valentine  will follow the progress of their own vines (in one of the chosen organic French vineyards.  They will also be able to personalise the wine bottles that are made using their adopted vines. 

The Stylist Christmas List: gifts for building memories

Stylist, December 2016.

Give a whole new meaning to ‘grow your own’ by adopting someone a vine (£136, gourmetodyssey.com).

Make your own personalised wine

Mieux Vivre Votre Argent, N° 416 November 2016.

For a wine-making year, adopt 6 or more vines at one of the eight organic vineyards that partner with the site. One vine gives you one bottle of wine, so you will end up with at least a case of 6 bottles that you can taste with pride, knowing that it was made for you. Depending on the chosen options, you can get involved in working in the vineyard, and can learn all about the key stages in making wine directly from the winemaker at the winery.

Me & My Organic Wine

Marianne, N° 995, 6 - 12 May 2016.

To really astound the crowd, place a bottle of organic wine on the table from your own vintage.  To take part in this privilege, no need to be a Bordelais heir.  Gourmet Odyssey allows you to adopt some vines (from 6 to 36) in a chosen winery (Burgundy, Loire Valley, Rhone Valley ...) and to follow their evolution right up until bottling.  After 12 to 24 months, you'll get your hands on your personalised vintage.  Cheers!

Last minute Christmas Gift Ideas

Sud Radio, 23 December 2015.

The 15/17 show.  For a great last minute Christmas gift idea, adopt some vines with Gourmet Odyssey.  The personalised certificate can be sent by email for all orders placed by 17:00 Paris time on the 24th December.

Three good ideas to explore

Régal, September 2015.

If you prefer something concrete...  Adopt 6 to 36 vines and follow their progress for 18 months - such is the proposition of Gourmet Odyssey.  You get to choose from one of seven organic vineyards in France, and then you can discover, harvest and make wine like a pro...

Tourism and wine. What's new in the vineyard?

Elle (France), June 2015.

An exhibition in a winery, a picnic in the vineyard, wine tasting courses...  Here are 16 good reasons to rediscover the vineyards.

A vine to adopt

To follow the making of a vintage of wine, we've just met Marc Plouzeau, winemaker at Château de la Bonnelière, in La Roche Clermault.  You can participate in the work of a winemaker or follow the evolution of your wine by newsletter.  At the end of the experience, you receive as many bottles of personalised wine as the number of vines that you have adopted (minimum of 6).

From € 159.

You too can adopt a vine!

BIBA, May 2015.

Fancy having your own organic wine?  With this site, you can adopt some vines and over time keep informed of what's happening to them.  You can also visit the winemaker to get involved in making the wine, and you end up with your own personalised bottles of wine.

A drink with Stella McCartney

Madame Figaro, 01 March 2015.

The green fashion icon has published a vegetarian recipe book with her father, Paul, and her sister, Mary.  We concocted a made to measure break post-défilés.

... We propose a nice eco-friendly idea from Gourmet Oydssey -  adopt some organic vines, participate in a harvest and vinification experience day, and receive a personalised bottle of wine for each adopted vine.

Christmas Gifts : Good ideas spotted by the editors on the internet

Elle (France), November 2014.

Adopt a vine

To have my own personalised wine with my labels.  You can follow the key steps in making your vintage over 18 months, at the vineyard or online.
Delphine Gautherin, Head of the cooking section

Make your own wine ? When the consumer plays the apprentice winemaker

Le Figaro (French), November 2014.

Adopt a vine, make your own blend or personalise the wine label...  Making wine is becoming more accessible!  An insight into these new trends...

... The Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience allows you to follow the whole process of making wine, from the work carried out in the vineyard to the bottling of the wine at the end, by immersing yourself in the life of a winemaker. According to Mark Bootherstone, the founder, “The Wine Experience gives the opportunity to discover the profession of a winemaker and to gain an insight into the daily life that we generally know little about.” How? By adopting your own vines in one of the 7 organically certified partner wineries for a winemaking year…

Taste this wine - I made it!

La Revue du Vin de France, N° 578, February 2014.

The Indispendsable from Adeline De Fabiani

Does the idea of making your own wine excite you?  Try the adventure by adopting up to 36 vines for a wine-making year.  Get involved in the harvest and vinification, follow the evolution of your wine, personalise your labels and receive your bottles of wine.

Christmas 2013: Virtual Gifts

20 Minutes (France), 19 December 2013.

Gastronomy and wine on the net

Gourmet Odyssey offers to adopt a vine and get involved in making your own wine, and at the end of the wine-making year to receive your bottles of wine.

