Dionysian devices

Storing and imbibing-related tech for the gentleman booze hound. Please enjoy responsibly…

1/ EuroCave Revelation Just look at the exquisite modernism of this apartment. This, clearly, is not the abode of a man who has drunk himself insane on Blue Nun. This is the home of a man who cherishes and savours the vintage wines swaddled in its soft-close drawers. These simulated cellars hold 74 to 200+ bottles, depending on model, with ideal temperature and humidity, constant ventilation, UV filtration and vibro-proofing. There’s also 360° lighting for when the time comes to actually drink something. From £2,400. Unit pictured £4,000, eurocave.co.uk 2/ JLWF152 and 153 by John Lewis Tighter budget and space? These seven-bottle coolers from JLP are like a London hipster: stylish, skinny, filled with booze. There’s only one temperature zone, but these are cheap, quiet (40dB) and energy-efficient. £269, johnlewis.com 3/ Coravin 1000 One for true connoisseurs, this allows you to pour glasses of wine without opening the bottle. Simply insert the Coravin’s Teflon-coated needle into and through the cork and draw off a glass. The needle then pumps in a puff of argon gas to prevent oxidisation and retracts. The cork ‘heals’ where the needle entered, like magic. £269, coravin.co.uk 4/ Corkcicle.Air A refreshingly low-tech approach to wine serving, you freeze this slightly grotesque-looking plastic ‘icicle’, then insert it into your bottle of wine to chill it. Next, pull off the top to pour through an aerating spout. The manufacturer is at pains to point out that yes, red wine does need cooling (to cellar temperature), and white wine does benefit from aeration. £14, corkcicle.com 5/ Wine Art If Coravin sounds a bit too much like warlockery to you, how about this more traditional machine for keeping wine fresh? It maintains a ‘perfect vacuum’ – a problem with pump-and-seal systems is users tend to apply either too much or too little – to keep your vino ‘just so’ for up to ten days. Its two compartments chill to either 16°C (red) or 8°C (white) at the prod of a button. £400, aroundwine.co.uk 6/ L’Atelier du Vin Hygro-Thermo Digital Station and Basetech Mini Speaking of optimum temperature, here are two ways to ensure just that, from cellar to glass. L’Atelier du Vin’s device monitors both the temperature and humidity around your stash. Basetech’s handy gizmo will tell you the temperature of anything you point it at, although there is a tolerance of +/-2ºC. £23, atelierduvin.com, £16, conrad-electronic.co.uk 7/ Root7 Vodka Zinger, Bar10der and Cocktail Master Alternatively, have a cocktail. These gizmos are, clockwise from top left, a mill for grinding fruit into vodka to create infusions; a tenin-one Swiss army knife of booze, and a range of specialist all-in-ones for mojitos, martinis and margaritas. Anything with an ‘m’, basically. £25, £30, £15, root7.com