Vingardevalise

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Alex Bridgeman
Graham’s 1948
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Vingardevalise

Post by Alex Bridgeman »

Lisa Stevens, a fellow Port loverfrom the US recently posted this on her FaceBook page:

Since many of my friends are big wine lovers, I want to share a deal that is just too good to pass up if you plan on travelling and want to bring wine along or back with you! The best wine suitcase on the market is called VinGarde Valise and it is a thing of beauty. Super well crafted, sturdy, and great for hauling wine around the globe! They are in some trouble due to COVID, so they are offering a screaming deal right now. I will let the owner tell it in his own words and then leave you with a link to purchase. Feel free to share with other wine lovers!

Note From the Inventor of the VinGardeValise® Wine Suitcase: Barry Wax
Many thanks to all of you who originally responded to this note. Just sending it back out in case it got lost amongst the seasonal clutter.
Like many small businesses, including The Strand Bookstore in New York City, we have been devasted by the twin body-blows caused by the Covid-19 pandemic: a virtual halt to leisure air travel, and the closure of many destination wineries all over the country (as well as overseas).

So, like The Strand and other businesses, we are reaching out to our community of users since we rolled out the VinGardeValise ® close to eight years ago to help us cope with the shattering drop-off in our business.

We are able to offer you unheard-of values on all three of our VGV® suitcases to induce you to make purchases today for future travel and for this upcoming holiday gift-giving.

The price of all three suitcases is $125 each, including FREE ground delivery in the contiguous United States (we have very few Piccolos left). In Europe, the cost is 125 euros each, FREE shipping to all locations except “remote areas” as determined by UPS, FedEx or DHL.

All inserts are $10 in the USA or 10 euros in Europe with FREE ground shipping in the contiguous US and continental Europe except for “remote areas” as determined by UPS, FedEx, or DHL

All wine chiller sheets are $15 in the USA or 15 euros in Europe with FREE ground shipping in the contiguous US and continental Europe except for “remote areas” as determined by UPS, FedEx, or DHL

These prices are good through the end of the year and you will never see them again, so I urge you to take advantage of this offer to buy gifts for family, friends, and associates. And please keep in mind that the VGV® suitcases, with the foam inserts removed, make excellent conventional suitcases.

To Redeem Offer:
Add suitcases to cart and then apply one of the Special Promotional Codes below:
Grande125 for Grande 12-bottle Wine Suitcase purchases.
Petite125 for Petite 8-bottle Wine Suitcase purchases.
Piccolo125 for Piccolo 5-bottle Wine Suitcase purchases.
No Promo code needed for inserts and wine chiller sheets.
Please note, offer cannot be combined with other offers. Only one discount code can be used per checkout. You can add several of the same suitcase model to the cart and apply one discount code to receive each suitcase for $125/125€. Please place separate orders per suitcase model. Free ground shipping available to select destinations.

https://vingardevalise.eu/

I've just been told that there may be one waiting for me under the Christmas tree this year!
Top Ports in 2023: Taylor 1896 Colheita, b. 2021. A perfect Port.

2024: Niepoort 1900 Colheita, b.1971. A near perfect Port.
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nac
Fonseca 1980
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Re: Vingardevalise

Post by nac »

I've had one of these in my Amazon Wishlist for a while. The Grande is £354 on Amazon so this is an amazing offer.
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flash_uk
Graham’s 1977
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Re: Vingardevalise

Post by flash_uk »

Grande order placed :-)
idj123
Morgan 1991
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Re: Vingardevalise

Post by idj123 »

There didn't appear to be anything I fancied for Christmas until I saw this...
Jasper May
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Re: Vingardevalise

Post by Jasper May »

Thank you Alex, that is just too good a deal to miss - I shall probably be arrested next time I try to clear customs in Bangkok ! :)
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Alex Bridgeman
Graham’s 1948
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Joined: 13:41 Mon 25 Jun 2007
Location: Berkshire, UK

Re: Vingardevalise

Post by Alex Bridgeman »

idj123 wrote: 23:00 Wed 25 Nov 2020 There didn't appear to be anything I fancied for Christmas until I saw this...
I was just the same. Now I can’t wait for Christmas!
Top Ports in 2023: Taylor 1896 Colheita, b. 2021. A perfect Port.