Christmas: Last minute gift ideas

Confidentielles, 17 December 2013.

Christmas is just a few days away and you're still looking for a few gift ideas?  Not to worry, we've created a special last minute list for you! ...

An original gift idea for wine lovers: rather than the classic bottle of Grand Cru, give some adopted vines!  Gourmet Odyssey offers you the chance to adopt your own vines for a winemaking year and to get involved in making your own wine (from 149 euros). ...

The fear of getting the wrong gift...

Madame Figaro, 22 November 2013.

...and/or opening that of your partner who isn't necessaily better in the exercise.  You've already given him everything from the cycling isle, have covered him in cashmere V-neck jumpers.  Can we do any better?

The strategy of the immaterial gift.  Adopt a vine (gourmetodyssey.com) and receive its production is, for those who have everything, an idea...

5 Gift Ideas for Mother’s Day

France 3 Centre, 19 May, 2013.

Not long to go before Mother’s Day!  We’ve still got time I hear you say.  Yes, if you’re counting on offering a bunch of flowers, but if you want to give something a little more original, you need to get organised now!  France 3 gives you a few gift ideas for Mother’s Day!
Rent one or more vines for a winegrowing year (budget between 99 and 450 euros).  Via the internet or during visits to the winery, you will follow the evolution of your adopted vines.  You can also participate in courses run by oenologists.  At the end of the experience, the web winemaker that you will now be, you’ll also get a few bottles.

20 chic and original Christmas gift ideas

Le Journal du Net, 5 December 2012.

Short of ideas for your Christmas presents?  Here are a few items that you haven’t perhaps thought of that are sure to please under the Christmas tree.

From historial monuments made out of Lego, knitted trainers or adopted vines to produce your own wine, you’ll find some ideas here to suit all tastes...

For wine lovers, Gourmet Odyssey offers you the chance to adopt your own vines and create your own wine.  For Christmas you’ll receive a welcome pack containing a sommelier’s apron, a personalised certificate, and access to the customer portal to follow the work at your winery.  You can choose your region from the Loire Valley, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Alsace, Languedoc, or the Côtes du Rhône.

The Times, Christmas Gift Guide

The Times, 30 November 2011.

Festive Cheer 

When Paul Samms opened a long tin box under the Christmas tree at his Sussex home he found a sommelier's apron and a certificate informing him that he had the rights to six merlot vines at Château Beau Rivage, near Bordeaux, for the next year.

For a man who is fond of his food and wine it was an excellent gift.  "Everybody fancies they know something about wine but, if all you have ever done is pull a cork or open a screwtop, this is a very enjoyable way to learn more about it," says Samms, who works in the London currency markets.

The present, from his wife, Lesley, cost € 249 (£ 206) and also included an online code to view his vines and follow their progress and an invitation to a wine experience day at the vineyard.  He had the chance to see the vines, meet the winemaker and learn how vines are pruned and the wine is made.  He is now looking forward to the delivery of six bottles from his vines in the middle of next year.

gourmetodyssey.com 

France 3, 13h avec vous

France 3, 6 october 2011.

Report featured on France 3 television lunchtime news featuring the Harvest Experience Day at Château Beau Rivage.

Follow this link to view the clip. (French language) 

Gourmet Odyssey, the site to get a foot in the vineyard

Terre de Vins, October 2011

Adopt a vine or make your own micro-cuvée?  Several winemakers propose such packages, but the internet site of Gourmet Odyssey takes care of everything for you.  The company created by Mark Bootherstone, a fan of gastronomy, travelling and wine, lets you set off on your adventure in a click from 149 euros!

The site has partnered with 5 winemakers who work organically.  The vineyards are located in the four corners of France; Domaine Allegria in the Languedoc village of Pézenas, Château de la Bonnelière in Chinon in the Loire Valley, Château Beau Rivage in Macau-en-Médoc in the Bordeaux region, and in Burgundy, Domaine Chapelle in Santenay and Domaine Jean-Marc Brocard in Chablis.

A Personalised Vintage

Once the vineyard has been chosen, the internet winemaker adopts between 6 and 36 vines for a winemaking year.  The number of vines corresponds to the number of personalised bottles of wine that they will receive at the end of the adventure.

To enter into the world of wine, a welcome gift pack is sent, containing a sommelier’s apron, a DropStop, a personalized certificate, a brochure explaining the Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience, and an access to the Customer Portal.

Throughout the year, the internet winemakers have the possibility to visit the vineyard during one of the Discovery, Harvest or Vinification Experience Days.

Gourmet Odyssey also offers the creation of your own wine, called a micro-cuvée.

This other experience is possible in the Languedoc winery of Allegria.  During this oenology course, you get to taste and identify the different grape varietals, and to understand their characteristics.  With the help of the winemaker and a graphic designer, it’s up to you to decide the blend of your wine and the look of your label. 

La Gazette Gastronomique #1

GQ Magazine.fr, April 2011

Discovery: Gourmet Odyssey
For those whom the world of wine fascinates, attracts, and entices to learn more about what is hidden behind the bottle, Mark Bootherstone has created a service with 4 organic vineyards that allows you to adopt some vines, watch them develop over the internet, and visit the winery to work on the vines and the wine.  The experience can go as far as producing your own barrel of wine (300 bottles), where the blending of the wine and the labelling is left to the complete choice of the client. 

GQMagazine.fr (article in French) 

Make your dreams a reality by renting a piece of a vineyard

Management, March 2011 N° 184, Page 102

After work > Art de vivre > Oenology
Live a rare wine adventure by buying your vintage on the vine at a winery.  You’ll pamper your cuvée and receive your own personalised bottles of wine.  
Whenever they are entertaining, Camille and Frédéric make waves by serving the wine which comes straight from their Burgundy vines.  Like almost 10 000 French people, this Parisian couple have immersed themselves in virtual winemaking.
 

Our Selection…

Burgundy: Domaine Chapelle, Santenay.

Terroir: This Côte de Beaune winery has been in the same family for more than a century.  Cultivated organically, the estate produces many fine wines (nuits-st-georges, chassagne montrachet, santenay…)
Wine: The cuvee Clos de Cornières, available in the rent-a-vine experience, is a good Santenay (red wine), hand harvested and matured for 12 months in oak barrels. 

The Best Addresses for Online Shopping before Christmas

A Nous Paris, 29 December, 2010.

For the foodies, numerous sites propose marrying utility and pleasure...

... Same principal applies to wine from different regions 5Bordeaux, Burgundy, Chablis).  GourmetOdyssey.com enables you to adopt your own vines and become a "winemaker" for a vintage.  

Adopt your own vines for personalised wine; UNCORKED

Hull Daily Mail, 30 October 2010.

Could this be the ultimate Christmas gift for wine-lovers - your very own vines in a French vineyard, producing your own wine? The idea is certainly catching on - Gourmet Odyssey is a French-based company selling more and more "wine experiences" to British oenophiles (that's wine enthusiasts in everyday language). And this month they responded to demand by increasing the number of participating wineries from two to three.

The Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience is designed to go beyond the traditional wine tasting and vineyard tours. The cost - from about £132, depending on the chosen winery - includes the chance to adopt from six to 36 vines in your chosen vineyard, the ability to follow their progress online and a choice of up to three wine experience days at the vineyard, with the opportunity to bring a guest.

The end result is from six to 36 personalised bottles of wine your vines have helped create - the number of vines you adopt equates to the number of bottles of wine you'll receive at the end of your wine experience.

For your wine experience days you can choose from wine discovery days, harvest experiences and vinification experiences, the latter being an opportunity to learn what happens to your wine as it matures, between fermentation and being ready for bottling.

Gourmet Odyssey offers the experiences through three partner vineyards - in Bordeaux, Burgundy, and now the latest winery, producing Chablis, less than two hours from Paris.

For more details on Gourmet Odyssey, visit www.GourmetOdyssey.com 

Good Ideas on the Web

Cuisine et Vins de France, Juin – juillet – Août 2010 N° 134, Page 160.

Vine Rental
www.GourmetOdyssey.com

More than just a gift, this site allows you to give a passionate experience, that of the vine.

You can offer a wine enthusiast the possibility to adopt their own vines and follow all the stages of winemaking via a newsletter.

Before receiving their bottles, the virtual wine makers can personalise their own wine labels. 

According to the wine experience chosen by the gift-giver, they also get the opportunity to participate in the harvest or in the blending.  For now, the site offers this wine adventure in Burgundy and the Bordeaux region, in two organic wineries.

From € 149

In Vino BFM Radio

5th June, 2010

Gourmet Odyssey Wine Experience discussed during the In Vino show featuring Alain Marty, Philippe Faure-Brac, David Cobbold, and guests.  In Vino is France’s only radio programme that is 100% dedicated to the world of wine and vineyards.
 
Download the In Vino podacst from the 5th June and listen from minute 51.20 to minute 52.50. (Interview only available in French)