2024: Niepoort 1900 Colheita, b.1971. A near perfect Port.
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Alex Bridgeman
Graham’s 1948
Posts: 14880
Joined: 13:41 Mon 25 Jun 2007
Location: Berkshire, UK

Re: Vingardevalise

Post by Alex Bridgeman »

Jasper May wrote: 23:20 Wed 25 Nov 2020 Thank you Alex, that is just too good a deal to miss - I shall probably be arrested next time I try to clear customs in Bangkok ! :)
You are most welcome. I love the fact that you can buy magnum inserts, wine glass inserts, DIY inserts which can be used for Pota bottles or Tappit Hens or double magnums, or even use part of your carrying capacity for boring stuff like clothes.
Top Ports in 2023: Taylor 1896 Colheita, b. 2021. A perfect Port.

2024: Niepoort 1900 Colheita, b.1971. A near perfect Port.
winesecretary
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Re: Vingardevalise

Post by winesecretary »

Grande order placed. It is one of a very small number of luggage lust objects for me and I have wanted one for years and my existing suitcase is on its last legs and I'm off to Madeira for January and... so many reasons...
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slateshalehead
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Re: Vingardevalise

Post by slateshalehead »

Just purchased a Grande, plus a wine glasses insert and a piccolo-sized do-it-yourself insert. I'm hoping the DIY insert fits in some of my current bags
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nac
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Re: Vingardevalise

Post by nac »

Just ordered a Grande (plus a couple of inserts) and a Piccolo. Using George's reason that I needed some new suitcases - which I hope to be able to use at some point in the future...
/2alph
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Re: Vingardevalise

Post by /2alph »

Ordered a Grande with some inserts and a Picolo.
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slateshalehead
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Re: Vingardevalise

Post by slateshalehead »

My order just arrived, and everything seems high-quality. The inserts can be removed and reinserted with ease, and the bag has many nice features that even normal luggage lacks at this price point (360-degree wheels, built-in TSA zipper lock, rugged handles). Once we can travel again, I'm excited to try it out!

As a tip for anyone on the fence, I purchased the Piccolo-sized DIY insert to see if it would fit in my existing carry-on bag. It is just a touch too big, but the insert comes divided in two (about a 40/60 split), so I can fit one part of the DIY insert in my carry-on and fill the rest of the space with clothes to pad the gap. That alone is worth the $10!
Glenn E.
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Re: Vingardevalise

Post by Glenn E. »

In case it isn't obvious from all of the discussion about inserts, etc, the VinGuarde Valise is fully customizable by the owner.

At its most basic, it is a fairly high-end semi-hard shell suitcase (not legal for carry on). Each side of the suitcase is then filled with an "insert" that, by default, can hold 6 x 750ml bottles of wine. The inserts are made of foam and include a cover, meaning that one very common usage is to use an insert in one half of the suitcase to carry 6 bottles, but to leave the other half empty and use that for clothing, etc., for a short trip. The insert's cover keeps the bottles secure in the insert and helps protect them from anything in the "empty" half of the suitcase, though the level of protection between halves is nowhere near as good as the outer shell of the suitcase. I.e. don't put hard edged objects in the "empty" half of the suitcase and expect the insert cover to protect your bottles from them.

Naturally, these inserts can also be swapped out for other inserts designed to carry something other than 6 x 750ml bottle. There's even one insert that isn't designed for anything - it's simply an insert filled with small 3/4"-ish foam blocks so that you can make a custom shape in the insert to carry and protect just about anything. The system is remarkably flexible.

Note that there are 3 sizes of VinGuarde Valise, and I believe that the inserts used cannot be swapped amongst them. So you do need to coordinate your suitcase and insert purchases, or at minimum verify that the inserts can in fact be swapped before you make that assumption.

I already owned a WineCruzer, but purchased a Grande anyway to have the option when travelling. My WineCruzer is a much more robust case - it resembles a Pelican gun case so closely that many airports assume it is one and give it special handling - but it only holds 8 bottles and weighs very close to 50 lbs when fully loaded. I.e. the case itself weighs around 24 lbs. So the super premium bottles go in the WineCruzer and everything else goes in the VinGuarde Valise. :-)

(Incomprehensibly, Pelican does not sell wine-bottle inserts for their cases.)
Glenn Elliott
winesecretary
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Re: Vingardevalise

Post by winesecretary »

Mine has also arrived. I am very pleased with it. Perfect size for bringing back the new limit amounts for fortified wine from 01/01/21 (9 litres = 12 bottles). If I wanted to bring still wine (18 litres allowance) I could have bought two Grandes.
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